Will Cowboys spend big? Barnwell predicts moves for NFC East
Will Dallas extend the contracts for three stars? What will Philly do with Nick Foles? Let's make offseason moves for the NFC East.
2018 ScheduleAll times ET
2018 Schedule
8-7-1, 2nd in NFC North
Michael Rothstein ESPN Staff Writer
Fans are dressed in togas — part of an Orlando Apollos promotion — for the AAF opener against Atlanta, concluding 49-year old Jesse Solum and 42-year-old Eric Gorecki, both of Deltona, Fla. They are Vikings fans in the NFL season.
Courtney Cronin ESPN Staff Writer
Vikings made several staff changes official Friday: Marwan Maalouf takes over as special teams coordinator, Rick Dennison as OL coach/run game coordinator & Drew Petzing as WR coach. Terence Newman is replaced by Jeff Howard as asst. DBs coach/defensive assistant.
Kellerman: Foles would fit well with Giants and Vikings (0:57)
Vikings' Kyle Rudolph is there for families during the fight of their lives
The Walter Payton Man of the Year Award nominee's desire to work with the Masonic Children's Hospital comes from personal experience.
Barnwell: Predicting 2019 Vegas win totals for all 32 NFL teams
Let's project over/under win totals for next season, from worst to best. The Vikings and Colts could be tricky.
Jenna Laine ESPN Staff Writer
There will be at least one big-man touchdown in Sunday's Pro Bowl, and if I had to guess, it'll come from Jake Matthews. Props to Adam Thielen for the flip here.
Vikings' Anthony Barr will let free agency 'dictate itself'
The linebacker has voiced his desire to remain in Minnesota, but he might be a better fit elsewhere as a rush linebacker in a 3-4 scheme.
How Gary Kubiak's influence could affect the Vikings' offense
The veteran playcaller's role is uncertain, but his experience should help Kirk Cousins and the Vikings' quest to be more balanced.
Biggest looming free-agent decisions for all 32 NFL teams
Could Clay Matthews move on from Green Bay? Will the Texans bring back Tyrann Mathieu? Here are the questions facing every team.
Re-grading every NFL team's 2018 offseason moves
With the benefit of hindsight, we reassess which teams aced the draft, free agency, trades and coaching moves last spring and summer.
Vikes hire ex-Bronco Kubiak as offensive adviser
Gary Kubiak will return to coaching with the Minnesota Vikings, a source tells ESPN's Adam Schefter. The former Broncos head coach will have an offensive advisory role, and his son Klint is expected to become the Vikings quarterbacks coach.
Brian O'Neill, Mike Hughes provide hope for Vikings' future
Top pick Mike Hughes saw his season cut short by a torn ACL; Brian O'Neill quickly transitioned from project to starter at right tackle.
Longtime Vikings assistant Michels dies at 87
John Michels, a College Football Hall of Famer whose 27 seasons as a Minnesota Vikings assistant coach included all four of their Super Bowl appearances, died Thursday. He was 87.
Courtney Cronin ESPN Staff Writer
Mike Priefer tells me he's "juiced" at the opportunity of working for Freddie Kitchens in Cleveland. Once Priefer became a free agent upon his contract expiring on Tuesday, a handful of teams reached out for interviews -- three of which he said he turned down. A whirlwind week for the veteran special teams coordinator included interviews with the Browns, Falcons and Lions. The Vikings also tried to bring Priefer back and offered him a contract before he ultimately signed his deal with the Browns on Friday. Priefer, who was born in Cleveland, says he left the Browns facility "on Cloud 9" and is excited for the next step of his career after eight seasons in Minnesota and a chance to return home for the first time since he coached offensive tackles, tight ends and special teams at Youngstown State in 1997-98.
Vikings luck out with Kevin Stefanski returning as offensive coordinator
The Vikings removed the interim tag from his title, avoiding what could have been a complicated search for a new playcaller and ensuring continuity.
Courtney Cronin ESPN Staff Writer
After Mike Priefer's contract expired on Tuesday, the former special teams coordinator and the Vikings parted ways. Priefer's punt/kickoff units in Minnesota were consistently explosive through his tenure, but there were a host of ups and downs in the kicking game (Blair Walsh, Daniel Carlson, even Dan Bailey's 7 missed FGs this season) over the last few years. Priefer was one of the main proponents of changing the rules for kickoffs during the offseason and is one of the leading veteran STCs in the NFL.
Courtney Cronin ESPN Staff Writer
Kevin Stefanski cites a "shared vision" when it comes to creating an offense that checks all the boxes that are important to Mike Zimmer while balancing what the offensive coordinator wants to get out of the scheme: "I have worked with coach for a bunch of years now. I understand him, he understands me. I think we both understand what gives defenses problems and with coach being a defensive coordinator, understands real well what is hard on a defense so he's someone that we're going to use as a resource. We're going to put together gameplans in a system and an offense that we feels gives our players the best chance to succeed on Sunday."
Courtney Cronin ESPN Staff Writer
What will the Vikings offense look like under Kevin Stefanski? Will there be wholesale changes to the scheme or will the OC create an offense based on melding several philosophies together? "I think I could better answer that in the spring, really," Stefanski said. "We'll try to do absolutely everything. We're going to look at everything. We're going to really pull this thing apart and be very diligent about that aspect of it. What it ends up looking like remains to be seen. I have a pretty good idea of what I want it to look like, what coach wants it to look like, but we're going to work through that process and not skip any steps."
Courtney Cronin ESPN Staff Writer
One month ago today, Kevin Stefanski took over offensive coordinator duties in Minnesota on an interim basis. Today he assumes the job full time after he was hired on Wednesday.
Bears nearly sweep NFC North awards after breakthrough season
NFC North Coach of the Year Matt Nagy turned Mitchell Trubisky into a dual-threat headache for opponents, and the Bears' defense also dominated.
Courtney Cronin ESPN Staff Writer
Kirk Cousins formed his initial impression of Kevin Stefanski years ago and reflects on how far the Vikings OC has come since then: "I don't know what the personality trait is, but when you carry yourself well and relate well to players, that's a very valuable trait in a coach – and not every coach has that trait. And I first met Kevin and saw that he had that trait back at the Senior Bowl in 2012, and ever since then I've really followed his path and really felt that he'd be a coach I'd enjoy working with because of the experience I had at the Senior Bowl, and I always felt like he was an up-and-coming coach in the league. I'm sure, I know that his interview with Cleveland went as far as it did for good reason, and I think that he'll have other opportunities like that in the future, especially if we as an offense are able to do the job we're expecting to do this next fall."
Stefanski back as Vikings' offensive coordinator
Kevin Stefanski, the longest-tenured coach on the Vikings, has returned as offensive coordinator following a stint as the interim coach at the position and being a candidate for the Browns' coaching job.
Courtney Cronin ESPN Staff Writer
The Vikings will retain Kevin Stefanski as their offensive coordinator for 2019, according to ESPN's Adam Schefter. The move comes moments after news broke that Browns offensive coordinator Freddie Kitchens will take over head coaching duties in Cleveland, a position that Stefanski completed a second interview for on Tuesday. Stefanski's return to Minnesota is critical for a team looking to build continuity on offense after an 8-7-1 season where the Vikings ranked 20th in yards, 19th in scoring, 30th in the run game and 13th in passing. Stefanski has worked more closely with QB Kirk Cousins than anyone on staff, serving as his position coach before being promoted to interim offensive coordinator in Week 15. Many close to the situation indicated that the ideal situation for the offense moving forward was to keep Cousins in the same system with the same terminology, structure that he had in his first year in Minnesota to avoid having to learn/work in a new offense with a new offensive coordinator for a fourth straight season.
Panthers, Vike assistants to coach Shrine Game
Assistant coaches Sam Mills III of the Carolina Panthers and Adam Zimmer of the Minnesota Vikings will be the head coaches of the East-West Shrine Game.
2018 NFC North Standings
2018 Team Leaders
- Offense
- Defense
Passing Yards
Rushing Yards
Receiving Yards
Tackles
Sacks
Interceptions
Team Stats
Passing Yards252.3
Rushing Yards93.3
Points For22.519th
Points Against21.3
