6 months ago
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Kevin SeifertJul 26, 2025, 03:48 PM ET
- Kevin Seifert is simply a unit writer who covers the Minnesota Vikings and the NFL astatine ESPN. Kevin has covered the NFL for implicit 20 years, joining ESPN successful 2008. He was antecedently a bushed newsman for the Minneapolis Star Tribune and Washington Times. He is simply a postgraduate of the University of Virginia.
EAGAN, Minn. -- The Minnesota Vikings wrapped up possibly their last portion of offseason concern Saturday, signing information Josh Metellus to a three-year declaration hold that ensures helium volition walk the bulk of his vocation with the squad that made him a sixth-round draught prime successful 2020.
The woody is worthy $36 cardinal with a maximum worth of $42 million, according to ESPN's Adam Schefter, and includes $25 cardinal successful guarantees. Metellus' existing declaration was acceptable to void aft this season.
"I'm here, baby," Metellus said to footwear disconnected a quality league anterior to the Vikings' grooming campy practice. "I'm here."
Metellus was chiefly a peculiar teams subordinate during his archetypal 3 seasons, but helium ascended into a multi-positional relation erstwhile antiaircraft coordinator Brian Flores joined the Vikings successful 2023. Although listed arsenic a safety, Metellus played each implicit the field. During immoderate games, manager Kevin O'Connell recalled Saturday, Metellus has lined up astatine arsenic galore arsenic 7 antithetic positions. Over that period, Metellus started 27 games and played 90% of the Vikings' antiaircraft snaps.
"His travel is thing that means a batch to him," O'Connell said. "You've got first-round picks that yet get their monolithic extensions, but immoderate guys don't get to travel into this league with that benignant of way and they've got to gain it from wherever they're selected, and gain it from what their roles are aboriginal connected successful their time, and past yet erstwhile you get to a spot wherever you've developed this benignant of worth for our team, I deliberation it's truly awesome."
Former Vikings information Cam Bynum turned down the team's overtures for a preseason hold past summertime and alternatively signed a four-year, $60 cardinal declaration with the Indianapolis Colts this spring. Metellus said helium could ne'er envision himself leaving, and portion helium sat retired immoderate drills during OTAs and mini-camp, helium declined to unit the Vikings further this summer.
Metellus participated successful each of the Vikings' opening signifier of grooming camp, saying afterwards that helium thought it was his work arsenic a squad leader. An ankle wounded forced him retired of signifier Thursday and Friday, but O'Connell said "we were being honest" astir the diagnosis and that Metellus' lack was not related to negotiations.
Speaking Saturday, Metellus said determination was nary portion of him that wanted to spot if helium could get a amended woody adjacent outpouring connected the unfastened market.
"I wanted to beryllium here," helium said. "I emotion it here. This is home. I privation to decorativeness my vocation here. I consciousness similar I embody precisely what we privation physique present and I privation to triumph stay for the city. I recognize the metropolis is owed for thing big, truthful I'm conscionable pouring everything I person into this."
The Vikings person present committed astir $350 cardinal successful currency to their 2025 roster, capitalizing connected the rookie declaration of backmost J.J. McCarthy to get a twelve veterans either done escaped bureau oregon trade. They besides re-signed moving backmost Aaron Jones, cornerback Byron Murphy Jr., information Harrison Smith and extended the existing declaration of linebacker Andrew Van Ginkel.
