Vikings, GM Spielman reach multiyear extension
MINNEAPOLIS — The Minnesota Vikings and general manager Rick Spielman have agreed to a multiyear contract extension, the team announced Monday.
Spielman’s new deal is believed to run through the 2023 season, according to league sources, which would keep him in line with head coach Mike Zimmer, who recently received a three-year contract extension.
“I know every day we come to this building, and the only thing that we want to accomplish is to win a Super Bowl. There’s no one that deserves that honor more than our ownership, this organization and especially our fans. I promise you that when we come in here every day, that is our ultimate goal. Very excited about the extension and look forward to the future,” Spielman said.
Spielman, who has worked with Zimmer since the 2014 season, calls their shared vision “the same” going into 2020.
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“When Coach Zim came and we hired him as our head coach, we had a vision of how we wanted to build this team,” Spielman said. “I know this year we have a lot of new faces that are coming into the organization, a lot of new players, a totally different challenge because the coaches haven’t been able to work with these players until this time when we’re technically kind of opening up training camp.
“But I think it’s sticking to your principles, sticking to everything that you believe in on how you build a winning culture. He’s talked about it numerous times, from the type of players that we want to bring in that are smart, very passionate, high-character guys off the field. But also I think it’s not only the players, but there’s gotta be that culture with the coaching staff, there’s gotta be that culture with everybody under the football operations umbrella, and when you can bring all that together with the same goals, the same common vision, I think that’s where you hopefully will make the breakthrough.”
Like Zimmer, Spielman had one year remaining on his deal before receiving an extension.
“Rick has been outstanding in his role as Vikings general manager,” Vikings co-owner and team president Mark Wilf said in a statement. “We are excited and honored to have him continue to lead our efforts to build a championship roster and first-class organization. With Rick’s and Coach Zimmer’s leadership in place, we are in a great position to continue to compete for a Super Bowl.”
Spielman is entering his 15th season in Minnesota after joining the club as the vice president of player personnel in 2006 before moving into his role as general manager on Jan. 3, 2012. Under his leadership, Spielman has made more draft picks — 93 — than any other general manager over the past eight years.
The Vikings have made the postseason in four of Spielman’s eight seasons as general manager and reached the NFC Championship Game during the 2017 season. Minnesota’s .570 winning percentage (72-54-2) since 2012 ranks ninth in the NFL and is the fourth best in the NFC over that eight-season span.
“We appreciate Rick’s work ethic, diligence and commitment to the Vikings,” team co-owner and chairman Zygi Wilf said in the statement. “We continue to have the utmost confidence in him as we work to assemble championship-caliber teams to reach our ultimate goal of winning a world championship.”
During the 2020 NFL draft, Spielman turned 12 picks into a seven-round NFL-record 15 selections with two additional picks gained for the 2021 NFL draft through trades. The Vikings’ 2020 class is the largest since the NFL condensed its annual draft to seven rounds in 1994. It also marked Minnesota’s first 15-member class since 1985, tying for the largest overall draft class since 1976, when the team added 17 players over 17 rounds.
