Several NFL teams will be searching for a new head coach in the coming days, and some of them are reportedly planning to explore the trade market to find their new leader.
According to Jay Glazer of FOX Sports, multiple NFL teams have considered the possibility of trying to trade for Minnesota Vikings head coach Kevin O’Connell. Glazer said on Sunday that O’Connell is entering the final year of his contract with the Vikings, and teams want to see if there is a price tag attached to the 39-year-old.
“There are multiple teams that actually are considering trying to trade for Kevin O’Connell,” Glazer said. “The reason why: next year, the last year of his deal. They have had no contract talks yet at all. If you’re a team out there saying, ‘Why not take a shot? See if we can do it.’
“Maybe the Vikings don’t let it happen. But also Kevin O’Connell kind of has the cards here and, ‘Hey, listen, I’m not gonna re-sign there, so you might as well get something for me.’ Now, I don’t know, because I don’t think Kevin knows about this right now, but there are multiple teams that have him on that board.”
You can hear Glazer’s report at the 3:09 mark:
@JayGlazer has a look at the potential coaching carousel as we head into the final Sunday, including multiple teams having interest in attempting to trade for Vikings HC Kevin O'Connell pic.twitter.com/s1LyNrWKiS
— FOX Sports: NFL (@NFLonFOX) January 5, 2025
Trades involving head coaches are rare, but not unheard of. Most recently, Sean Payton was traded from the New Orleans Saints to the Denver Broncos in 2023. The Saints got a first-round and second-round draft pick in the deal, while Denver got Payton and a third-round pick. Bill Belichick and Jon Gruden were traded for similar prices in the early-2000s.
The Vikings are 14-2 entering their season finale. The winner of their Sunday night game against the 14-2 Detroit Lions will capture the NFC North title and No. 1 seed in the NFC.
Unless O’Connell wanted out of Minnesota, it is extremely unlikely that the Vikings would entertain trading him. You can’t blame teams for trying, though, given the success he has had in Minnesota.
