EAGAN, Minn. — Mike Zimmer could be staying in Minnesota for the long-term.
According to NFL Network's Tom Pelissiero, the Minnesota Vikings are nearing a multi-year contract extension with their head coach.
Zimmer is entering the seventh season as the head coach of the Vikings, posting a 57-38-1 record -- a 59.9% winning percentage -- and has led the team to three playoff appearances, including a trip to the NFC Championship to cap the 2017-28 season.
Zimmer is the third-winningest coach in franchise history, behind only Hall of Fame coach Bud Grant and Dennis Green, who spent 10 seasons with the Vikings.
The possible extension comes after a 10-6 season where the Vikings qualified for the playoffs and upset the New Orleans Saints in overtime.
Since taking over in 2014, Zimmer has helped transform a defense that ranked in the bottom of the league in points allowed to a perennial top-10 defense. Zimmer cut his teeth as a defensive backs coach and defensive coordinator for the Dallas Cowboys, before taking over as a defensive coordinator for the Atlanta Falcons in 2007. After just one season, Zimmer went to the Cincinnati Bengals to be their defensive coordinator before getting his first NFL head coaching job with the Vikings in 2014.
ESPN NFL Insider Field Yates also reported the Vikings signed first-round draft pick Justin Jefferson earlier Wednesday. Jefferson, a wide receiver out of LSU, will receive a $7.1 million signing bonus as part of his fully-guaranteed rookie contract, according to a source.
