The Minnesota Vikings have made some big decisions this offseason, but the moves of their NFC North counterparts have been just as important as they look to get back to the playoffs in 2026.
The latest big move in the division came when the Detroit Lions announced they signed Jack Campbell to a four-year extension on Thursday.
While keeping Campbell guarantees the Vikings will have to deal with him through the 2030 season, it also leads Detroit to the next item on Brad Holmes’s to-do list, which is extending running back Jahmyr Gibbs.
Gibbs has terrorized the Vikings since entering the league, and with Campbell taken care of, Minnesota will soon learn just how much longer Detroit's top running back will be tormenting them and how much he’ll be paid to do it.
Minnesota Vikings will continue to be haunted by Jahmyr Gibbs with extension looming
Minnesota reportedly “adored” Gibbs heading into the 2023 NFL Draft, but in true Vikings fashion, they didn’t have a high enough pick to secure the Alabama star.
Instead, the Lions made one of the more surprising choices in the draft, selecting Gibbs with the 12th overall pick, and he has spent his time in the NFL reminding Minnesota what they could have had.
In six career games against the Vikings, he has run for 431 yards on 92 carries and added 18 catches for 121 yards. But the biggest impact has been in the end zone, where Gibbs has scored nine total touchdowns in those meetings.
To put this into perspective, the Chicago Bears have been the other team that has been victimized by Gibbs, allowing five total touchdowns. His eight rushing touchdowns against Minnesota are also double the four he’s scored against Chicago during his career, and are on par with what he’s done against the rest of the NFL.
Ranking first in total touchdowns (49) and third in rushing yards (3,580) and all-purpose yards (5,029), Gibbs has become one of the league’s top running backs. Soon, he will be paid like it as Spotrac estimates that he could command $20.2 million per season in his next contract.
It isn’t all bad for the Vikings, considering they took Jordan Addison with the 23rd pick in that draft, and if he keeps his nose clean, he could sign an extension of his own within the next year.
But Minnesota also struggled with selecting DeWayne McBride, who apparently had a starter’s grade from now-fired general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah in the seventh round of the 2023 draft, Alexander Mattison, Ty Chandler, Aaron Jones, and Jordan Mason since Gibbs landed in Detroit.
In the end, Vikings fans could hope that Gibbs’s next contract chews up a significant portion of the Lions’ salary cap. Then again, Minnesota would probably love to have that problem, as he’s ready to take home a bag and haunt the Vikings for years to come.
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