The Minnesota Vikings have wisely extended linebacker Andrew Van Ginkel, tying him to the organization through 2026, per Ian Rapoport. Van Ginkel signed with the Vikings a year ago after spending five years with the Miami Dolphins and went on to have the best year of his career in Minnesota.
During his first year with the Vikings, Van Ginkel tallied a career-high 11.5 sacks and also had a career-high in tackles with 79 while returning two interceptions for touchdowns.
It was exactly what the Vikings front office had in mind when they signed him and now he's being rewarded with a one-year, $23 million extension. This move could be looked at as a surprise move considering Van Ginkel had been tied into some trade talks but the Vikings made the right call extending him and not letting it come to that.
Minnesota Vikings reward Andrew Van Ginkel for stellar season with extension
Van Ginkel was a fifth-round pick by the Miami Dolphins in 2019 out of Wisconsin and spent the first half decade of his career in Miami.
He kept improving each year with the Dolphins, and by the time he hit free agency in 2024, he was considered one of the more attractive free-agent options, making it an even bigger deal when the Vikings were able to land him.
With Van Ginkel retained for the next two years, the Vikings can continue to shore up other key needs on their roster and hopefully vie for the NFC North title.
There will be a lot of questions surrounding the offense now that J.J. McCarthy is healthy and ready to take over as the quarterback, so the defense needs to continue being the dominant force it was a season ago.
Van Ginkel helps with that and Brian Flores has to be psyched that the team was able to keep one of its best defenders under contract for another season. This was an excellent move by the front office and hopefully Van Ginkel continues to ball out through the end of this deal.