Vikings sign do-it-all safety Josh Metellus to 3-year contract extension

Metellus was previously set to go into the final year of the two-year extension he signed prior to the 2023 season, which was when he first ascended into a starring role as a full-time player in Brian Flores' defense. This new deal gives him a well-deserved raise and ensures that he'll be around as a central piece of the Vikings' defense for years to come. That's especially important with Camryn Bynum gone and Harrison Smith potentially playing the final season of his illustrious career this year.

Originally a sixth-round pick out of Michigan by the Vikings' previous regime in 2020, Metellus proved himself as a key special teams player for the first three years of his career. Between 2020 and '22, he played 953 snaps on special teams and just 331 on defense. But the Vikings valued him in that phase and felt he was a future contributor at safety, so they signed him to a two-year, $8 million extension in September 2023, which would go into effect in the '24 season.

Metellus immediately made that deal a steal for the Vikings. He was an every-down player for Minnesota upon Flores' arrival in 2023, playing all over the formation and stuffing the stat sheet as a tackler, run defender, blitzer, and coverage player. Metellus continued to shine in that same role last season, proving that his breakout year was far from a fluke. He's a Swiss Army knife who is the embodiment of the type of versatile, aggressive, playmaking scheme Flores runs.

This offseason, Metellus was an obvious extension candidate, given his important to the Vikings both on and off the field. In addition to being one of their best defensive players, he's a team captain and beloved teammate. Metellus also made it clear that he wanted to stick around.

"The team I knows where I stand," Metellus said on April 29. "Every time I come up here, I tell you how much I love it here and how much I love being a part of this team and what we've built over the past three years. I would love to be here my whole career. All I can do is the thousand snaps I played last year and let the rest figure it out in the offseason and get ready to do it again this year."

Metellus appeared to be "holding in" during OTAs by limiting his reps while he awaited this new deal, but there was never much doubt it would eventually get done. He was a full participant on the first day of training camp despite not yet having the deal finalized.

Metellus joins Andrew Van Ginkel, who is also represented by the Rosenhaus brothers, and Josh Oliver in receiving an extension from the Vikings this offseason.

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