Last season, Minnesota went 13-4 during the regular season and won a lot of close games. Their offense was explosive, but the defense was not up to par. Mike Zimmer had been in charge of the defense in the past, but he was fired. Kevin O’Connell was a first-year head coach last season and he had to make some changes to his DC in 2023.
He hired Brian Flores to run the defense. The former Dolphins head coach said that he plans on using a few players in an expanded role this season. One of them is safety Josh Metellus who has mostly been a special teams stalwart in the past. On top of those comments by Flores, Metellus just signed a two-year, $13 million deal to stay with Minnesota. The Vikings are invested in his future and see potential in Metellus to do more than just special teams.
Josh Metellus will get his chance to contribute more to the Vikings in 2023
The Vikings and safety Josh Metellus reached agreement on a two-year extension worth up to $13 million, including $6 million guaranteed, per source. The deal was confirmed by agents Drew Rosenhaus and Ryan Matha.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) September 7, 2023
In the 2020 NFL Draft, Josh Metellus was a sixth-round pick by the Minnesota Vikings. The 25-year-old was entering the final year of his rookie deal before his recent contract extension. Metellus signed for two years, $13 million, and was guaranteed $6 million at signing. Over his three seasons with the Vikings, Metellus has only played in three games defensively and has one start.
Those all came in 2022, but he’s seen the field in other ways. Special teams players often go unnoticed and Metellus is one of them. Despite not being well-known, he’s played a significant role on special teams for the Vikings. Last season he played a career-high (,771) percent of the special teams snaps for the Vikings. That’s a total of 381 snaps over 17 games.
Update: #Vikings are signing Safety Josh Metellus to a 2-year deal worth up to $13 million, per @AdamSchefter
Metellus, a former 6th round pick, started 3 games last season, recording an INT, 5 passes defended, 42 tackles and 1 tackle for loss.
Dal includes $6M guaranteed. pic.twitter.com/vZb0r30wNu
— Dov Kleiman (@NFL_DovKleiman) September 7, 2023
ESPN’s Kevin Seifert reported that Josh Metellus was also voted as the Vikings’ special teams captain in 2023. General Manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah said Metellus is a player that fans should keep their eye on this season. Both the GM and DC have hinted that Metellus is going to play more on defense this season. You can’t have a much better source than that. On the teams’ 2023 depth chart, Metellus is listed as the backup SS behind Harrison Smith.
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