Kevin O'Connell on Darrisaw's extension, Van Ginkel's timeline, start of camp

The start of training camp is here.

Vikings head coach Kevin O'Connell speaks before the start of training camp on Wednesday, July 24 / Will Ragatz

Vikings head coach Kevin O'Connell had a smile on his face and an energy to his words as he spoke to reporters ahead of the first practice of training camp on Wednesday. After opening Monday's presser by addressing the tragic passing of Khyree Jackson and another troubling incident involving Jordan Addison, Minnesota's head coach could focus on football today. "Always one of my favorites times of the year," he said.

Here are a few of the notable topics O'Connell touched on over the course of nearly 20 minutes.

Happy for Darrisaw

The Vikings and star left tackle Christian Darrisaw agreed to terms on a four-year extension on Tuesday evening, which is worth up to $113 million and keeps him under contract through the 2029 season. O'Connell is thrilled that the team was able to get an early deal done — Darrisaw still has two years left on his rookie contract — with one of its best players.

"Very, very excited about getting Christian Darrisaw signed under a contract extension," he said. "One of the best young tackles in our league. All he's done is continually get better and better, and the expectation is he's going to continue to do that."

Darrisaw came to the podium after O'Connell and spoke about how proud he is that his parents will never have to work again in their life, calling this extension a childhood dream. He also said he plans on becoming more of a vocal leader on the practice field in his fourth NFL season.

Van Ginkel's timeline

New Vikings outside linebacker Andrew Van Ginkel has spent this entire offseason recovering from a Lisfranc (foot) injury, but he's getting close to being back to full strength. O'Connell said the Vikings will ramp him up this week and hopefully have him as a full participant when the pads come on.

"He will be limited a little bit, but for the most part, our plan is to get him rolling through this ramp-up and use it, so by the time we're in pads, Andrew's right in line with his normal workload," O'Connell said.

The Vikings will be wearing helmets on Wednesday and Thursday, go to shells on Friday and Saturday, and then put the pads on for the first time on Monday. Unlike teammates T.J. Hockenson and NaJee Thompson, Van Ginkel did not have to go on the PUP list to open camp.

Shelley's return

The other news on Tuesday was that the Vikings brought back cornerback Duke Shelley, who was huge for them in the second half of the 2022 season. The 5'8" Shelley became a fan favorite in Minnesota that year and could very much factor into the competition for playing time at corner this season.

"Great to have Duke back in our cornerback/DB room," O'Connell said. "A guy that had a huge impact on our locker room when he was here in 2022. I know everybody was excited to get Duke back and join that competition there, as we look at the depth of that cornerback room."

Byron Murphy Jr., Shaq Griffin, and Mekhi Blackmon are the presumed top three at that position, but players like Shelley and Akayleb Evans are right there as well.

Physicality of camp

One thing O'Connell made clear was that he wants there to be a certain level of physicality to this year's camp. The Vikings are going to be going full speed right away and looking to make each other better on both sides of the ball. Part of that emphasis might also be due to the team's fumbling woes last season.

"I wanna make sure we prepare our team for the physicality that is to come," O'Connell said. "Play style is going to be something I talk a lot about. ... I know sometimes it can be an overused term, but you really want that 'iron sharpens iron' mentality. With that, we're going to have a physical camp."

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