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This season, the Minnesota Vikings found themselves getting swept out of Pro Bowl consideration. The event during Pro Bowl week haven’t mattered for years, but the designation still certainly holds weight in contract negotiations, among other things.
While there aren’t a ton of players that you could have made a legitimate argument for in purple this year, the specialists were a different story. Not only was their singing voter campaign incredible, but the kicking game as a whole was terrific all year.
Although the focal point of that process is kicker Will Reichard, long snapper Andrew DePaola sets it all in motion. He’s been a Pro Bowl selection before, and Minnesota is going to make sure the next time he is, it’s for the Vikings too.
Andrew DePaola on Minnesota Vikings radar
The Minnesota Vikings have employed Andrew DePaola for seven of his 11 NFL seasons. This year ended a stretch of three-straight Pro Bowl selections, but he again made the All-Pro (2nd) team. Minnesota inked DePaola to a three-year contract in 2023, which allows him to hit free agency this offseason.
Set to play another year next season at 39 years old, Ben Goessling (Star Tribune) is reporting that the Minnesota Vikings want him back.
The four-time All-Pro will be 39 in July, but the Vikings are in no rush to change long snappers after six years of stability at the position. They’ll likely get a deal done with DePaola for the 2026 season that keeps him in Minnesota for a seventh year.
Last season DePaola carried a $1.38 million cap hit. That was the largest contract of his career, and bringing him back at even a nominal raise isn’t going to change the MN Vikings bottom line.
Over the past five seasons DePaola has missed just four games. He has consistently contributed on at least one-third of special teams snaps for years, and the Vikings know him well. Given the output Will Reichard has shown in his first two NFL seasons (87.7% FG) it would make little sense to disrupt the current cadence.
For a guy that played quarterback and wide receiver at Rutgers, DePaola has carved out quite the career as a long snapper. Minnesota will have plenty of roster turnover this offseason, but it doesn’t look like special teams will be a key area.
Mentioned in this article: Andrew Depaola
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