The Minnesota Vikings have a major decision waiting on Brian O’Neill, and the latest evidence points in one direction: age alone shouldn’t scare them off.
O’Neill is heading into the final year of his contract, and with new general manager Nolan Teasley now steering the ship, one of his first big calls is whether to lock up one of the team’s top leaders long term. The concern, naturally, is that O’Neill will turn 31 in September. But The Athletic’s Jacob Robinson recently dug into the numbers and found that offensive tackles often hold their best value well into their mid-to-late 30s, with some staying effective as late as 37 before the drop-off comes closer to 40.
That matters because O’Neill is projected by Spotrac to land a market value of $21.1 million. So this isn’t a small bet.
It’s a real commitment. Still, the performance profile says the Vikings would be paying for a player who remains very much in his prime at a position that ages differently than most.
O’Neill’s track record in Minnesota backs that up. The Vikings took him in the second round of the 2018 draft, and since then he has played in 124 games with 120 starts.
According to PFF, he has posted a 4.5 percent pressure rate and allowed 24 snaps on 4,517 career pass-blocking snaps. Last season, even while dealing with a nagging ankle injury, he turned in one of the best grades of his career with an 81.6 overall mark.
The broader tackle landscape also supports the idea that the position can age well. Robinson noted that tackles don’t depend on speed and agility the way running backs, wide receivers, or cornerbacks do. Even centers and guards are asked to move more, which tends to shorten their shelf life compared with an offensive tackle.
Last season’s PFF grades made that point pretty clearly. Among qualifying tackles, five players over 30 finished in the top 15: Trent Williams of the San Francisco 49ers at 91.1, Garrett Bolles of the Denver Broncos at 90.4, Laremy Tunsil of the Washington Commanders at 84.7, O’Neill at 81.6, and Taylor Moton of the Carolina Panthers at 80.9.
If there’s any hesitation left, it may come from what Minnesota saw when O’Neill wasn’t available. Justin Skule was brought in to handle both tackle spots, but the results were rough: 29 pressures and seven sacks allowed on 331 pass-rushing snaps.
The Vikings did add more insurance by signing Ryan Van Demark in free agency and drafting Northwestern’s Caleb Tiernan in the third round last year. Even so, neither looks like a ready-made replacement for O’Neill if he walks after this season. There is also the possibility that Tiernan could move to guard later in his career, which means keeping O’Neill wouldn’t necessarily block that path.
There’s risk in any long-term deal for a player approaching 31. But based on the production, the leadership, and the way offensive tackles age, extending O’Neill looks like a move that makes sense for Teasley’s first major swing as general manager.
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