The Minnesota Vikings were expected to make changes on the coaching staff this offseason, and they made the first on Saturday with the news that they won’t be retaining offensive line coach Chris Kuper.

The Vikings are not retaining OL coach Chris Kuper. His contract expired. Team is searching for a new offensive line coach after four seasons.

— Alec Lewis (@alec_lewis) January 17, 2026

This is the first coaching change for head coach Kevin O’Connell after a 9-8 season. It also doesn’t project to be the last one either, as defensive coordinator Brian Flores could accept a job from another team at any moment, and both offensive coordinator Wes Phillips and quarterbacks coach Josh McCown could also be on the move.

Minnesota Vikings offensive line coach hot board

There are quite a few different options that the Vikings could go for, including some that have already coached with O’Connell.

• Minnesota Vikings assistant OL coach Keith Carter: The Vikings brought in Carter this past season to help Kuper. He was the OL coach and run game coordinator for the New York Jets in 2023 and 2024.
• Tampa Bay Buccaneers OL coach Kevin Carberry: There is a chance he is retained by a new offensive coordinator, but he has done a good job mitigating the impact of injuries and developing talent.
• Los Angeles Rams assistant OL coach Zak Kromer: His dad is legendary OL coach Aaron Kromer, and he was with the Rams when O’Connell was there.
• Atlanta Falcons OL coach Dwayne Ledford: With former Falcons head coach Raheem Morris fired, Ledford could be available. He did a great job maximizing the run game in Atlanta, something the Vikings need badly.
• Indianapolis Colts assistant OL coach Chris Watt: The Colts had to replace multiple starters who came to the Vikings, and they were one of the best units in the league.
• Dallas Cowboys assistant OL coach Ramon Chinyoung: He’s been coaching for just three seasons, but the Cowboys’ OL and run game were much improved this season.
• Detroit Lions assistant OL coach Steve Oliver: The OL had some issues this season with the injuries on the interior, but the Lions have been very consistent over the last three years.
• New Orleans Saints assistant OL coach Jahri Evans: A former Pro Bowl guard, Evans provides upside, and he helped coach a solid unit in New Orleans.
• Seattle Seahawks assistant offensive line coach and run game coordinator Justijn Outten: Klint Kubiak will get most of the credit, but the coaching of the offensive line has been significantly improved this season despite minimal additions to the unit.
• San Francisco 49ers assistant offensive line coach Cameron Clemmons: Who wouldn’t want a part of the 49ers running game?

Coaching expert weighs in on best OL coach for Minnesota Vikings

Who should the Vikings hire? There are a lot of different options available, and it can be tough to parse hot who the best one is. I spoke to our resident coaching expert here at A to Z Sports, AJ Schulte, to get a sense of who Vikings fans should be keeping an eye on.

“The next offensive line hire will revolve around what Kevin O’Connell wants to do for the next evolution of the Vikings’ offense. Does he want to go back to his Sean McVay/Kyle Shanahan routes with an outside zone-heavy offense? If so, then pulling a coach like Dwayne Ledford or Nick Jones from the Falcons would be a savvy move. The Falcons were a superb outside zone-heavy offense this season (it helps to have Bijan Robinson), and were creative in getting to those looks. Cameron Clemmons, the 49ers’ assistant offensive line coach, would be another coach in that vein, and the Jaguars tried to pull him away last offseason under Liam Coen.

“If, however, KOC wants to evolve the ground game into a more multiple, diverse rushing attack, I would look no further than Steve Oliver from the Detroit Lions or Chris Watt from the Indianapolis Colts. Oliver was highly credited as being a creative piece of the offense on the ground, and Ben Johnson himself tabbed him (alongside J.T. Barrett) as a coach who deserves more opportunities with their creativity and success in Detroit. The Lions boast one of the most, if not the most, creative rushing attacks in the NFL, and Oliver has been in lockstep with Hank Fraley in coaching their offensive line in that process. Watt, an assistant under legendary offensive line coach Harry Hiestand at Notre Dame, has been an assistant under Tony Sparano in Indianapolis the last three seasons, and has been a key cog for the Colts’ development on the offensive line. Indianapolis has had plenty of turnover, but the development of Bernhard Raimann and the play of youngsters Tanor Bortolini and Matt Goncalves has been intriguing, and they boast a unique run game in their own right. Neither of these coaches has any links to Kevin O’Connell, but they have the developmental track record and pedigree to be worth bringing into the building.”