Vikings right guard Brandon Fusco has one less thing to worry about heading into Sunday's season opener against the Rams.
Fusco agreed to a five-year contract extension on Saturday, a day before the first game. He was entering the final season of his rookie deal Fusco signed as a sixth round pick in 2011.
"It feels great, a little relief off my shoulders," Fusco said. "I can go out and play football now and not worry about that stuff. My agents did a great job, and Rob Brzezinski and Rick Spielman made the process a lot easier for me. I'm just excited to be here for the next five years."
Vikings head coach Mike Zimmer he's excited to have Fusco for the next five years.
"He's got a lot of toughness," Zimmer said. "He plays every week, and he's got the physicality in the running game. He's smart, does a great job in protections. If the fans don't know some of the offensive linemen, I think that's a good thing. It means they're doing their job all the job and that's one thing Brandon always does is he does his job."
The move locks up the right side of the offensive line until at least the end of the 2016 season, when right tackle Phil Loadholt and center John Sullivan will hit free agency. It was a productive offensive line, too, in the Vikings' 34-6 victory over the Rams. They ran for 186 rushing yards and allowed just one sack against one of the top defensive lines in the NFL.
"It was a great team win overall, offense and defense," Fusco said. "I think we gelled pretty well, coaches had a good gameplan for us. I think we executed to the best of our abilities but different things we can also work on and get better at. We're going to focus on it this week."
