Kevin O'Connell and Vikings will try to balance player health and playoff seeding

The Vikings clinched the NFC North and a home playoff game for the first time since 2017, but head coach Kevin O'Connell said Monday they're "still on the hunt" for improvement and to maintain the No. 2 seed with three regular-season games left.

"But that does not mean snap counts don't need to be monitored," O'Connell said. "We'll take a look at each individual situation to make sure the priority is having a healthy team and having the best possible version of our team when we get to the playoffs."

The Vikings (11-3) could end up with the No. 2 or No. 3 seed in the NFC playoff race. The top seed is not impossible, but it's farfetched. The Eagles (13-1) would have to lose the remaining three games while the Vikings win out against the Giants, Packers and Bears.

Maintaining the second spot over the San Francisco 49ers (10-4) is important to O'Connell, who noted the homefield advantage of U.S. Bank Stadium, where a second playoff game would be held if the Vikings win a playoff opener as the No. 2 seed. Winning the last three games accomplishes that goal. One loss and they could fall behind the 49ers, who currently own the tiebreaker with Minnesota thanks to fewer conference losses.

"We should try to be hunting playing as many home games as we possibly can," he said.

But O'Connell will have to balance winning with preparing a veteran-laden roster for the playoffs. Edge rusher Za'Darius Smith (knee), receiver Adam Thielen (knee) and linebacker Eric Kendricks (hip) are among the starters playing through issues. Younger players, including rookie linebacker Brian Asamoah, who played a career-high 21 defensive snaps against the Colts, could get more run as the regular season ends.

"We do have some guys that we're finding ways to not only give them some time here and there," O'Connell said, "but also [develop] players we're excited to see continue grow behind those guys."

Receiver Justin Jefferson emerged "really well" from the rib contusion and two flagged hits he suffered against the Colts, O'Connell said Monday. The only long-term concern is over the penalized collisions that keep bombarding Vikings receivers in recent games, which O'Connell pointed out unprompted when asked about Jefferson's health.

"He did take some shots in that game and once again," O'Connell said. "It was about the fifth or sixth week in a row [receivers] took a type of hit that drew a flag. Clearly there's an emphasis on the teams we're playing that some of those hits, they don't just seem to be by accident at times."

Jefferson and receivers Thielen and K.J. Osborn have taken six flagged hits in the past six weeks, including two by Colts defenders for hits on Jefferson. After each time, Jefferson ended up in the medical tent and quarterback Kirk Cousins threw an interception while his top target was out. Only the Bengals have benefited from more unnecessary roughness penalties than the Vikings (eight) this season.

Cornerback Cameron Dantzler (ankle/illness) should practice fully this week, according to O'Connell.

Five Vikings players — Jefferson, safety Harrison Smith, kick returner Kene Nwangwu, special teamer Kris Boyd and long snapper Andrew DePaola — finished as the leading vote getters in Pro Bowl fan voting that concluded last week, the league announced Monday. Players and coaches also voted last week, but those votes are not made public.

Jefferson (264,653) received the fourth-most fan votes, trailing only Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa, Dolphins receiver Tyreek Hill and Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes. The Vikings as a team got the second-most fan votes behind the San Francisco 49ers.

The annual all-star game is now known as the "Pro Bowl Games" under a new format that will feature various athletic competitions ending in a flag football game to be aired Feb. 5 from Las Vegas.