Birk

Having lost four Pro Bowl-caliber offensive linemen to death or defection in the last two years, the Minnesota Vikings assured late Monday they will retain one of their premier young blockers for the future, reaching agreement with center Matt Birk on a long-term contract extension.

A starter for just one season, Birk, 25, signed a seven-year contract worth about $31 million. The contract, which makes Birk the league's highest-paid snapper in the NFL, includes a $6 million signing bonus and puts him under contract to the Vikings through the 2007 season. In essence, the contract is a six-year extension, since Birk had signed a one-year qualifying tender this spring.

Without the new contract, Birk would have been eligible for unrestricted free agency in the spring of 2002.

The deal culminates nearly a year of on-and-off negotiations between the Vikings and agent Joe Linta, who flew to Minneapolis on Monday evening to complete work on the contract. Minnesota officials dramatically increased their offer over the past few months.

The extension also accentuates a tremendous success story for Birk, a former Harvard standout and sixth-round choice in the 1998 draft.

Birk appeared in only 22 games during his first two seasons, and started none, then took over the No. 1 job when Pro Bowl center Jeff Christy departed the Vikings last summer to sign with Tampa Bay as an unrestricted free agent. The offense never missed a beat and Birk was named to the NFC Pro Bowl team.

Keeping the three-year veteran for the long term represents a coup for the Vikings, who lost Christy, guard Randall McDaniel and tackle Todd Stuessie via free agency, and then were forced to deal with the death of tackle Korey Stringer this summer.

Len Pasquarelli is a senior NFL writer for ESPN.com.