With Mike Zimmer and the Minnesota Vikings writing the latest chapter in the age old “Let’s Do Juuuuust Enough to Get The Fanbase Excited Before Inventing New Ways to Fall Flat On Our Face,” the time has come for the Wilfs to take a hard look at the direction of the franchise.
Following two ugly defeats against fellow NFC Wild Card-hungry teams — including the divisional Chicago Bears in another beatdown at U.S. Bank Stadium — Zimmer and the Skols have squandered their second opportunity at the postseason in three seasons of the Kirk Cousins era. Despite the NFL’s beloved commissioner, Roger Goodell, expanding the playoff field by adding a third wild card team for each conference, the desperate “Who cares about our future? We’ll mortgage it all” Vikings will have failed to finish in the top seven of 16 teams in the National Football Conference.
Is Zimmer and his brand of brash, stone age, three-yards-and-a-cloud-of-dust football the right fit for the Vikings in this current age of the NFL? If you’re not content with below-average football and demand more than just three measly seasons of nine or more wins throughout his seven years leading this club, you’re not alone.
Starting Wednesday NFL teams may request and begin conducting virtual interviews with head coaching candidates who are currently employed by other teams. Considering this noteworthy piece of information, these coaches will be scooped up rather quickly.
Let’s take a look at five top-notch coaches who could bring the Vikings to their first Super Bowl since 1977.
5. Urban Meyer: Former Florida, Ohio State head coach
After reportedly turning down two of college football’s most storied programs in consecutive years (USC and Texas), the greatest college football coach of all time based on winning percentage remains on the open market. Meyer reportedly went with the old reliable “health issues” for his reasoning for passing on the Longhorns job. But as we’ve seen throughout the past decade with his stint at the University of Florida, Meyer has cited health problems to get out of his Florida contract, only to pop back up at Theee Ohio State University after two years off.
What’s interesting about the Meyer-to-the-NFL chatter is that it’s been going on long before the recent uptick in NFL teams deciding to hire head coaches from the college ranks in back-to-back offseasons (Kliff Kingsbury and Matt Rhule). After winning his third national championship and first with Ohio State in January of 2015, Meyer was asked about potentially bolting for the NFL:
“Not right now. Not right now. I’ve got a commitment to Ohio State and these players. I love what I’m doing and — not right now.”, said Meyer.
Not to take anything away from Kingsbury and Rhule — their offensive creativity is tailor-made for today’s NFL — but if those guys can land head coaching jobs, so can the coach who is largely responsible for bringing the spread offense to the forefront. With an indoor stadium to call home, Meyer’s offense would have a lot to build off of with Justin Jefferson and Dalvin Cook in the fold. Having already conquered college football, Urban Meyer can become this generation’s Jimmy Johnson or Barry Switzer after winning a Super Bowl on football’s biggest stage with the Minnesota Vikings.
4. Lincoln Riley: University of Oklahoma head coach
The Oklahoma head coach is widely regarded as the best offensive mind in college football today, especially since Meyer left Ohio State after 2018. Having coached back-to-back Heisman Trophy winners in Baker Mayfield and Kyler Murray, with a third finalist just last year in Jalen Hurts, it’s no secret that Riley’s offense is one of the most schematically advanced systems that you’ll find in football today.
Considering that all three of Riley’s former Oklahoma quarterbacks have gone on to become successful starting quarterbacks in the NFL — albeit in two games for Hurts — the proof is in the pudding. On top of elite quarterback play, Riley knows how to get his playmakers in space. Whether it’s airing it out for CeeDee Lamb, Mark Andrews and/or Marquise “Hollywood” Brown, or pounding out effective yardage on the ground with his running backs such as Rodney Anderson, Trey Sermon or Kennedy Brooks, Riley’s offense knows no bounds.
And with some of the game’s best threats on the ground and through the air with Dalvin Cook and Justin Jefferson, Riley will be able to get both of Minnesota’s best skill players in space with regularity, en route to scoring more than enough points in order for the Vikings to get out of the No Man’s Land of mediocrity in the NFL.
3. Arthur Smith: Tennessee Titans offensive coordinator
When looking at Arthur Smith’s resume, it’s easy to draw similarities to Minnesota’s 2019 offensive coordinator and current Cleveland Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski. Both have been groomed by their respective organizations for several years before taking the head coaching plunge, and Smith is well on his way to following in Stefanski’s footsteps.
The 38-year-old Smith in his 10th season with the Titans, serving as the offensive coordinator since 2019. Having worn many different caps for Tennessee over the years, ranging from Defensive Quality Control, OL/Tight Ends, Assistant Tight Ends and Tight Ends Coach, Smith has made a major name for himself once he was pegged to call Mike Vrabel’s offense last year.
The blueprint for Smith’s overall success with Tennessee is one that should make for a seamless transition if he were to land the head coaching job for Minnesota: Pound the rock with Derrick Henry (third ranked rushing offense in 2019, second in 2020), and get the ball to their electric young receiver A.J. Brown with a quarterback that’s widely regarded as a bottom half talent in the league (eighth most passing touchdowns in 2019, sixth most in 2020).
What’s most intriguing about Smith’s offense is that even though he doesn’t need extensive passing volume, ranking 31st and 28th in pass attempts, his offense is efficient enough to generate consistent production out of Brown and Corey Davis on the outside, while continuing to pile up victories. With an NFC North division that appears to be wide open once Aaron Rodgers inevitably leaves the Green Bay Packers when they transition to Jordan Love, Smith’s track record of offensive sustainability would be mutually beneficial in Minnesota — with Smith having the chance to coach a franchise led by Cook and Jefferson.
2. Eric Bieniemy: Kansas City Chiefs offensive coordinator
The best offensive coordinator in today’s NFL is long overdue to be a franchise’s ultimate decision maker on an NFL sideline. Having been passed over for head coaching jobs after assisting Andy Reid and Patrick Mahomes to a victory last year in Super Bowl LIV over the San Francisco 49ers, Bieniemy is projected to be near or at the top of every NFL owner’s head coaching wish list.
Reid’s assistants have had a tremendous track record of success once they become head coaches in the NFL. Whether it be Super Bowl LII champion Doug Pederson (too soon, Vikings fans?) or Super Bowl XLVII champion John Harbaugh, Reid does a much better job of developing his assistants in comparison to, say, Bill Belichick — another popular coaching tree for coordinators who aspire to be NFL head coaches.
The Wilfs would likely have to extend a fairly substantial amount of money to Bieniemy in order for him to return to the same franchise that he spent five seasons serving under another former Reid assistant, Brad Childress.
1. Joe Brady: Carolina Panthers OC, former LSU passing game coordinator
I’ve written multiple pieces this year on the 31-year-old hotshot offensive coordinator. For those in need of a reminder of Brady’s coaching prowess and why he makes so much sense to be the next head coach of the Minnesota Vikings, I encourage you to read my previous articles on Jefferson’s former coach last year at LSU (here and here).
At the end of the day, the Vikings would be best served building their franchise around the likely 2020 NFL Rookie of the Year, Jefferson. Minnesota struck gold when they shipped disgruntled wide receiver Stefon Diggs to Buffalo and selected Brady’s former receiver in the first round of the 2020 NFL Draft.
As we all know by now, Diggs justifiably demanded a change of scenery once he realized that his talents wouldn’t best utilized in an offense that didn’t prioritize him. In just his first season with the Buffalo Bills, Diggs is a league leader in essentially every single receiving category while catapulting the Bills to an 11-3 record. It’s fair to say that Diggs clearly won in his standoff with the Vikings.
Watching the Vikings fall to the Bears last week inside U.S. Bank Stadium, I couldn’t help but be reminded of the frustration that Diggs experienced last year with Minnesota in this offense. Following an erratic over throw in the end zone, Jefferson unloaded on Cousins and let his quarterback have it, with the Fox broadcast picking up the audio of the exchange.
The Vikings can not afford to let their star rookie receiver begin to feel even a sliver of the frustration that Diggs experienced last year. If he does, it’s only a matter of time before he demands a new team of his own to showcase his abilities.
Whether it’s in Minnesota or not, Jefferson will want to show the world that he is the best wide receiver on the planet. It would be in the best interests of the Vikings to bring in the coach who knows just how to maximize his talents, win a bunch of football games, and ensure that he remains happy in Minnesota for years to come.
