Anthony Barr says he was trying on a Philadelphia Eagles helmet when the Minnesota Vikings called his agent, Ryan Williams of Athletes First.
“I was getting fitted for a helmet,” said Barr. “My agent called me, and I was like, ‘Oh yeah, let’s go to Minnesota.’ So, I just took it off and hopped on a plane.
“It was kind of messed up, but it worked out.”
Barr had left Minnesota in 2021, following Mike Zimmer to Texas after the eight-year Vikings head coach became the defensive coordinator of the Dallas Cowboys in 2022. A year later, Barr returned to an unfamiliar Vikings organization. It was his first and only time playing for someone other than Zimmer.
“With Flores, it was kind of crazy,” said Barr. “There was no playbook.”
Things had changed.
Barr’s college roommate and fellow Minnesota linebacker, Eric Kendricks, had opened up about Minnesota’s “fear-based culture” in the final days of the Zimmer regime. In response, Vikings ownership turned to Kevin O’Connell, a player’s coach and former offensive coordinator, after Zimmer’s run.
While Barr toiled away in Dallas, making 10 starts in his final year in Zimmer’s more structured defense, O’Connell took Minnesota’s old core and turned them into a 13-win team.
“I really like where things are from the outside perspective now,” Barr said upon returning to Minnesota. “When I was here in ‘23, the leadership was exactly where it should be with the times we’re in now. I think they fit perfectly.”
It was a bittersweet coda for Barr. He signed on November 14, 2023, 48 hours after Joshua Dobbs picked up his second win in purple. However, that was the end of the five-game win streak that appeared to salvage Minnesota’s season after an 0-3 start.
The Denver Broncos reintroduced the Passtronaut to gravity in the Mile High City. A week later, he landed on the sidelines after he threw a hospital ball to Justin Jefferson in a 3-0 win over the Las Vegas Raiders. That was Minnesota’s final win in a 7-10 campaign, Barr’s last professional season.
Barr was Zimmer’s first-ever pick, eighth overall, in the 2014 NFL Draft. Zimmer immediately trusted Barr to communicate Minnesota’s complicated defense to his teammates. Barr did so with aplomb throughout his career.
“He entrusted me with communicating to the team some things that he maybe didn’t feel comfortable saying, or maybe there was a disconnect from whatever the situation is,” said Barr.
“[Zimmer] entrusted me with communicating to the guys, whether it’s in the green dot [helmet, which is radio-connected to the sidelines], or just a message that he may have had. I feel we had a good line of communication, and I kind of understood what he was trying to say.”
Until Barr’s final season with the Vikings, all he had known was Zimmer’s defense. Brian Flores’ madcap approach was a little different. When Barr arrived in Minnesota, Barr says Flores told him, “Yeah, we just kind of made up this defense.”
“All right,” Barr responded. “How do I learn it?”
“I don’t know,” Barr says Flores told him. “Just go out there and figure it out.”
“Oh,” Barr recalled saying. “All right, sweet.”
Barr didn’t play last season and said it was hard to watch the Vikings. He made the Pro Bowl in his second season and in the three years after that. However, he nearly signed with the New York Jets in 2019, and his play declined after that.
In 2020, he tore his pectoral muscle and missed 14 games. A year later, he underwent surgery for a knee injury suffered in training camp. Lingering knee and hamstring issues plagued him throughout his career. A four-time Pro Bowler at 26 played his last snap at age 31.
“The first year I wasn’t playing, it was kind of bittersweet because I was kind of like, ‘Man, I wish I was out there,’” Barr admits. “But now I’m to the point where I’m at peace with it. I really enjoy watching games now. It’s not stressful anymore.”
Then Barr paused, reconsidering what he had said.
“Well, sometimes it is,” Barr offered. “[With] the Vikings, every game is seemingly stressful. But now I can really be a fan and put my purple hat on, be a homer, and really support the guys.”
Barr has become a dyed-in-the-wool fan like the people who used to watch him on Sundays. The only shame is that it happened so soon. At his best, he was the node that connected everyone on defense.
The Vikings were always a perfect fit for a player who never would have looked right in green.
