The Minnesota Vikings have been busy this off-season. After firing their former head coach Mike Zimmer, the Vikings began a coaching search. Over the past week, Minnesota has requested to speak with 7 different coordinators. Among the list of candidates, there were a few surprises. Who among them would likely be the best fit for the Minnesota Vikings? Find out below.
Nathaniel Hackett, Green Bay Packers OC
At the time of this writing, Nathaniel Hackett is the only person to have interviewed for Minnesota’s coaching opening. Hackett has been the offensive coordinator for the Packers since 2019. During that time, the Packers have a record of 39-10-0. Green Bay also has 2 appearances in the NFC Championship game. Aaron Rodgers also won an MVP award in 2020, under Hackett’s coaching.
Nathaniel Hackett appears to be the strongest head coaching candidate on this list. During his time as the Packers OC, he’s had to deal with a variety of issues surrounding his controversial quarterback. Despite those controversies, Green Bay’s offense is consistently one of the best in the league. Aaron Rodgers is also likely on his way to another MVP award, under Hackett’s coaching. However, something has to be said for the people surrounding Hackett. Aaron Rodgers was an elite quarterback before Hackett arrived and could likely make any OC look good. Matt LaFleur also has offensive play calling responsibilities as the head coach. It’s unclear how much of the Packer’s recent success is because of Nathaniel Hackett.
Dan Quinn, Dallas Cowboys DC
Dan Quinn being on this list is a bit of a surprise. Quinn is most famous for being the head coach of the Atlanta Falcons. Under Quinn’s leadership, the Falcon’s suffered a heart wrenching Super Bowl loss to the New England Patriots. Atlanta eventually fired Quinn, after a run of mediocre seasons. The Dallas Cowboys hired Quinn as their defensive coordinator in 2021. Since then, Quinn has revitalized a defense that struggled only 1 season before.
Moving forward with a defensive coordinator would be a bad move for Minnesota. The Vikings are trying to move on from Mike Zimmer, a head coach who famously fixated on his defense. Zimmer’s defensive focus often hurt the offense. Bringing in another defensive mind would set Minnesota back, considering it’s an offensive league now. Dan Quinn is undoubtedly a great defensive mind and a great leader, but the Minnesota Vikings need someone who can revitalize an offense with a lot of potential.
Todd Bowles, Tampa Bay Buccaneers DC
Yet another defensive coordinator on the list. Todd Bowles has been with the Buccaneers since 2019. During that time, Tampa Bay’s defense has been one of the best in the league. Bowles also has head coaching experience. Todd Bowles served as the New York Jets head coach from 2015 to 2018. After a promising first season however, Bowles had a string of bad seasons before being fired as the head coach.
I won’t rehash what I’ve already said about hiring a DC. The Vikings need an offensive mind to lead this team forward. Todd Bowles’s record as a head coach also isn’t promising as well.
Jonathan Gannon, Philadelphia Eagles DC
Another defensive coordinator. Jonathan Gannon was hired as the defensive coordinator for the Eagles in 2021. Under his leadership, the Philadelphia defense had a great season in 2021. However, something needs to be said for the strength of their opponents. The Eagles didn’t face hard competition in the second half of the season. Their defense also just gave up 31 points in an ugly playoff loss to the Buccaneers.
Jonathan Gannon isn’t a viable candidate for head coach. Gannon is still unproven as a coordinator, considering Philadelphia’s weak competition this season. The Eagles’ defense also folded when they faced good teams. Gannon may only be considered because of his history with the Vikings. He was on the coaching staff from 2014 to 2017. The Vikings have bad luck with nepotism and hiring someone’s friend. They need to look else where for their head coach.
Kellen Moore, Dallas Cowboys OC
Kellen Moore is one of the biggest names being thrown around this off-season. Moore has spent his entire coaching career with the Cowboys. In 2019, he was made the offensive coordinator. Moore calls the offensive plays for Dallas and has helped developed Dak Prescott. However, Moore hasn’t had much success in the playoffs. Moore’s playoff record is now 1-2, after Dallas’s loss to the 49ers in the playoffs.
Kellen Moore may be the most overrated coaching candidate in the league right now. The Cowboys consistently flounder when it matters the most. There may be some recency bias, considering Dallas’s loss to the 49ers. In the final seconds of that game, the play calling was truly baffling. Why would you call a designed quarterback run with only 14 seconds left and no timeouts? That terrible play call sealed the Cowboys defeat. It might have also sealed Moore’s future. The Vikings shouldn’t hire Moore as their head coach.
Kevin O’Connell, Los Angeles Rams OC
Kevin O’Connell has been with the Rams since 2020. During that time, he has served as their offensive coordinator. During both seasons, the Rams made the playoffs. O’Connell was also the coordinator for Washington during 2019. He didn’t see a lot of success there. Washington only won 3 games. Yet, O’Connell has worked under Sean McVay who is one of the best offensive minds in the league currently.
Kevin O’Connell would be a risky hire for the Vikings. During his 2 successful years as an OC, he worked under Sean McVay. McCay calls the offensive plays for the Rams, so it’s unclear what O’Connell’s roll is in the Los Angeles offense. Yet, O’Connell has still worked with great offensive minds. He’s definitely learned something in his time with the Rams, but it’s unclear if he’s ready to lead a team. This would likely be a high risk, low reward move for the Vikings.
DeMeco Ryans, San Fransisco 49ers DC
Just one more defensive coordinator. Ryans stepped in to replace Robert Saleh as 49ers DC, after Saleh was hired to be the head coach of the Jets. Ryans has spent his whole career with San Fransisco, being hired as quality control coach in 2017. In his first year as DC, the 49ers defense took a dip but still had an average year.
DeMeco Ryans doesn’t have enough experience as a coordinator to be a top coaching candidate. Considering the San Fransisco defense took a dip this season and he’s only served in that role for 1 year, he won’t likely be hired.
Final Thoughts
The names on this list don’t instill a lot of confidence. The Vikings just fired a defensive head coach, so the thought was they’d move in the opposite direction with an offensive head coach. Yet, most of the names on this list are defensive coordinators. There are also some noticeable absences. Eric Bieniemy and Byron Leftwich are both great offensive minds being touted as top coaching candidates. Out of all of these names, only 1 is a true candidate to be the next Minnesota Vikings head coach. Nathaniel Hackett is the clear choice on this list.
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