Last year, the Broncos, Lions and Rams all interviewed Frazier before electing to go with other candidates.  Among those teams, the Rams reportedly came closest to hiring Frazier.

Since the end of the regular season on Sunday, Frazier has already been contacted by at least two teams, the Buffalo Bills and Seattle Seahawks.

On Thursday, the Bills sent representatives to Minneapolis to interview Frazier, who otherwise is spending his time preparing for the Vikings’ playoff game a week from Sunday.  There’s been no word yet on how that interview went, but the Bills are believed to have Bill Cowher at the top of their wishlist, and may only be covering themselves by interviewing other candidates.

The Seahawks’ opening was created on Friday when they fired head coach Jim Mora.  The team’s interest in Frazier was announced within seconds of Mora’s dismissal, but Frazier just as quickly declined an invitation to be interviewed.

It has since come out that the Seahawks are hot for USC head coach Pete Carroll, a circumstance that likely signaled to Frazier that the Seahawks were not really interested in him, but only requested an interview in order to comply with minority hiring rules.  Hence his decision not to speak to them.

Given all the interest Frazier has garnered in recent years, legitimate or Rooney Rule-related, it seems inevitable that someone will snap him up as a head coach.  He is highly respected among his players and folks around the league, and is seen as a guy whose leadership skills make him an ideal candidate to move from coordinator to head man.

The Vikings, as we know, have a history of sending defensive coordinators on to successful head coaching careers.  Tony Dungy moved from the Dennis Green staff to ultimate Super Bowl glory with the Colts (after a little stint in Tampa), and in more recent years, Mike Tomlin went from running Brad Childress‘ defense to leading the Steelers to the promised land.

There are plenty of Viking fans who still haven’t forgiven the organization for keeping Green and letting Dungy go.  Almost as many are bitter that Tomlin was not elevated to head coach and Childress put out to pasture.

If Frazier leaves, a few will probably grumble that we allowed another top coaching talent to defect while holding on to a turd.

And, even worse, we will have to find another defensive coordinator.  We got lucky twice in a row with Tomlin and Frazier.  It seems it would be stretching that luck to ask for a third brilliant defensive mind to cross Chilly’s radar.

Well, there’s always Ted Cottrell.

Update: Someone must’ve convinced Leslie Frazier that Carroll-to-Seattle isn’t a done deal, because he has decided to interview with them after all.

I also like Leslie Frazier of the Vikings. Frazier is an outstanding coach who coached under Andy Reid, Marvin Lewis and Tony Dungy before landing his current gig. He was with Dungy when the Colts won it all, and was the man behind the improved play of that secondary. Most importantly, I like what I’ve heard about his interview in Detroit.

Like Detroit, the Chiefs basically need to rebuild their entire defense, and Frazier would seem qualified to get that done, provided he is given talent to work with (like he has been in Minnesota).  NFL News & Rumors, the newest addition to the FSB family, thinks Frazier’s youth and energy would serve him well in tackling this monumental project:

Frazier is on the cusp of taking his career to a new level, and given his resume it’s no wonder. He’s yet another defensive coordinator from Minnesota that has proven that he has the ability to become an outstanding head coach, with Tony Dungy (retired) and Mike Tomlin (Steelers) being the two others. Frazier is a minority candidate, so he would take care of the Rooney rule, where teams have to interview at least one minority before they can hire a head coach. He’s also young enough to have the energy it’s going to take to finish the rebuilding project in KC, and he can relate with the team’s young players as well.

Frazier has certainly done a good job of relating to the Vikings’ players, who seem to appreciate his laid-back, Dungy-esque style.  I guess it all depends on what the Chiefs are looking for in a head coach:  a feisty sort like Todd Haley, who’s recently become well-known for sideline shouting matches with his players, or a quieter, more composed fellow like Frazier.

He’s a tremendous X’s-and-O’s coach. Players will respect him. He’s a great organizer, a motivator. He’s just a real good man.

The Rams have apparently been paying attention to the Fraziermania in Denver, and have responded by skipping Frazier past the preliminary interview stage and right onto their own list of finalists (that should put to bed any lingering speculation that Frazier is only getting all these interviews because of the Rooney Rule).  The Lions have already talked to Frazier as well, and the Jets have also shown interest.

So Frazier is almost surely gone…and that will leave the Vikings without a defensive coordinator.  Beloved D-line coach Carl Dunbar has already taken himself out of the running for that job, saying he would prefer to remain a position coach.  This elevates linebackers coach Fred Pagac to favorite status at least among internal candidates.  One guy who won’t be coming aboard as defensive coordinator is former Lions head coach Rod Marinelli who was just snapped up by the Bears.  And how’s this for a fantasy Hail Mary:  Tony Dungy retires as coach of the Colts, gets bored and decides to return to the Vikings as defensive coordinator?  Yes I know it would never happen but I enjoy wild speculation.