3 candidates to be the next Vikings defensive coordinator

Mike Zimmer

Yup, Mike Zimmer could just be his own defensive coordinator and hire himself. Why not? He calls all the plays anyways and he has the final say over all aspects of this defense.

Zimmer has pretty much been holding this position since he became the Vikings head coach back in 2014, so nothing would really change.

If Zimmer named himself defensive coordinator it could actually work. Gary Kubiak is on the staff, and he could take over the entire offense and oversee all aspects that go along with it, including game planning, personnel, and dealing with the media. This would allow Zimmer to focus solely on the defense, as long as he’s willing to delegate some of the head coaching duties to Kubiak.

The only concern would be if Zimmer’s play-calling and overall scheme are getting a little stale. It does seem in recent seasons that his defense hasn’t been as dominating as it was during the earlier part of his tenure in Minnesota. This could be due to his players’ aging, but it could also be that opposing teams are beginning to figure out how to attack his scheme.

While making himself the defensive coordinator would keep everything the same, it also wouldn’t allow for any fresh ideas or tweaks to the defensive system, and that could be a bad thing.