If the Minnesota Vikings part ways with Mike Zimmer after the 2021 season, who are some of the more realistic candidates to replace him?
Following a loss to the lowly Detroit Lions this past Sunday, the tenure of Mike Zimmer as the head coach of the Minnesota Vikings has just about reached the end of the road.
With the Vikings having a 5-7 record after the first 13 weeks of the 2021 campaign, there aren’t many scenarios left that would likely result in Zimmer keeping his job after the season.
Minnesota has had the same head coach since 2014, and while the team has experienced several successful moments during Zimmer’s time with the franchise, the forgettable moments have been more frequent during the last few years.
The chances of the Vikings looking for a new head coach after the season appear to be high and it’s possible that the team’s decision-makers have already begun compiling a list of potential candidates for the job.
There are probably going to be a variety of different names thrown out during the next few weeks of coaches who could potentially replace Zimmer, but not all of them will be very realistic.
So who are a few of the candidates that probably have the most realistic chance to become Minnesota’s next head coach?
Doug Pederson
- Age: 53-years-old
- Current Role: Out of the NFL
His tenure with the Philadelphia Eagles didn’t end on a high note, but Doug Pederson accomplished a lot during his time with the team from 2016 to 2020.
Pederson not only has an offensive background, but he’s also already shown he can lead a team to the highest possible amount of success in the NFL as the Eagles won the Super Bowl in just his second season with the franchise.
Eric Bieniemy
- Age: 52-years-old
- Current Role: Kansas City Chiefs offensive coordinator
Eric Bieniemy is a name that’s been thrown around a lot during the last few offseasons as a possible NFL head coach, but no team has decided to take a chance on him yet.
Kansas City’s offense has slowed down a bit this season, but Bieniemy is still someone that is worth consideration to be the next head coach of the Vikings.
His pro coaching career actually began in Minnesota when he was on the team’s staff as a running backs coach and an assistant head coach from 2006 to 2010. So the team’s ownership and several members of the Vikings’ front office are already familiar with Bieniemy’s potential to be a head coach.
Greg Roman
- Age: 49-years-old
- Current Role: Baltimore Ravens offensive coordinator
Under the guidance of Greg Roman during the last few seasons, the Ravens have developed into a team with arguably the best rushing attack in the NFL. Baltimore topped the league in rushing yards in both 2019 and 2020 with Roman as their offensive coordinator and their rushing attack currently ranks third in the NFL after the first 13 weeks of the season.
The thing with Roman though is that his system seems to rely a lot on the run game, which to some, isn’t as favorable in the modern NFL as an offensive scheme that is built more around passing the ball.
Jonathan Gannon
- Age: 38-years-old
- Current Role: Philadelphia Eagles defensive coordinator
After spending 2014 to 2017 as an assistant with the Vikings and 2018 to 2020 on the sidelines of the Indianapolis Colts, Jonathan Gannon was given a great opportunity to be the defensive coordinator for the Eagles this year.
So far, Philadelphia’s defense is right around the middle of the pack under Gannon (15th in points allowed and 11th in yards allowed), but they’ve still shown plenty of signs of improvement compared to the unit that was on the field in 2020.
Even though he has a defensive background, his age and connection to Minnesota might give him an advantage over some other candidates that could be in the running to replace Mike Zimmer.
Jeff Rodgers
- Age: 43-years-old
- Current Role: Arizona Cardinals assistant head coach/special teams coordinator
With a 10-2 record, the Cardinals are arguably the best team in the NFL this season after the first 13 weeks, and Jeff Rodgers has played a significant role in their success.
A native of St. Paul, Minnesota, Rodgers’ special teams units are typically some of the best in the league when he’s leading the way. With him also being an assistant head coach in Arizona, he’s clearly been able to make an impact for the organization in other areas outside of special teams.
With the Cardinals’ success this season, Rodgers is likely going to get some head coaching interest from teams around the league, and the Vikings could be among those that would like to meet with him.
Byron Leftwich
- Age: 41-years-old
- Current Role: Tampa Bay Buccaneers offensive coordinator
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have certainly benefitted from the addition of quarterback Tom Brady during the 2020 offseason. But a bunch of the team’s success during the last two seasons can also be attributed to the work done by Byron Leftwich on the sidelines.
If people want to point to Brady and say that he’s the biggest reason for the Bucs’ recent success, that’s fine. But Leftwich has also been able to learn from Tampa head coach Bruce Arians and arguably the best quarterback in the history of the NFL about what it takes to run a successful franchise in the league today.
Josh McDaniels
- Age: 45-years-old
- Current Role: New England Patriots offensive coordinator
Some are immediately turned off when they see or hear the name Josh McDaniels, but his success as an offensive coordinator for the New England Patriots over the years is something that cannot be ignored.
McDaniels worked together with current Bucs quarterback Tom Brady for several years to come up with an offensive system that best utilized the signal-caller’s strengths out on the field and he’s done the same thing with Patriots rookie quarterback Mac Jones this season.
McDaniels could potentially be New England’s next head coach in waiting behind Bill Belichick. But if he’s not, it wouldn’t be surprising if the Vikings expressed interest in him to become their next head coach.
Ryan Ficken
- Age: 41-years-old
- Current Role: Minnesota Vikings special teams coordinator
Most might point to co-defensive coordinator Andre Patterson as the only current Minnesota assistant who could do well as the team’s next head coach, but Ryan Ficken is someone to keep an eye on as well.
Ficken is only 41, but he’s been with the Vikings since 2007. Like Kevin Stefanski before him, Ficken has learned from several different Minnesota head coaches and assistant coaches over the years. The knowledge he’s acquired over the years could help him in developing his own, unique head coaching strategy that differentiates from the current regime.
If the Vikings are looking for an internal candidate that has the chance to separate themselves from the Zimmer era, Ficken could potentially be that guy.