Mike Zimmer had plenty of flaws over his eight seasons as Minnesota Vikings head coach. When he was fired after the 2021 season, "they got me fired" was his reason for not addressing the players.
Kellen Mond was a rookie quarterback during that 2021 season, with one game appearance in Week 17 against the Green Bay Packers. When asked if he wanted to see Mond in the following game, the regular season finale, Zimmer curtly said, "Not particularly." When asked why not, Zimmer said, "I see him every day."
That game would be the only NFL regular season game Mond, a third-round pick by the Vikings in 2021 out of Texas A&M, ever played in. After spending time with the Cleveland Browns, Indianapolis Colts, and New Orleans Saints, he played for the San Antonio Brahmas in the UFL last year.
It's also fair to say the relationship between Zimmer and Mond never got on a good track. Zimmer's general disdain for quarterbacks this side of Teddy Bridgewater is well-documented, but his public assessments of Mond were on their own level.
Former Minnesota Vikings QB Kellen Mond suddenly airs his dirty laundry about Mike Zimmer
With his football career seemingly over, Mond is now an artist and a photographer. He also posts influencer-type content on LinkedIn, and that's where he aired some old dirty laundry about Zimmer.
"When I was drafted by the Minnesota Vikings, my head coach walked out of the draft room. We never spoke. Not once."
Zimmer acknowledged how he walked out of the draft room when Mond was selected, so that's not news. Mond also noted how there was a disconnect with Zimmer and general manager Rick Spielman over the signing of Kirk Cousins in 2018, which is also not news.
Mond then noted how he never saw Zimmer and Spielman speak during their final season together, which, again, is not a revelation.
"Imagine the two most important people in any organization never talking. What happens to that business? It crumbles. And that's exactly what happened."
Mond also mentioned the leadership lesson Zimmer's end-game missteps taught him.
"Taught me an unforgettable leadership lesson: Every time you show up to work, you control the energy in the building. The way you act. The way you speak. Your body language.
If you forget that enough times, don't be surprised when you have a disconnect with others in your organization. Leadership is an atmosphere you create, not a title you hold."
Maybe if Mond had been drafted by a different team, with a different head coach, he'd still be in the NFL. Actually, it probably wouldn't have made any difference, since three other teams eventually gave him a shot, and he didn't impress them either. Then he didn't play well in the UFL.
As his tenure with the Vikings wound down, Zimmer was worthy of plenty of criticism. He has also owned a number of his missteps since then, perhaps with the notable exception of how he spoke about and handled Mond.
Maybe Mond has noticed that, hence the sudden and odd airing of laundry four years after the fact.