Minnesota Vikings Head Coach Search…

The Minnesota Vikings decision-makers had initial virtual interviews with eight head coach candidates before a general manager was hired. It was a safe assumption that new GM Kwesi Adofo-Mensah had at least a couple more coaches with whom he wanted to interview. It was reported on Friday that New York Giants defensive coordinator Patrick Graham would interview on Saturday. Then came news that rocked Vikings Nation. University of Michigan head coach Jim Harbaugh would have a “conversation” with the team. Those two coaches bump to 10 the number of coaches that the Vikings have now interviewed.

Todd Bowles, Tampa Bay Buccaneers Defensive Coodinator 

Jonathan Gannon, Philadelphia Eagles Defensive Coordinator 

Nathaniel Hackett, Green Bay Packers Offensive Coordinator 

Kellen Moore, Dallas Cowboys Offensive Coordinator 

Raheem Morris, Los Angeles Rams Defensive Coordinator 

Kevin O’Connell, Los Angeles Rams Offensive Coordinator 

Dan Quinn, Dallas Cowboys Defensive Coordinator 

DeMeco Ryans, San Francisco 49ers Defensive Coordinator

Patrick Graham, New York Giants Defensive Coordinator

Jim Harbaugh, University of Michigan Head Coach

Nathaniel Hackett was hired by the Denver Broncos. Dan Quinn decided to remain in Dallas as the defensive coordinator. Eight of the ten candidates are still on the head coach market.

The new candidates:

Patrick Graham

I’ve been curious about Patrick Graham since he turned a marginally talented Giants defense into a very troublesome defense for the league’s offenses. Greg Bishop’s Sports Illustrated article about Graham from last September only increased my curiosity. I like his steady coaching rise through the college and professional ranks. Although it might scare off some people, I like the seven years that he spent in Bill Belichick’s coaching incubator. With Graham’s Yale education and scientific study of football, it’s no surprise that Adofo-Mensah has recently developed a friendship with him. In reading Bishop’s article, I couldn’t help but think that Graham was an ideal head coach for the Vikings new general manager. 

Jim Harbaugh

This one worries me. For purely football coaching reasons, the possibility of Jim Harbaugh, Pep Hamilton, and Vic Fangio at the top of the Vikings coaching staff is appealing. Very appealing. Harbaugh’s an outstanding football coach. He’s also a bit of a lunatic. Living fairly close to the San Francisco Bay Area, I’m surrounded by San Francisco 49ers fans and San Francisco 49ers news. Due to the ridiculously fair-weathered nature of both, fans and news are in a frenzy when the team is good. Under Harbaugh, the 49ers were very good, even great. He turned them into an immediate contender. It helped greatly that he inherited a very talented team. The 49ers could’ve/should’ve won one title and could’ve won more. Harbaugh might still be coaching the 49ers if it wasn’t for Trent Baalke. That clown was the most significant problem in San Francisco. Pairing a horrible, credit-hungry general manager with a head coach that’s a bit crazy is a bad situation. When a team is winning, everyone is happy. Even people that aren’t the least bit compatible can be happy when a team is winning. If things start to go south, it’s a combustible situation. Didn’t we just see something like that in Minnesota? I’ve always thought that Harbaugh’s coaching style and personality was perfect for college football. He can get tiresome after 3-4 years. In college, he has a new group of players every 3-4 years. He’s not the type of head coach that’s good for the long term health of an NFL team. There’s no doubting Harbaugh’s ability to coach football but drama surrounds and follows him. After firing Mike Zimmer and Rick Spielman, Mark Wilf spoke of building an atmosphere of collaboration and inclusivity. Hiring Kwesi Adofo-Mensah fits that. Hiring Jim Harbaugh doesn’t fit that. Every potential coach brings pros and cons. Harbaugh is loaded with potential cons. When Mike Tice was the head coach of the Vikings, I was constantly worried that the players would do something stupid. If Harbaugh was the Vikings head coach, I’d have daily fears that he’d do something stupid or crazy. 

It was wonderful to see Vikings fans in universal agreement on Kwesi Adofo-Mensah as general manager. Fans rarely agree on anything. There’s no agreement on a potential head coach. The majority now want Jim Harbaugh. Only days ago, they were embracing change. Now they are kicking change to the curb for more of the same. 

The addition of Patrick Graham and Jim Harbaugh to the Vikings head coach candidate list did little to my favorites for the job. Harbaugh’s too much of a loose cannon. I actually like Graham more than Harbaugh as the next Vikings head coach. 

My favorites:

1a. DeMeco Ryans

1b. Raheem Morris

3.   Kevin O’Connell

4.   Patrick Graham

According to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, the Vikings will hold second interviews with Ryans, Morris, and O’Connell this week. These will be the first interviews for each with Adofo-Mensah. I’m glad that Morris is still in the mix. Most recent reports have the Vikings focusing on Ryans and O’Connell. With the 49ers loss in the NFC Championship game, Ryans can be hired this week. Morris or O’Connell can’t be hired until after the Super Bowl. I hope that little issue doesn’t impact the decision. I want the Vikings to hire their first choice. Even if they have to wait a couple weeks. 

Flea Flicker Conference Championship Predictions

It sure would be nice if the final three games of the season are as thrilling as the previous four. Here are some guesses at the Conference Championship games.

Cincinnati Bengals @ Kansas City Chiefs

Pick: Chiefs

The quarterbacking future in the AFC is hot, hot, HOT. I’m guessing that this is the first of many Patrick Mahomes vs Joe Burrow battles. Burrow will probably win some. I don’t think that it starts now. 

San Francisco 49ers @ Los Angeles Rams

Pick: Rams

If the Rams can cease the fumbles that damn near cost them last week, they should roll this week. 

Minnesota Vikings “Dream” Coaching Staff

The Minnesota Vikings have their general manager. Kwesi Adofo-Mensah. Now, it’s time for the head coach. As I impatiently wait for that hire, I can’t help but jump way ahead and dream about all of the coaches that might work for the new head coach. Of course, that all depends on the head coach. For the purpose of this ridiculous exercise, I’m going with San Francisco 49ers defensive coordinator DeMeco Ryans as the next head coach of the Minnesota Vikings. Most days, he’s my #1 choice for the job. Other days, Los Angeles Rams defensive coordinator Raheem Morris is my #1. Anyway, here’s the “Dream” Coaching Staff for first-year head coach DeMeco Ryans.

Head Coach

DeMeco Ryans

Offensive Coordinator

Mike McDaniel

Defensive Coordinator

Patrick Graham

Special Teams Coordinator

Ryan Ficken

Quarterbacks

Sean Mannion

Running Backs

Ron Gould

Receivers

Keenan McCardell

Tight Ends Coach

Andrew Janocko

Offensive Line

Mike Munchak

Defensive Line

Andre Patterson

Linebackers

Antonio Pierce

Defensive Backs

Gerald Alexander

***

A few of these coaches are very dreamy. Probably too dreamy. Mike Munchak? It would be beautiful if he’s coaching the Vikings  offensive line. Mike McDaniel? Patrick Graham? One can dream.

A couple of the coaches have Cal connections. Ron Gould is currently Stanford’s running back coach. It’d be nice if the Vikings got him out of Palo Alto. He was Cal’s running backs coach when they were sending Marshawn Lynch, Justin Forsett, Shane Vereen, J.J. Arrington, and Jahvid Best to the NFL. Gould is a great coach. Gerald Alexander was the defensive backs coach for Brian Flores on the Miami Dolphins. Before that, he was molding Cal’s DBs into NFL players. Alexander is a great coach. 

Whoever is named head coach, I hope that he considers a few of the current Vikings coaches.

Andre Patterson, defensive coordinator/defensive line

Keenan McCardell, receivers

Ryan Ficken, special teams coordinator

Phil Rauscher, offensive line

Andrew Janocko, quarterbacks

Andre Patterson and Keenan McCardell top the list. I kinda doubt that Patterson would stay for any job other than defensive coordinator. I’d be thrilled if he was named the defensive coordinator. I just want him in Minnesota coaching the defensive line in some capacity. McCardell is the coach that I feel is most likely to stay. If the decision-makers value the opinions of Justin Jefferson, Adam Thielen, and probably all of the receivers, McCardell will continue coaching in Minnesota. 

I have current Vikings quarterback Sean Mannion as the quarterbacks coach. I have him as a coach mostly because I don’t want to see him as a Vikings quarterback. All of the talk about Mannion’s role on the team has been about how smart he is, how well he works with Kirk Cousins, how good he is with the quarterbacks in the classroom and on the field. Sounds like the makings of a terrific coach. Perhaps a better coach than he ever was as a player. 

The Vikings Head Coach Search Begins

The Minnesota Vikings have their general manager. Kwesi Adofo-Mensah. His first task as general is his most important. Find a head coach. 

The Vikings have had initial interviews with eight candidates.

Todd Bowles, Tampa Bay Buccaneers Defensive Coodinator 

Jonathan Gannon, Philadelphia Eagles Defensive Coordinator 

Nathaniel Hackett, Green Bay Packers Offensive Coordinator 

Kellen Moore, Dallas Cowboys Offensive Coordinator 

Raheem Morris, Los Angeles Rams Defensive Coordinator 

Kevin O’Connell, Los Angeles Rams Offensive Coordinator 

Dan Quinn, Dallas Cowboys Defensive Coordinator 

DeMeco Ryans, San Francisco 49ers Defensive Coordinator

With a general manager in the building and part of the process, the Vikings head coach search is the team’s top priority. At the start of the offseason, eight teams had a head coach vacancy. With the announcement this week that Sean Payton was stepping away from the New Orleans Saints, the number of vacancies bumped to nine. More than a quarter of the teams are looking for a head coach. It’s going to be competitive. 

The Vacancies:

Minnesota Vikings 

Chicago Bears

Denver Broncos

Houston Texans

Jacksonville Jaguars

Las Vegas Raiders

Miami Dolphins

New Orleans Saints

New York Giants

The first head coach domino fell yesterday when the Denver Broncos hired Green Bay Packers offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett. The Chicago Bears soon followed with the hiring of Indianapolis Colts defensive coordinator Matt Eberflus. Perhaps those moves are the start of a coach-hiring flurry. For the past few days, there have been reports that the Jacksonville Jaguars are close to an agreement with Tampa Bay Buccaneers offensive coordinator Byron Leftwich. A reported obstacle in that getting done appears significant. General manager Trent Baalke. Leftwich doesn’t want him. For some reason, the Jaguars love him. Baalke is a problem wherever he goes. The fact that more than one owner has fallen for the clown is mystifying. It feels like the New York Giants could hire a Buffalo Bills coordinator (or Brian Flores) at any moment. Head coach hires could fill the next couple days. 

Soon after the Broncos and Bears head coach news, Dan Quinn announced that he’s staying with the Cowboys.  

Where does this leave the Vikings? Well, Nathaniel Hackett reportedly impressed in his initial interview. He’s gone. Dan Quinn seemed to be considered a strong candidate for every head coach vacancy. He removed himself from the open market. He’s staying in Dallas. Hackett and Quinn are the only coaches from the Vikings initial candidate list that appear to be no longer on the head coach market. This morning brought news that New York Giants defensive coordinator Patrick Graham will have a virtual interview with the Vikings. That bumps the number of available candidates to seven. Graham is an interesting option. The Giants haven’t had much success recently but Graham’s defense has been a problem for offenses. I actually thought that he might be part of the initial interviews. Obviously, Adofo-Mensah wants to chat with Graham. 

My favorites for the Vikings job: 

DeMeco Ryans

Raheem Morris

Kevin O’Connell follows closely. He’s been linked to Adofo-Mensah due to a single year together with the San Francisco 49ers. O’Connell’s role with the 49ers was termed “Special Projects.” It seems that a person dealing with “special projects” would work closely with someone in “research and development.” Despite working together for a single year, I’d imagine that Adofo-Mensah and O’Connell got to know each other fairly well. 

Everyone’s favorite “Vikings Scooper” Darren Wolfson gets the feeling that the next Vikings next head coach will be Morris, Ryans, or O’Connell. 

Raheem Morris seems to be the safest option simply because he’s been an NFL head coach. His three years as the head coach of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers wasn’t great. He was only 32 when he was hired. He did get a 10-win season out of a ridiculously undermanned, inexperienced team. While he’s spent nearly all of his coaching career on the defensive side of the ball, he did coach offense for five years with the Atlanta Falcons. Morris is a football coach. He’s easily the most experienced, most well-rounded of these contenders. He was the last of the eight initial candidates to be contacted for a virtual interview and was immediately a personal favorite for the job. 

DeMeco Ryans as a candidate for the Vikings head coach job was at first a curiosity. He was a curiosity mostly because he’s only been coaching for five years. He’s been calling a defense for a single year. For me, a couple things took Ryans from a curiosity to a serious contender for the job. 1) His brilliant defensive game plan against the Green Bay Packers. 2) The realization that he’s been coaching defense since he entered the league as a player in 2006. At about the age that Morris was a graduate assistant at Hofstra, Ryans was leading the defense of the Houston Texans defense as a rookie. Ryans was a terrific football player in the league. He was a terrific football player as much for his understanding of the game as his ability to play it. He was an on-field coach and leader for all of his ten years in the league. On paper, he’s been a coach in the league for five years. In reality, he’s been coaching in the league for 15 years. 

As soon as the Vikings needed a new head coach, I was convinced that coach had to be offensive-minded. After an eight-year revolving door of offensive coordinators, the Vikings need consistency on offense. That’s especially true if the Vikings are to prepare and break in a young quarterback in the coming years. Kevin O’Connell might be the next Sid Gillman but we can’t know it because he doesn’t call plays. Is O’Connell simply a candidate for every opening because he works with Sean McVay? Who knows? I do know that there are as many coaching unknowns with O’Connell as there are with any 36-year old assistant coach. There are actually more unknowns with him than a similarly experienced offensive coordinator that actually calls plays. I feel like I’m more familiar with O’Connell’s college quarterbacking days than his six-year nomadic NFL career and seven-year coaching career. The most remarkable thing about his playing career was being released by the New England Patriots after two training camps despite being a third-round pick. It’s not that I’m against O’Connell as the Vikings head coach. I just have no feel for him as a potential head coach. Does working with McVay make him an offensive genius? Who knows? He’s had a steady seven-year climb up the coaching ladder. If Adofo-Mensah is properly impressed with O’Connell after a single year working together, then I’m fine with him as the Vikings head coach. 

If Raheem Morris, DeMeco Ryans, and Kevin O’Connell are the contenders to be the next head coach of the Minnesota Vikings, my preference would look something like this. 

1a. DeMeco Ryans

1b. Raheem Morris

3.   Kevin O’Connell

Minnesota Vikings New General Manager

After a couple weeks of searching and interviewing, the Minnesota Vikings have found their new general manager: Kwesi Adofo-Mensah. 

The team-building process is going to be done a little differently in Minnesota. That’s exciting. New is exciting. Adofo-Mensah graduated from Princeton with a degree in Economics. He worked on Wall Street trading energy derivatives and commodities. That’s different. He earned a master’s degree in economics from Stanford in 2013. The puzzle of football apparently intrigued him as he started working for the San Francisco 49ers that same year. He started as a manager of football research and development and later became the director of the same department. In 2020, the Cleveland Browns pried him away from the 49ers to be their Vice President of Football Operations. His experience and rise through the football world is far different than the scouting grind that routinely produces general managers across the league. 

When the Vikings announced the eight candidates that they wanted to interview to be their new general manager, Adofo-Mensah was #8 for me. It was a knee-jerk reaction. He’s from the analytics world. I prefer the scouting world. I’ve always been a skeptic of analytics-based team-building. Analytics should be a part of the talent evaluation process. It should be part of the decision-making. It shouldn’t form the the basis of the decision-making. Since Adofo-Mensah was a candidate to be the Vikings next general manager, I decided to discover more about him. It didn’t take long to realize that my initial opinions were based on ignorance. People didn’t just have good things to say about him. They had great things to say about him. Co-workers, peers, everyone raved about him. Even the scouts. The people that he was supposed to be making obsolete. I’m still skeptical about analytics-based team-building. I’m not skeptical about Kwesi Adofo-Mensah. I’m completely sold on him as the Vikings next general manager.

Darren Wolfson shared this text from someone in the NFL that knows/worked with Adofo-Mensah:

A brilliant, well-rounded leader with a great sense of humor and fantastic people skills. He’s a natural collaborator that will build a culture of inclusivity and bring out the best of every perspective in terms of decision-making. The organization will be in great hands if he is the hire. 

At the start of the search process, owner Mark Wilf emphasized that collaboration and inclusivity will be the Vikings way. Everyone will enjoy coming to work. Everyone will enjoy working together. Everyone has a say. Everyone will be heard. Someone that knows/worked with Adofo-Mensah says that “he’s a natural collaborator that will build a culture of inclusivity.” Everyone that’s worked with him mentions his intelligence. That’s great. It’s also great that he’s smart enough to know what he doesn’t know. He picks the brains of those that know what he needs to know. He values and includes the opinions of others. He understands that the more information that he has the better equipped he is to make a decision. Scouting will help form his decisions. Analytics will help form his decisions. Everybody in the building will help form his decisions. Collaboration. Inclusivity. It seems that the Wilf’s found their ideal general manager. Vikings fans seem to agree. And they rarely agree on anything. 

It should be noted that Adofo-Mensah isn’t a fan of the term “analytics.” Perhaps it’s too simplistic, too narrow. He prefers “research and development.” No matter the terms used or how it’s defined, there’s going to be a new way of thinking at TCO Performance Center. 

The Minnesota Vikings are stepping into a new team-building world. Embarking on something new is exciting. I’m excited about the Vikings new general manager. 

Now, it’s time to find a head coach. 

NFL General Manager And Head Coach Vacancies

Perhaps surprising, perhaps not so surprising, Sean Payton announced yesterday that he was stepping away from his head coaching job with the New Orleans Saints. It was only a matter of time. Life after Drew Brees wasn’t going to be as fun as life with Drew Brees. Payton has yet to officially retire but his plans are to not be coaching in 2022. The Saints are now without a head coach. That bumps the number of teams looking for a head coach to nine. Four of those nine teams also started their offseason searching for a general manager. Half of those teams have found their general manager. No team with a vacancy has found their head coach. So, the Saints aren’t are too far behind. Here’s a look at the general manager and head coach searches scattered across the league and the individuals currently in the running for those jobs. 

Minnesota Vikings

General Manager:

Kwesi Adofo-Mensah, Cleveland Browns VP of Football Operations (finalist)

Adofo-Mensah has been in Minnesota since yesterday. Fans are eagerly waiting that puff of white smoke from TCO Performance Center. 

Coach:

Todd Bowles, Tampa Bay Buccaneers Defensive Coodinator (interviewed)

Jonathan Gannon, Philadelphia Eagles Defensive Coordinator (interviewed)

Nathaniel Hackett, Green Bay Packers Offensive Coordinator (interviewed)

Kellen Moore, Dallas Cowboys Offensive Coordinator (interviewed)

Raheem Morris, Los Angeles Rams Defensive Coordinator (interviewed)

Kevin O’Connell, Los Angeles Rams Offensive Coordinator (interviewed)

Dan Quinn, Dallas Cowboys Defensive Coordinator (interviewed)

DeMeco Ryans, San Francisco 49ers Defensive Coordinator (interviewed)

Chicago Bears

General Manager:

Ryan Poles, Kansas City Chiefs Executive Director of Player Personnel (Hired)

Head Coach:

Dennis Allen, New Orleans Saints Defensive Coordinator 

Todd Bowles, Tampa Bay Buccaneers Defensive Coodinator 

Jim Caldwell, former Indianapolis Colts and Detroit Lions Head Coach (finalist)

Brian Daboll, Buffalo Bills Offensive Coordinator

Matt Eberflus, Indianapolis Colts Defensive Coordinator (finalist)

Brian Flores, former Miami Dolphins Head Coach

Leslie Frazier, Buffalo Bills Defensive Coordinator 

Nathaniel Hackett, Green Bay Packers Offensive Coordinator 

Byron Leftwich, Tampa Bay Buccaneers Offensive Coordinator 

Doug Pederson, former Philadelphia Eagles Head Coach

Dan Quinn, Dallas Cowboys Defensive Coordinator (finalist)

Las Vegas Raiders

General Manager:

Trey Brown, Cincinnati Bengals Scout

Ed Dodds, Indianapolis Colts Assistant General Manager

Dwayne Joseph, Las Vegas Raiders Director Of Pro Scouting

Champ Kelly, Chicago Bears Assistant Director Of Player Personnel

Dave Ziegler, New England Patriots Director Of Player Personnel

John Spytek, Tampa Bay Buccaneers VP Of Player Personnel

Head Coach:

Rich Bisaccia, Las Vegas Raiders Interim Head Coach

Jerod Mayo, New England Patriots Inside Linebacker Coach

New York Giants 

General Manager:

Joe Schoen, Buffalo Bills Assistant General Manager (Hired)

Head Coach:

Lou Anarums, Cincinnati Bengals Defensive Coordinator 

Brian Daboll, Buffalo Bills Offensive Coordinator (2nd interview)

Brian Flores, former Miami Dolphins Head Coach

Leslie Frazier, Buffalo Bills Defensive Coordinator (2nd interview)

Patrick Graham, New York Giants Defensive Coordinator 

Dan Quinn, Dallas Cowboys Defensive Coordinator 

Denver Broncos

Head Coach:

Eric Bieniemy, Kansas City Chiefs Offensive Coordinator 

Brian Callahan, Cincinnati Bengals Offensive Coordinator 

Jonathan Gannon, Philadelphia Eagles Defensive Coordinator 

Luke Getsy, Green Bay Packers QB Coach/Passing Game Coordinator

Aaron Glenn, Detroit Lions Defensive Coordinator 

Nathaniel Hackett, Green Bay Packers Offensive Coordinator (finalist)

Jerod Mayo, New England Patriots Inside Linebackers Coach

Kellen Moore, Dallas Cowboys Offensive Coordinator 

Kevin O’Connell, Los Angeles Rams Offensive Coordinator (finalist)

Dan Quinn, Dallas Cowboys Defensive Coordinator (finalist)

Houston Texans

Head Coach:

Brian Flores, former Miami Dolphins Head Coach

Jonathan Gannon, Philadelphia Eagles Defensive Coordinator 

Joe Lombardi, Los Angeles Chargers Offensive Coordinator

Josh McCown, former NFL QB

Hines Ward

Jacksonville Jaguars

Head Coach:

Darrell Bevell, Jacksonville Jaguars Offensive Coordinator 

Todd Bowles, Tampa Bay Buccaneers Defensive Coordinator 

Jim Caldwell, former Indianapolis Colts and Detroit Lions Head Coach

Matt Eberflus, Indianapolis Colts Defensive Coordinator (finalist)

Nathaniel Hackett, Green Bay Packers Offensive Coordinator 

Byron Leftwich, Tampa Bay Buccaneers Offensive Coordinator (hired?)

Kellen Moore, Dallas Cowboys Offensive Coordinator 

Bill O’Brien, former Houston Texans Head Coach

Doug Pederson, former Philadelphia Eagles Head Coach

Dan Quinn, Dallas Cowboys Defensive Coordinator 

Miami Dolphins

Head Coach:

Thomas Brown, Los Angeles Rams Assistant Head Coach

Brian Daboll, Buffalo Bills Offensive Coordinator 

Leslie Frazier, Buffalo Bills Defensive Coordinator 

Vance Joseph, Arizona Cardinals Defensive Coordinator 

Mike McDaniel, San Francisco 49ers Offensive Coordinator

Kellen Moore, Dallas Cowboys Offensive Coordinator 

Dan Quinn, Dallas Cowboys Defensive Coordinator 

New Orleans Saints

Head Coach:

Dennis Allen, New Orleans Saints Defensive Coordinator

Underclassmen Granted Eligibility For 2022 NFL Draft

On Friday, the NFL released the list of players that have been granted special eligibility for entry into the 2022 NFL Draft. Each of the players has met the league’s three-year eligibility rule and has submitted an application renouncing his remaining college football eligibility. The deadline for receiving the application was January 17. The list of underclassmen entering the NFL Draft numbers 73 players. 

• Tyler Allgeier, RB, BYU
• Alec Anderson, OT, UCLA
• Matt Araiza, P, San Diego State
• David Bell, WR, Purdue
• Dane Belton, DB, Iowa
• Nik Bonitto, LB, Oklahoma
• Andrew Booth, DB, Clemson
• Gabe Brkic, K, Oklahoma
• Treylon Burks, WR, Arkansas
• Leo Chenal, LB, Wisconsin
• Lewis Cine, DB, Georgia
• Snoop Conner, RB, Mississippi
• Matt Corral, QB, Mississippi
• Charles Cross, OT, Mississippi State
• Nick Cross, DB, Maryland
• Tyrion Davis-Price, RB, LSU
• Nakobe Dean, LB, Georgia
• William Dunkle, G, San Diego State
• Jerrion Ealy, RB, Mississippi
• Ikem Ekwonu, OT, N.C. State
• Kaiir Elam, DB, Florida
• Kaleb Eleby, QB, Western Michigan
• Noah Elliss, DT, Idaho
• Martin Emerson, DB, Mississippi State
• Erik Ezukanma, WR, Texas Tech
• Cordale Flott, DB, LSU
• Ahmad Gardner, DB, Cincinnati
• Tyler Goodson, RB, Iowa
• Kyler Gordon, DB, Washington
• Kenyon Green, G, Texas A&M
• Ben Griffiths, P, USC
• Breece Hall, RB, Iowa State
• Kyle Hamilton, DB, Notre Dame
• Christian Harris, LB, Alabama
• Kevin Harris, RB, South Carolina
• Daxton Hill, DB, Michigan
• Christopher Hinton, DT, Michigan
• Drake Jackson, LB, USC
• Cam Jurgens, C, Nebraska
• Zonovan Knight, RB, N.C. State
• DeMarvin Leal, DT, Texas A&M
• Drake London, WR, USC
• Sincere McCormick, RB, UTSA
• Trent McDuffie, DB, Washington
• Ja'Quan McMillian, DB, East Carolina
• John Metchie, WR, Alabama
• Skyy Moore, WR, Western Michigan
• Jalen Nailor, WR, Michigan State
• Evan Neal, OT, Alabama
• David Ojabo, LB, Michigan
• George Pickens, WR, Georgia
• Makai Polk, WR, Mississippi State
• Sean Rhyan, OT, UCLA
• Wan'Dale Robinson, WR, Kentucky
• Dare Rosenthal, OT, Kentucky
• Brandon Smith, LB, Penn State
• Tyler Smith, OT, Tulsa
• Isaiah Spiller, RB, Texas A&M
• Chris Steele, DB, USC
• Derek Stingley, DB, LSU
• Tyler Vrabel, OT, Boston College
• Kenneth Walker III, RB, Michigan State
• Rasheed Walker, OT, Penn State
• Travon Walker, DT, Georgia
• Dohnovan West, C, Arizona State
• Devon Williams, WR, Oregon
• Jameson Williams, WR, Alabama
• Kyren Williams, RB, Notre Dame
• Garrett Wilson, WR, Ohio State
• Alex Wright, LB, UAB
• Mykael Wright, DB, Oregon
• Jalen Wydermyer, TE, Texas A&M
• Cade York, K, LSU

As has been the case since the NFL first allowed early entry, many of the top draft picks in April’s draft will be underclassmen. Evan Neal, Ikem Ekwonu, Kyle Hamilton, Charles Cross, Derek Stingley, Drake London, Ahmad Gardner, Garrett Wilson may all be gone before the draft is ten picks old. 

Early entry isn’t a gamble for the players that will populate the top of the draft. It is a gamble for the players that are on the edge of the top 256 players. All they need is an opportunity. 

Punters and kickers are football players but it still surprises me when I see either entering the draft early.

Some Football Thoughts

Here are some random football thoughts at the midpoint of the NFL postseason. 

1. The Divisional Round brought wonderful, edge-of-your seat football. All four games ended with walk-off winners. Three last-second field goals broke ties. One last-second field goal forced overtime. Comebacks. Wild finishes. Outstanding football games. 

2. I’m reading Brad Schultz’s The NFL’s Greatest Day. It’s a fine, well-written read on the day in the 1972 playoffs that brought us the Immaculate Reception and Roger Staubach’s brilliant comeback against the 49ers. The 2021 Divisional Round may have brought us The NFL’s Greatest Weekend. 

3. Football is fun.

4. On Tuesday and Wednesday, the Minnesota Vikings will be interviewing the finalists for their general manager position. Kwesi Adofo-Mensah is interviewing tomorrow. Ryan Poles is interviewing on Wednesday. The Vikings general manager search is winding down. The head coach search will then ramp up. 

5. The Vikings have had initial head coach interviews with eight candidates.

Todd Bowles, Tampa Bay Buccaneers Defensive Coordinator

Nathaniel Hackett, Green Bay Packers Offensive Coordinator

Dan Quinn, Dallas Cowboys Defensive Coordinator 

DeMeco Ryans, San Francisco 49ers Defensive Coordinator

Kellen Moore, Dallas Cowboys Offensive Coordinator 

Jonathan Gannon, Philadelphia Eagles Defensive Coordinator

Kevin O’Connell, Los Angeles Rams Offensive Coordinator

Raheem Morris, Los Angeles Rams Defensive Coordinator

6. I’m hoping for a general manager/head coach duo of Ryan Poles and Raheem Morris. DeMeco Ryans is head coach 1b to Morris’ 1a.

7. A lot has been made of the fabulous start to Matt LaFleur’s head coaching career. All the fluff makes the following interesting.

Playoff W-L

Matt LaFleur: 2-3

Mike Zimmer: 2-3

This might look like an anti-LaFleur/pro-Zimmer stat. It should be noted that it took LaFleur three years and Zimmer six years to reach five playoff games. 

8. After finishing short of the Super Bowl (again) sad, pouty, lying Aaron Rodgers said that he doesn’t want to be part of a rebuild. I don’t think that Rodgers understands what a rebuild is. No surprise there. He shouldn’t worry. If there’s a rebuild in Green Bay, he won’t be a part of it. 

9. It feels like Aaron Rodgers will be handed another MVP trophy in a couple weeks. That trophy should be going to Cooper Kupp. Rodgers had a very good season. He had an ordinary season for him. Kupp had a great season. He had an extraordinary season for a receiver. The vote shouldn’t even be close. 

10. Aaron Donald and T.J. Watt are also more deserving of the MVP than Rodgers. So is Jonathan Taylor. 

11. Of the eight quarterbacks that played this weekend, Rodgers was probably the least fun to watch. He’s grown so tiresome so fast. 

12. I’ll never understand the media asking players about career plans immediately after a playoff loss. 

13. Saw this from Sports Center Facts:

This is the first time in 12 years that a conference final game won’t include Aaron Rodgers or Tom Brady. 

14. A future of quarterbacking duels between Patrick Mahomes, Josh Allen, and Joe Burrows is so damn exciting. 

15. The NFC needs to up their young quarterback game. 

16. Football is fun. 

And Then There Were Two

The Minnesota Vikings search for a general manager started soon after the season ended. After a couple days of working through the possibilities, the team’s decision-makers formed a list of eight candidates to interview. 

Kwesi Adofo-Mensah, Cleveland Browns President of Football Operations

Glenn Cook, Cleveland Browns Vice President of Player Personnel

Eliot Wolf, New England Patriots Player Personnel Consultant

John Spytek, Tampa Bay Buccaneers Vice President of Player Personnel

Brandon Brown, Philadelphia Eagles Director of Player Personnel

Ryan Poles, Kansas City Chiefs Director of Player Personnel

Catherine Raiche, Philadelphia Eagles Vice President of Football Operations

Monti Ossenfort, Tennessee Titans Director of Player Personnel

From last Sunday through Thursday, the Vikings interviewed each candidate. On Friday, they scheduled interviews with two finalists. 

Kwesi Adofo-Mensah

Ryan Poles

Adofo-Mensah will be in Minnesota on Tuesday for his interview. Poles will interview on Wednesday. If all goes well, the Vikings could have their general manager soon after. 

As far as I know, Adofo-Mensah is a first-time finalist for a general manager position. Poles, on the other hand, is a veteran to this stage of the process. That tends to happen when one has helped build a team that’s been to the past two Super Bowls. Poles was a finalist for the Carolina Panthers job last year. He was a finalist for the New York Giants job this year. In addition to being a finalist for the Vikings job, he’s a finalist for the Chicago Bears job. Perhaps to get a jump on the Vikings, his interview with the Bears is scheduled for Tuesday. It’s a desperation move. 

For what it’s worth, I’m thrilled with the Vikings general manager finalists. Over the course of the search and interviews, Ryan Poles and Kwesi Adofo-Mensah emerged as my favorites. They got to top of my wish list very differently. As soon as the initial eight candidates were revealed, Poles was a favorite. When searching for a person to build an NFL team it’s a pretty good idea to look at a group that put together a successful team. Poles didn’t build the Kansas City Chiefs into a champion but he was an important part of the group that did. I should’ve been more aware of Poles before this offseason. I should’ve been more aware of someone that was a finalist for a general manager position a year ago. I suppose that I wasn’t aware of him because I felt that the Vikings were in a good place with Rick Spielman calling the shots. In short, I wasn’t looking for a general manager. I finally became aware of Poles when the Vikings needed a general manager. It was through Mike Borgonzi that I discovered Poles. I knew of Borgonzi because NFL Network’s Peter Schrager once identified him as the Chiefs secret personnel weapon. That tends to stick. So does the name. Borgonzi! Anyway, in looking at the Chiefs personnel group to learn more about this secret weapon I discovered Ryan Poles. I liked his scouting experience. I liked his career progression. I liked that he survived regime changes in Kansas City. I also found it interesting that it was Poles that was getting significant general manager attention while Borgonzi remained a secret weapon. Poles was an easy and immediate favorite for the Vikings general manager job. Adofo-Mensah wasn’t. When the eight-candidate short list was revealed, he was eighth for me. He was eighth for a very simple reason. I’m not a fan of a football team’s top decision-maker being analytics-centric. I’m a fan of the scouting world. I know that analytics has an important role in team-building. I prefer it to be part of the process rather than the process. Adofo-Mensah worried me. Then he didn’t. The more I read about him, the more I heard about him, the more I discovered that he’s embraced by the scouting community. Rather being shut in a room looking at numbers rather than film, he’s out with the scouts. He has a different background. He looks at the process differently. That’s really all it is. Maybe the Vikings need something different. This is what separates Ryan Poles and Kwesi Adofo-Mensah. If Poles is the next general manager, the Vikings decision-making, scouting, team-building will probably continue much like it has. There’ll just be some different eyes. If Adofo-Mensah is the next general manager, the process will change. However, it probably won’t change as much as I originally thought. 

I’d be thrilled with either finalist as the next general manager of the Minnesota Vikings. If I had to pick a preference, I’m probably leaning Poles. I’ll always be a fan of those that come through the grind of scouting. In a tie between the two it probably comes down to this. Adofo-Mensah played basketball at Princeton. Basketball! At Princeton! Poles played offensive line at Boston College. Advantage Poles. 

Best of luck to both. I’ll be thrilled with either. 

Flea Flicker Divisional Predictions

Here are guesses at the Divisional games. 

Cincinnati Bengals @ Tennessee Titans

Pick: Bengals

I don’t see this as an upset or a surprise. 

San Francisco 49ers @ Green Bay Packers

Pick: 49ers

Both #1 seeds lose on the first day of Divisional games!

Los Angeles Rams @ Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Pick: Rams

Tom Brady loses! So does Tampa Bay.

Buffalo Bills @ Kansas City Chiefs

Pick: Chiefs

I wanted to make it four road upsets but I just couldn’t do it. 

Early Minnesota Vikings Mock Drafts

My general feeling on early mock drafts is that it’s too early for a mock if the first round isn’t set. Right now, eight picks aren’t set. It’s too early for mock drafts. That hasn’t stopped some of the most anticipated mockers from doing some mocking. On Wednesday, ESPN’s Mel Kiper Jr. posted his first mock draft of the 2022 Mock Draft season. The Athletic’s Dane Brugler posted his Mock Draft 2.0. 

Kiper and Brugler are in agreement with what the Minnesota Vikings should do with the 12th pick. 

Ahmad “Sauce” Gardner, CB, Cincinnati

It’s really no surprise that the noted draft analysts have the Vikings selecting a cornerback. That’s a position of great need. Unless the position is soundly and completely addressed in free agency, it’ll be a great need in late April. It’s also no surprise that “Sauce” Gardner is the pick. At this early stage of the draft evaluation process, the top corner in the 2022 NFL Draft is a toss-up between Gardner and LSU’s Derek Stingley Jr. 

Kiper and Brugler aren’t the only mockers with early mocks. They’re everywhere. Here a mock. There a mock. Everywhere a mock mock. I remember a day when the only mock drafts came from Paul Zimmerman and Joel Buchsbaum. Each did one and each was released about a week before the real draft. It’s a very different day for mock drafts. Anyway, here are some Vikings draft predictions from a variety of mockers (collected by Vikings.com). 

PFF’s Austin Gayle:

Ahmad “Sauce” Gardner, CB, Cincinnati

PFF’s Michael Renner:

Kenny Pickett, QB, Cincinnati

Sporting News’ Vinnie Iyer:

Devin Loyd, LB. Utah

CBS Sports’ Ryan Wilson:

Garrett Wilson, WR, Ohio State

CBS Sports’ Chris Trapasso:

Garrett Wilson, WR, Ohio State

CBS Sports’ Josh Edwards:

Malik Willis, QB, Liberty

CBS Sports’ Kyle Stackpole:

Kyle Hamilton, S, Notre Dame

Fox Sports’ Jason McIntyre:

Kyle Hamilton, S, Notre Dame

The Draft Network’s Kyle Crabbs:

Sam Howell, QB, North Carolina

The Draft Network’s Joe Marino:

George Karlaftis, edge, Purdue

Pro Football Network’s Cam Mellor:

Ahmad “Sauce” Gardner, CB, Cincinnati

Pro Football Network’s James Fragoza:

Ahmad “Sauce” Gardner, CB, Cincinnati

USA TODAY Sports’ Charles McDonald:

Andrew Booth Jr., CB, Clemson

Athlon Sports’ Bryan Fischer:

Matt Corrall, QB, Mississippi

Draft Wire’s Luke Easterling:

Ahmad “Sauce” Gardner, CB, Cincinnati 

SB Nation’s James Dator:

Andrew Booth Jr., CB, Clemson

***

There’s a lot of “Sauce” out there. 

The most curious are the quarterback predictions. Most of the quarterbacks considered contenders to be selected in the first round have been mocked to Minnesota. Kenny Pickett, Malik Willis, Sam Howell, Matt Corrall. Only Desmond Ridder is missing. The Vikings are in an uncertain quarterback situation. It’s where they’ve been for most of the past 44 years. Life since Fran Tarkenton hasn’t been easy. I’m going with the assumption that Kirk Cousins is the Vikings quarterback in 2022. I’m going with that assumption because he’s under contract for 2022. The top task of the Vikings new decision-makers will probably be to prepare for life after Cousins. I like the idea of selecting a quarterback high in the 2022 NFL Draft. I like the idea of Kellen Mond competing with that quarterback to back up Cousins in 2022 and to replace him in 2023. I like the idea of drafting a quarterback until they find their next franchise quarterback. 44 years is a long time. 

While selecting a quarterback at #12 is appealing and fun, there are greater immediate needs. Cornerback currently looks like the top need. Pretty much anywhere on the defense is a need. 

I’d be thrilled if Kyle Hamilton is available at #12. It’s more likely that he’s off the board by the fifth pick. 

It’s early. 

Brugler mocked two rounds of selections. His second round pick for the Vikings:

Kingsley Enagbare, edge, South Carolina

Minnesota Vikings Head Coach Search

Watching the Minnesota Vikings general manager and head coach searches is beginning to feel a bit like watching a tennis match. It’s a back-and-forth affair. First there were general manager interview requests. Before there was a general manager interview there were head coach interview requests. Sunday brought a general manager interview (Monti Ossenfort) and a head coach interview (Nathaniel Hackett). The Vikings will hire a general manager and then have him/her be part of head coach hiring process. We know that will be the order because Mark Wilf said that it would be. Through Wednesday, the Vikings had interviewed six of the eight candidates on their general manager short list. 

Monti Ossenfort - interviewed Sunday

John Spytek - interviewed Monday

Kwesi Adofo-Mensah - interviewed Monday

Catherine Raiche - interviewed Monday

Brandon Brown - interviewed Tuesday

Ryan Poles - interviewed Tuesday

For what it’s worth, according to an NFL source, Ryan Poles had an “impressive” interview with the Vikings. He also appears to be impressing the New York Giants as he had a second interview yesterday for their open GM job. 

Glenn Cook and Eliot Wolf are scheduled to interview for the Vikings general manager job today. 

While the Vikings are expected to hire a GM first, four head coach interviews have already taken place. More will take place before the general manager is hired. As confusing as this may seem, it’s a wise move to make first contact with prospective coaches. No head coach vacancy across the league has been filled. No head coach vacancy feels all that close to being filled. Despite that, the Vikings couldn’t sit idle on the coaching front while working toward hiring a general manager. 

The Vikings initially requested interviews with seven head coach candidates.

Todd Bowles, Tampa Bay Buccaneers Defensive Coordinator

Nathaniel Hackett, Green Bay Packers Offensive Coordinator

Dan Quinn, Dallas Cowboys Defensive Coordinator 

DeMeco Ryans, San Francisco 49ers Defensive Coordinator

Kellen Moore, Dallas Cowboys Offensive Coordinator 

Jonathan Gannon, Philadelphia Eagles Defensive Coordinator

Kevin O’Connell, Los Angeles Rams Offensive Coordinator

Personally, that didn’t feel like a complete candidate short list as Byron Leftwich and Brian Daboll weren’t on it. It was proven to an incomplete candidate short list on Tuesday when the Vikings requested an interview with an eighth candidate. 

Raheem Morris, Los Angeles Rams Defensive Coordinator

For some reason, I hadn’t initially considered Raheem Morris. After a few hours of pondering and reading, Morris has emerged as one of my favorite candidates. He may even be my favorite. 

Through Wednesday, the Vikings have interviewed four head coach candidates.

Nathaniel Hackett - Sunday

Dan Quinn - Wednesday

DeMeco Ryans - Wednesday

Kellen Moore-Wednesday

Jonathan Gannon is scheduled to interview today. Raheem Morris, Todd Bowles and Kevin O’Connell are scheduled to interview tomorrow. Busy day. At that point, all of the coaches on the Vikings current candidate list will have been interviewed at least once. Hopefully, a general manager will be in place for the next round of interviews. 

Of the eight current head coach candidates, I feel most drawn to Raheem Morris and DeMeco Ryans. Morris’ experience probably puts him at 1a to Ryans’ 1b. Some might grumble about another defensive head coach. Offense, defense, special teams. It shouldn’t matter. It might be best if the head coach isn’t the one calling the offensive or defensive plays on game day. The Vikings need to find the best head coach and leader. They need to hire the person that creates the best environment in the building, on the field, everywhere. If the Vikings look their way, Byron Leftwich and Brain Baboll might join Morris and Ryans at the top of my personal wish list. Nathaniel Hackett is currently running a notch below my favorite favorites. 

It’s wild that it’s only been ten days since Rick Spielman and Mike Zimmer were fired. Time seems to stand still when your team is looking for a general manager and head coach. 

Pro Football Hall of Fame’s Class of 2022 Elections

The Pro Football Hall of Fame’s board of 49 selectors met yesterday to hash out the Hall fates of the 18 finalists for the Class of 2022. The 18 finalists include 15 modern-era candidates, as well as coach, contributor, and senior candidates. 

THE CLASS OF 2022 BALLOT

(Modern-Era Candidates)

OFFENSE (5)

WR (3) – *Torry Holt, Andre Johnson, *Reggie Wayne.

OT (2) – *Tony Boselli, Willie Anderson.

DEFENSE (9)

DL (3) – *Jared Allen (DE), *Richard Seymour (DT), Bryant Young (DT). 

LB (4) – *Sam Mills, *Zach Thomas, DeMarcus Ware, Patrick Willis.

DB (2) – *Ronde Barber (CB), *LeRoy Butler (S).

SPECIALISTS (1)

KR/PR – Devin Hester

* Denotes returning finalist

COACHES CANDIDATE

Dick Vermeil

SENIOR CANDIDATE

Cliff Branch

CONTRIBUTOR CANDIDATE

Art McNally

***

Andre Johnson, DeMarcus Ware, and Devin Hester have made the finalist stage in their first year of eligibility. I’m still not sure how Johnson made it to the finalist stage over Steve Smith Sr. Anyway, the Hall selectors have shown a great fondness for jamming through players in their first year of eligibility. Hopefully, they are more selective this year. With Ware being the lone first-year candidate with a real shot this year, many see the Class of 2022 as a “clean-up class.” This could be the year that long-time finalist Tony Boselli finally makes it to Canton. LeRoy Butler and Richard Seymour have also hovered for years around the edges of making it through. I see (hopefully) Boselli, Seymour, and Butler in the Class of 2022. If Ware makes it four, that leaves room for one more.

My Top Contenders:

Ronde Barber

Reggie Wayne

Patrick Willis

Jared Allen

I believe that all four will eventually make it to Canton. For purely biased reasons, I hope that Jared Allen rounds out the Hall of Fame Class of 2022. When it comes to a Hall toss-up situation, I often go with the player that has waited the longest. That would be Ronde Barber. In this situation, I’m probably leaning toward Patrick Willis. In my opinion, he was the best linebacker of his generation. The only knock on his career is that it was only eight years. His first seven years were slam-dunk, first-ballot Hall of Fame quality. An injury-riddled eighth season led to his early retirement. It’s a mystery as to how he wasn’t a finalist last year. It was an even greater mystery when he wasn’t a semi-finalist in his first year of eligibility. I must be watching a different football game than the Hall voters. 

As for the coach, contributor, and senior candidates, Dick Vermeil, Art McNally, and Cliff Branch are in. 

The only Hall of Fame discussions that matter took place yesterday. They reportedly completed that discussing in under eight hours. Last year’s session lasted nearly nine hours. That means that the Hall of Fame Class of 2022 is known to a few. The rest of us aren’t expected to know until the NFL Honors Show on February 10. 

Minnesota Vikings General Manager Interviews

Last week, the Minnesota Vikings crafted an 8-person candidate list for their general manager position. 

Kwesi Adofo-Mensah, Cleveland Browns President of Football Operations

Glenn Cook, Cleveland Browns Vice President of Player Personnel

Eliot Wolf, New England Patriots Player Personnel Consultant

John Spytek, Tampa Bay Buccaneers Vice President of Player Personnel

Brandon Brown, Philadelphia Eagles Director of Player Personnel

Ryan Poles, Kansas City Chiefs Director of Player Personnel

Catherine Raiche, Philadelphia Eagles Vice President of Football Operations

Monti Ossenfort, Tennessee Titans Director of Player Personnel

This week, the Vikings started interviewing those candidates. 

Sunday: 

Monti Ossenfort

Monday: 

John Spytek

Kwesi Adofo-Mensah

Catherine Raiche

Today:

Ryan Poles

Brandon Brown

Thursday:

Glenn Cook

Eliot Wolf

It looks like Wednesday is something of a recovery day. 

Most of the top general manager candidates for a particular team work in relative anonymity for those fans and media that follow other teams. It’s tough to know of, let alone know about, many of the candidates. Of the eight candidates for the Vikings general manager job, I was only familiar with Monti Ossenfort and Eliot Wolf before this search started. I caught mentions of Kwesi Adofo-Mensah over the years. He was the “analytics guy” for the San Francisco 49ers and then the Cleveland Browns. As I learned more about the candidates, I became impressed with the wide net that the Vikings search group cast. The only candidate that made me a little uneasy was Adofo-Mensah. I’m among the shrinking number of people that isn’t completely sold on analytics as the primary avenue to building a football team. I get that analytics has a place in football and a place in personnel decisions. I just prefer football-lifers that have risen through the scouting ranks as general managers. I became much more comfortable with Adofo-Mensah when I saw this tweet from ESPN Draft Analyst Jordan Reid.

Being out on the road and all-star game circuit over the past month, so many scouts have talked highly of Kwesi. We’ll see which team he ends up with, but it seems to be a matter of when not it with him. 

I’ve always liked Reid’s draft takes and football opinions. If football scouts are high Adofo-Mensah, I see no reason why I should be uneasy about him calling the shots for the Vikings. They know him. I don’t. 

With a revised opinion on Adofo-Mensah, I suppose that he joins Monti Ossenfort, Ryan Poles, and Glenn Cook as my favorites to be the next general manager of the Minnesota Vikings. 

Flea Flicker 2021 NFL Honors

It’s time for some awards. The real NFL Honors will be handed out the week of the Super Bowl. Here are  the Flea Flicker 2021 NFL Honors.

MVP

Cooper Kupp, WR, Los Angeles Rams

Offensive Player of the Year

Cooper Kupp, WR, Los Angeles Rams

Defensive Player of the Year

T.J. Watt, Edge, Pittsburgh Steelers

Offensive Rookie of the Year

Ja’Marr Chase, WR, Cincinnati Bengals

Defensive Rookie of the Year

Micah Parsons, LB, Dallas Cowboys

Comeback Player of the Year

Joe Burrow, QB, Cincinnati Bengals

Coach of the Year

Mike Vrabel, Tennessee Titans

Minnesota Vikings General Manager and Head Coach Candidates

The Minnesota Vikings kicked off their search for a new general manager on Monday. The search party is made up of owners Zygi and Mark Wilf, COO Andrew Miller, and player personnel executives. Some candidate names started to emerge Wednesday evening by way of reported interview requests. I like the diverse net that the Vikings have cast. The current general manager list has eight candidates. 

The General Manager Candidates

Kwesi Adofo-Mensah, Cleveland Browns President of Football Operations

Glenn Cook, Cleveland Browns Vice President of Player Personnel

Eliot Wolf, New England Patriots Player Personnel Consultant

John Spytek, Tampa Bay Buccaneers Vice President of Player Personnel

Brandon Brown, Philadelphia Eagles Director of Player Personnel

Ryan Poles, Kansas City Chiefs Director of Player Personnel

Catherine Raiche, Philadelphia Eagles Vice President of Football Operations

Monti Ossenfort, Tennessee Titans Director of Player Personnel

Three GM interviews have reportedly been scheduled:

Today: Monti Ossenfort

Monday: Kwesi Adofo-Mensah

Tuesday: Ryan Poles

For whatever reason, my preference for the Vikings next general manager seems to drift toward Ryan Poles, Monti Ossenfort, and Glenn Cook. I prefer on-the-ground scouting experience over analytics. I understand that analytics can be very important in building a football team. I just prefer that the top shot-caller be on the scouting and talent evaluation side of things. 

The Vikings plan to hire a general manager before they hire the head coach. That makes sense as the general manager should be part of the search for the head coach. That hasn’t stopped the Vikings from requesting interviews with some head coach candidates. Several interview requests were reported yesterday.

The Head Coach Candidates

Todd Bowles, Tampa Bay Buccaneers Defensive Coordinator

Nathaniel Hackett, Green Bay Packers Offensive Coordinator

Dan Quinn, Dallas Cowboys Defensive Coordinator 

DeMeco Ryans, San Francisco 49ers Defensive Coordinator

Kellen Moore, Dallas Cowboys Offensive Coordinator 

Jonathan Gannon, Philadelphia Eagles Defensive Coordinator

Kevin O’Connell, Los Angeles Rams Offensive Coordinator

All of the above candidates are coaching in the playoffs. Despite being without their general manager, the interview with Nathaniel Hackett will reportedly take place today. Since the Packers have a first round bye, he’s eligible to interview with teams through the end of this weekend. The remaining six candidates are able to interview with other teams after the first round of the playoffs. 

Todd Bowles and Dan Quinn were in the running for the Vikings head coach job in 2014. Bowles was set for a second interview before Mike Zimmer was hired. 

Jonathan Gannon was an assistant defensive backs coach for Zimmer from 2014-17. 

I’ll feel better about the Vikings head coach candidates when Byron Leftwich and Eric Bieniemy are added to the list. Maybe Brian Daboll and Patrick Graham as well. 

In a few weeks, the Vikings will be hiring the ninth head coach on my watch. Bud Grant was the incumbent when I found the Vikings as an itty-bitty fan of football. Surprisingly, this is only the fourth head coach search. Twice, the Vikings hired from within. Les Steckel was disastrously promoted in 1984. Jerry Burns was deservedly promoted in 1986. Grant came out of retirement to settle things during the 1985 season. Twice, the Vikings hired their interim head coaches. Mike Tice replaced Dennis Green at the end of the 2001 season. Tice was given the full-time gig after the season. Leslie Frazier replaced Brad Childress during the very strange 2010 season. Frazier was given the full-time gig after the season. Since the 1960s, the Vikings have conducted only four head coach searches.

1992: Dennis Green

2006: Brad Childress

2014: Mike Zimmer

2022: ?

The Wilf family has presided over three of those searches. It’s best to have patience. I often have trouble being patient. I want these sort of things to just get done. Getting the general manager and head coach hires right is the most important thing. Patience. 

Flea Flicker Wild Card Predictions

Here are guesses at the outcome of this weekend’s Wild Card games. 

Las Vegas Raiders @ Cincinnati Bengals

Pick: Bengals

Speaking of Wild Card picks, I see the Bengals as a wild card for the Super Bowl.

New England Patriots @ Buffalo Bills

Pick: Bills

It’s difficult to pick against Bill Belichick in the playoffs but the Bills are the better team. I do think that the Bills have to play much better than they have this season to get where they have the talent to get. 

Philadelphia Eagles @ Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Pick: Eagles

I wouldn’t be surprised if a team knocks off the defending champs but I don’t think that team is the Eagles.

San Francisco 49ers @ Dallas Cowboys

Pick: Cowboys

This might be the best matchup of the weekend. The Cowboys are the more talented team but they don’t always play to that talent. 

Pittsburgh Steelers @ Kansas City Chiefs

Pick: Chiefs

I’d be surprised if this game is close. 

Arizona Cardinals @ Los Angeles Rams

Pick: Cardinals

This is just a hunch. I don’t think that either team enters the playoffs playing their best. 

Flea Flicker 2021 All-Pro Team

While we wait for any news on the Minnesota Vikings general manager and head coach search, here’s a look at some of the best players of the 2021 NFL season. 

2021 All-Pro Team

Offense

Quarterback

Joe Burrow, Cincinnati Bengals

Running Back

Jonathan Taylor, Indianapolis Colts

Fullback

C.J. Ham, Minnesota Vikings

Wide Receivers

Cooper Kupp, Los Angeles Rams

Justin Jefferson, Minnesota Vikings

Flex

Deebo Samuel, San Francisco 49ers

Offensive Tackles

Trent Williams, San Francisco 49ers

Tristan Wirfs, Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Offensive Guards

Joe Thuney, Kansas City Chiefs

Zack Martin, Dallas Cowboys

Center

Ryan Jensen, Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Defense

Defensive Ends

Myles Garrett, Cleveland Browns

Maxx Crosby, Las Vegas Raiders

Defensive Tackles

Aaron Donald, Los Angeles Rams

Vita Vea, Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Linebackers

T.J. Watt, Pittsburgh Steelers

Roquan Smith, Chicago Bears

Micah Parsons, Dallas Cowboys

Cornerbacks

Jalen Ramsey, Los Angeles Rams

J.C. Jackson, New England Patriots

Safeties

Jordan Poyer, Buffalo Bills

Justin Simmons, Denver Broncos

Special Teams

Kicker

Justin Tucker, Baltimore Ravens 

Punter

Bryan Anger, Dallas Cowboys

Kick Returner

Kene Nwangwu, Minnesota Vikings

Punt Returner

Devin Duvernay, Baltimore Ravens

Some Minnesota Vikings Bookkeeping

The 2021 Minnesota Vikings season was one of the most frustrating in memory. The disappointing games are in the books and in the past. They also resulted in Monday’s firings of general manager Rick Spielman and head coach Mike Zimmer. Lost in those high profile happenings was some of the usual end-of-season bookkeeping. That includes little things like draft position, next year’s opponents, and the signing of players to reserve/future contracts.

Draft Stuff

The Minnesota Vikings hold the 12th pick in the 2022 NFL Draft.

1.   Jacksonville Jaguars

2.   Detroit Lions

3.   Houston Texans

4.   New York Jets

5.   New York Giants

6.   Carolina Panthers

7.   New York Giants

8.   Atlanta Falcons

9.   Denver Broncos

10. New York Jets

11. Washington Football Team

12. Minnesota Vikings

13. Cleveland Browns

14. Baltimore Ravens

15. Philadelphia Eagles

16. Philadelphia Eagles

17. Los Angeles Chargers

18. New Orleans Saints

With two picks apiece in the Top 10, the New York clubs will control the top of the draft. 

The Vikings currently hold eight picks in the 2022 NFL Draft.

Round 1 (12)

Round 2

Round 3

Round 5 (from Ravens)

Round 6

Round 6 (from Chiefs)

Round 6 (from Jets)

Round 7 (from Broncos)

-The Vikings fourth round pick was traded to the Jets for tight end Chris Herndon. The Vikings also received a sixth round pick from the Jets in the deal.

-The Vikings received a fifth round pick from the Ravens in a trade for defensive end Yannick Ngakoue.

-The Vikings traded a fifth round pick to the Jaguars for Ngakoue.

-The Vikings received a sixth round pick from the Chiefs in a trade for cornerback Mike Hughes. The Vikings also sent their seventh round pick to the Chiefs as part of the deal. 

-The Vikings received a seventh round pick from the Broncos for defensive end Stephen Weatherly.

Minnesota Vikings 2022 Opponents

Home

Chicago

Detroit

Green Bay

Dallas

New York Giants

Arizona

New England

New York Jets

Indianapolis

Away

Chicago 

Detroit

Green Bay

Philadelphia

Washington

New Orleans

Buffalo

Miami

Reserve/Future Contracts

The Vikings signed the following players to reserve/future contracts.

Tuf Borland, LB

Myles Dorn, S

Kyle Hinton, OG

Trishton Jackson, WR

Myron Mitchell, WR

Parry Nickerson, CB

Timon Parris, OT

A.J. Rose Jr., RB

T.J. Smith, DT

Finally, I found this strange, little nugget of trivia from Vikings.com’s Eric Smith on Twitter.

The Vikings have played the Ravens seven times in franchise history. 

In the three years that they defeated the Ravens (‘98, ‘09 & ‘17), the Vikings went to the NFC title game.

In the four years that they lost to the Ravens (‘01, ‘05, ‘13 & ‘21), the Vikings fired their head coach. 

Very strange.

Now, it’s back to the general manager and head coach watch. 

Minnesota Vikings General Manager and Head Coach Wish List

After Monday’s firings of head coach Mike Zimmer and general manager Rick Spielman, the Minnesota Vikings are kicking off an offseason of transition. Zygi and Mark Wilf are conducting their third external coaching search and their first real external general manager search. The general manager search is up first. It’s expected that the Vikings initial GM targets will be revealed today through interview requests. It’s difficult to know of or know much about the people across the league that anonymously work in the football decision-making process. Former GMs are the best known but they are former GMs for a reason. For me, right now, it’s the scouting grunts that probably make the best candidates. When looking for skilled talent-evaluators, a good place to start is with the teams that annually draft well. Here are some of the candidates that currently intrigue me the most.

General Manager Wish List

Ed Dobbs, Indianapolis Colts, Assistant General Manager

Mike Borgonzi, Kansas City Chiefs, Assistant General Manager

Will McClay, Dallas Cowboys, Vice President of Player Personnel

Brandon Brown, Philadelphia Eagles, Director of Player Personnel

It’s a short list but I believe it’s a high quality list. Ed Dobbs and Mike Borgonzi are my easy favorites. I like their experience and I believe that both are ready to run their own team. I’d be thrilled with either. Borgonzi probably has the edge. He might have the edge for no other reason than his name. “Borgonzi.” It’s a versatile name. It can be an exclamation, a verb, adjective, anything. It’s fantastic. Borgonzi!

I’ve been curious about Will McClay for a while. For years, I believe that teams have tried to pry him from the Cowboys but his loyalty to the Jones family appears strong. In Dallas, he’ll forever have one or more of the Joneses over his shoulder. He’s never been the top decision-maker for the Cowboys and he never will be. The opportunity to be that for a team should be appealing. At least one would think that it’d be appealing. 

Brandon Brown is the least experienced of the four. That lack of experience makes him the biggest gamble  but he’d be an intriguing gamble. 

Head Coach Wish List

Byron Leftwich, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Offensive Coordinator

Eric Bieniemy, Kansas City Chiefs, Offensive Coordinator

Brian Daboll, Buffalo Bills, Offensive Coordinator

Matt Eberflus, Indianapolis Colts, Defensive Coordinator

Jerod Mayo, New England Patriots, Inside Linebackers Coach

There are a few others (Kellen Moore, Doug Pederson, Brian Flores, Todd Bowles) but the above five most frequently occupy my coaching thoughts. I’ve long favored defensive-minded coaches. Those coaches just seem to run closer to the way I see football. More chess match than explosive. After eight years of a revolving-door of offensive coordinators in Minnesota, I’m looking at things a little differently. If a team has any offensive success, their offensive coaches are soon head coaches of another team. The Vikings saw that happen with Pat Shurmur and Kevin Stefanski. They probably would’ve seen it happen with Gary Kubiak if he wasn’t already at the end of his coaching career. The NFL is too quarterback-centric to annually force a new offensive way on a player and team. If a team’s head coach is essentially the offensive coordinator the system will continue. History has shown that a close working relationship between a head coach and quarterback can be a good thing. Stability between the two is a very good thing. After six offensive coordinators in eight years, guaranteed consistency on the offensive side of the ball puts offensive coordinators on the top of my head coach wish list. 

When the Vikings were looking for a new head coach in 2014, Mike Zimmer was my early and only favorite. Todd Bowles, Dan Quinn, anyone other than Zimmer would’ve been a serious disappointment. It’s not like I would’ve turned my back on the team but it was Zimmer or bust for me. With this coaching search, I have no clear favorite. Most of my thoughts on a potential Vikings head coach often drift toward Byron Leftwich. His coaching rise has been swift and impressive. Sure, it helps that he’s called plays for Tom Brady the last two years. His work with Jameis Winston might be a greater indication of his scheming potential. I became even more impressed with Leftwich after a podcast interview. He sounded like a man and coach that was ready to be a head coach. Since his days as the Vikings running backs coach I’ve liked Eric Bieniemy. My one concern is his lack of play-calling duties in Kansas City. His situation with Andy Reid reminds me too much of Brad Childress. Brian Daboll and Matt Eberflus have impressed me as coordinators. I feel good about them. I like what they’ve done with their respective teams. I just feel like they are more of an unknown than Leftwich and Bieniemy. Jerod Mayo is the wild card of the above coaches. There’s something about him that reminds me of Mike Tomlin. Just like I felt about Tomlin in 2007, I don’t think that Mayo is ready to be a head coach. Just like Tomlin in 2007, Mayo might actually be ready to be a head coach. I’m certain that Jerod Mayo will be an NFL head coach soon. 

If I had to pick my top Minnesota Vikings GM/Head Coach combo, I’m probably leaning this way:

Mike Borgonzi

Byron Leftwich

I can’t wait to see where the searches lead. Skol!