3 potential head coach candidates the Minnesota Vikings should hire
The Minnesota Vikings fired Mike Zimmer after eight seasons with the organization, but who should they hire to be their next head coach?
Minnesota’s been busy conducting interviews with a wide variety of coaches. The Vikings have the potential of being an elite offense, which means they should look to hire an offensive-minded head coach.
1. Eric Bieniemy, OC, Kansas City Chiefs
Eric Bieniemy has long awaited his opportunity at a head coaching position. He’s been coaching since 2001 when he earned an opportunity as the running backs coach at the University of Colorado. His first job in the NFL was for the Vikings as a running backs coach.
Bieniemy has been with the Chiefs since 2013 but has been their offensive coordinator since 2018. Having Patrick Mahomes at center makes your life easier, but what he’s been able to do with that offense shouldn’t go unnoticed.
Points scored:
The year prior to his arrival at OC, the Chiefs were a top-10 offense as well. The only question will be on his ability to coach an offense without one of the best quarterbacks. Mahomes has been the starter since Bieniemy took over as OC.
It’s worth a shot because the play designs they have created in Kansas City are appealing. At 52, he does bring a lot of experience.
2. Byron Leftwich, OC, Tamp Bay Buccaneers
Most NFL fans probably remember Byron Leftwich as a player. After a somewhat successful NFL career, Leftwich has been coaching since 2017. He became the Arizona Cardinals’ interim offensive coordinator in 2018 and eventually landed a good gig in 2019 for Tampa Bay.
Much like Bieniemy, Leftwich has benefited from the addition of Tom Brady in 2020.
However, Leftwich did very well in his first season as the Buccaneers offensive coordinator. In his first season, they jumped seven spots and averaged 28.6 points per game (4th).
Brady effect: Since his arrival, Tampa Bay has had the second-best offense.
Still, there’s a lot to like about him, and he would be an excellent hire if the Vikings went in his direction. I think he and Kirk Cousins could really feed off each other and become a dynamic duo.
3. Nathaniel Hackett, OC, Green Bay Packers
I’d like to think Nathaniel Hackett doesn’t stress about the offensive game plan when he has Aaron Rodgers. Worst case, if the play doesn’t look good, Rodgers will adjust at the line of scrimmage.
Everyone looks like a genius in Green Bay this way.
Before accepting a job with the Packers, Hackett was the OC for the Jacksonville Jaguars from 2016-2018. Despite the Jags’ one good year in 2017, we can applaud what he did for Blake Bortles.
His work speaks for itself, and to land the OC job with the Packers shouldn’t be taken lightly. Since arriving in 2019, Green Bay has had a top-10 offense two of the three years.
The designed plays they run with two running backs, play-action and taking shots down the field is exactly what the Vikings need. At 42, he’s young enough to be Minnesota’s next head coach for several years.
Minnesota interviewed him on Jan. 16.
Green Bay has a lot of success on offense and winning football games, and it’s easy to see Hackett doing the same for Minnesota.
