Vikings' coaching moves under the Wilfs' ownership

Zygi and Mark Wilf have hired three head coaches since buying the team in 2005.

January 11, 2022 at 6:04AM
Team owners Zygi and Mark Wilf with Zimmer. Minnesota Vikings today introduced new head coach Mike Zimmer at a news conference at Winter Park. Friday, January 17, 2014. ] GLEN STUBBE * gstubbe@startribune.com
Zygi Wilf, left, and Mark Wilf, right, with Mike Zimmer at Zimmer’s introductory news conference in 2014. (Glenn Stubbe, Star Tribune/The Minnesota Star Tribune)

Mark and Zygi Wilf took over ownership of the Vikings on May 25, 2005. In that time, they have hired three head coaches. Here's what happened:

Jan. 1, 2006
Less than an hour after a season-ending win over the Bears, the Wilfs announced head coach Mike Tice's contract would not be renewed. Tice was 33-34 overall, and 1-1 in the playoffs, in four seasons that included the 2005 midseason party boat scandal.

Jan. 6, 2006
It took the Wilfs less than a week to settle on Brad Childress, then 49, to be their next coach. He spent seven years on Andy Reid's Eagles staff, including four as offensive coordinator. With eight NFL jobs open, the Vikings were the first to hire a coach, choosing Childress over the team's defensive coordinator Ted Cottrell, Kansas City offensive coordinator Al Saunders and Indianapolis quarterbacks coach Jim Caldwell. After hiring Childress, the Wilfs established a "triangle of authority," a committee of Childress, vice president of football operations Rob Brzezinski and player personnel director Fran Foley, who was ousted that May and replaced by Rick Spielman.

Nov. 22, 2010
Childress was fired a day after a 31-3 home loss to the Packers dropped the Vikings to 3-7. "It's often difficult to articulate one reason why change is needed," Zygi Wilf said at the time. Defensive coordinator Leslie Frazier served as interim head coach for the rest of the season. Childress, inextricably tied to Brett Favre, was 40-37, including 1-2 in the playoffs — one of those losses coming in the NFC Championship Game in the 2009 season.

Jan. 3, 2011
After going 3-3 as the interim head coach, Frazier, then 51, was given the permanent post at the end of the season. Players praised Frazier's leadership and the "new attitude" around the team following Childress' departure.

Dec. 30, 2013
The Vikings let Frazier go one day after the team finished a 5-10-1 season. He was 21-32-1 in three-plus seasons, and 0-1 in the playoffs from a 2012 season when the Vikings went 10-6. "He stepped in and established a strong positive culture here, and he has been the consummate professional as our head coach and in this community," Zygi Wilf said of Frazier.

Jan. 15, 2014
Spielman, promoted to general manager in 2012 when the "triangle of authority" system was shuttered, ran the coaching search, landing on Mike Zimmer as the Vikings' ninth head coach. Zimmer spent the previous six seasons as the Bengals defensive coordinator and got his first NFL head coaching job at age 57. He had also served as the defensive coordinator of the Cowboys and Falcons. Among the coaches interviewed during the search were Darrell Bevell, Dan Quinn, Ray Horton and Todd Bowles.

Jan. 10, 2022
The Wilfs fired Zimmer along with Spielman, embarking on an organizational reset. Zimmer's 129 games, 72 wins and .562 winning percentage (72-56-1) over eight seasons are third on the Vikings' career list, behind Bud Grant and Denny Green. Zimmer was 2-3 in the playoffs, reaching the NFC Championship Game in the 2017 season. In a statement, the Wilfs said the search for a new general manager and head coach will be led internally, with the GM hiring coming first.

Jerry Holt/Star Tribune Mankato MN 7/29/2005----Minnesota Vikings new owner Zygi Wilf left shakes hands with Viking head coach Mike Tice as the his teams arrives Friday at Minnesota State University in Mankato.
Zygi Wilf, who had just taken ownership of the Vikings, shook hands with coach Mike Tice at training camp at Minnesota State Mankato in 2005. (Jerry Holt, Star Tribune/The Minnesota Star Tribune)
JIM GEHRZ ï jgehrz@startribune.com Eden Prairie/January 6, 2006/11:00AM New Minnesota Vikingsí head coach Brad Childress (left) talks to members of the media during a news conference at Winter Park in Eden Prairie Friday, January 6, 2006, where owner Zygi Wilf (right) introduced him as the teamís new head coach. Childress, most recently the offensive coordinator with the Philadelphia Eagles, accepts his first head coaching position on the NFL, succeeding coach Mike Tice who was fired after the Vikings final regular season game.
Brad Childress spoke at a news conference at Winter Park in Eden Prairie in 2006 while owner Zygi Wilf looked on. (Jim Gehrz, Star Tribune/The Minnesota Star Tribune)
Richard Sennott@startribune.com Eden Prairie, Mn. Monday 01/03/11 : ] The Minnesota Viking' s announced at a Winter Park press conference that .Leslie frazier will be the new head coach of the team . The Team owner Zygi Wilf, Leslie Frazier and Mark Wilf posed for a picture at the beginning of the press event.
Zygi Wilf and Mark Wilf posed for a photo with Leslie Frazier when Frazier was moved from interim to permanent head coach in 2011. (Richard Sennott, Star Tribune/The Minnesota Star Tribune)
Mark Wilf and Zimmer. Minnesota Vikings today introduced new head coach Mike Zimmer at a news conference at Winter Park. Friday, January 17, 2014. ] GLEN STUBBE * gstubbe@startribune.com
Mark Wilf and Mike Zimmer sat together at the Winter Park press conference introducing Zimmer as head coach in 2014. (Glen Stubbe, Star Tribune/The Minnesota Star Tribune)
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