'We're not satisfied.' Vikings make sweeping changes; veterans want coach who can connect with players

Vikings owners Zygi and Mark Wilf detonated the football side of the franchise Monday, firing two leaders who had been in their positions longer than most of their NFL counterparts: General Manager Rick Spielman and head coach Mike Zimmer.

That power couple, together since 2014, got the team to within one game of the Minneapolis Super Bowl four years ago, but have mostly sputtered and stalled since. The Vikings finished this season with an 8-9 record and out of the playoffs, the third time in four seasons they've watched January's big drama from home, and the Wilfs had seen enough.

The franchise's 62nd season will kick off in September. Between now and then, more big changes could reshape one of the state's most recognizable brands, all in pursuit of finally winning that elusive Lombardi Trophy awarded to Super Bowl winners.

"Listen, the results speak for themselves," Mark Wilf said. "We're not satisfied. It's not where we want to be. But again, we have an excellent organization. We have great, great components of a roster here to build on. I think any coach and GM knows there's something to build off here.

"We're really committed as owners to providing the resources to make sure we can keep competing year in and year out at the highest levels and try to get championships."

The Wilfs will hire a general manager first, then a head coach. They'll conduct both processes without the help of a search firm.

Zimmer, 65, finished his eight years in Minnesota with a 72-56-1 record, ranking third in team history in wins, games coached (129) and winning percentage (.562). He was the seventh-longest tenured head coach in the NFL; all six who have been in their jobs longer than Zimmer have won Super Bowls.

"I have given my heart and soul to this organization and to the players," Zimmer said in a statement. "I have had outstanding assistant coaches who have worked tirelessly. I'm sorry we didn't get it done.

"I'll miss coaching the players, some who have been with me for all eight years. I want to thank the players who welcomed me in 2014 and believed in me that I could lead them to be great."

During Spielman's 16 years in the front office, beginning in 2006 when the team made him the vice president of player personnel, the Vikings went 131-123-2 and reached the playoffs six times. They won only three playoff games, though, losing the NFC Championship Game after the 2009 and 2017 seasons. In Spielman's time with the team, the Vikings were one of only four NFC franchises not to reach the Super Bowl (along with Dallas, Washington and Detroit).

In a statement, Spielman thanked the Wilf family "for believing in me and consistently providing the resources for us to be successful as a football operations staff. It is not common in the NFL to be in a position for this long, which goes to show how this ownership group believes in stability and supports their leaders."

The Wilfs told Vikings players about the changes in a Monday morning meeting. Zimmer did not address the group; Spielman thanked players, coaches and staff for their hard work over the years.

"Obviously, it was a tough morning for everybody here in the organization," tackle Brian O'Neill said. He said Spielman "was responsible for all of us players being in this building, and obviously for Coach Zim, making us better players."

O'Neill and linebacker Eric Kendricks, however, suggested the Vikings could benefit from a coach who could connect with players. Zimmer, known for his skills as a schemer and play-caller on defense, would light up practices with a string of expletives, and though some players appreciated his candor, his sharpest public critiques — such as when he called the team "soft" after the Vikings lost their first game following a 5-0 start in 2016 — didn't go over well in the locker room.

"I think from an overall standpoint, a culture where communication is put at the forefront [would help]," said Kendricks, who played seven seasons for Zimmer and was named an All-Pro in 2019.

"No matter what your role is on the staff, [it's] you having a voice and being able to communicate things that you think could help facilitate wins. I think just having that voice, no matter how big your role is, is important, to listen up and take each other's feelings into account. I don't think a fear-based organization is the way to go."

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Players, O'Neill said, are simply looking for affirmation from their bosses.

"I think it could be something as little as, 'Hey, how you doing?' in the hallway, or when you walk by guys in the hallway and they say, 'Hello, how you going? Good morning,'" O'Neill said.

"We spend so much time together and the season is so long that little personal things here or there could make a huge difference for a young guy or a rookie who is coming in and isn't really sure how he fits or if he belongs."

The Vikings will use a committee of people in their organization to interview general manager and coaching candidates, Wilf said. He declined to offer specific names, though executives, including chief operating officer Andrew Miller and vice president of football operations Rob Brzezinski, figure to be involved in the process.

According to the NFL's Rooney Rule, the Vikings must interview at least two external minority candidates for their coach and general manager openings.

This week, they can interview coaches now with the Tennessee Titans or Green Bay Packers — the two teams with byes in the first round of the playoffs. They can interview coaches from the 12 teams playing in the first round of the playoffs after this weekend's games.

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The fact the Vikings are starting with their general manager search, though, could mean they won't hire a head coach until the end of January. That could give them time to wait to interview candidates currently with teams on deep playoff runs.

"This is a highly desirable position to be leading the Minnesota Vikings, a storied franchise with a great fan base and great community," Wilf said. "So I'm confident we'll be OK there.

"We're not going to get caught up in any kind of frenzies in terms of chasing this one or that one. We're going to be deliberate, we're going to be thorough and we're going to get the kind of leaders that our players will want to follow and that will get us success on and off the field."