“#Cowboys expected to hire Mike Zimmer as defensive coordinator,” Pelissero wrote. “Zimmer, 67, is the third-winningest coach in #Vikings history and has long been respected for his defensive prowess. Big payday for Dallas, where Zimmer previously coached from ..Zimmer takes over for former Cowboys defensive coordinator Dan Quinn, who left Dallas after the team’s disappointing playoff loss to the Green Bay Packers in January to take the head coaching job with the Washington Commanders..Zimmer led the Vikings for eight years from. According to Pro Football Reference, the team earned 1 regular season record during that span and made the playoffs three times, earning a 2–
3 postseason mark..Zimmer led the defense of the Cowboys from 2000-2006, then held the same position with the Atlanta Falcons in 2007 and the Cincinnati Bengals from 2008-2013 before joining the Vikings.Minnesota fired Zimmer and general manager Rick Spielman after an 8-
9 regular season campaign in 2021. The Vikings replaced them with head coach Kwesi Adofo-Mensah and head coach Kevin O’Connell, who led the franchise to the NFC North division. title in 2022, but struggled to a 7-10 record last season when QB Kirk Cousins suffered a torn Achilles about midway through the campaign.Zimmer has been out of the NFL the last two seasons, even though he hasn’t been out of football. Deion Sanders hired Zimmer as an analyst in 2022 at Jackson State, where the former Cowboys cornerback and 2011 Hall of Fame inductee was the head coach at the time..
Zimmer left Minnesota as one of the most successful coaches in franchise history, but the descent toward his exit was marred at times by the odd awkwardness..The former player criticized Zimmer for promoting his son to defensive coordinator in 2019, accusing the coach of nepotism. In December 2022, ESPN’s Tim Keown’s deep dive into the new Vikings culture under O’Connell revealed that star receiver Justin Jefferson had never visited Zimmer’s
