Courtesy of Vikings Minnesota Vikings general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah.
The Minnesota Vikings will likely have their new head coach by the end of the week, narrowing their search to three finalists on Sunday.
“The Vikings plan to conduct in-person second interviews for their head coaching job this week with multiple candidates, including Rams offensive coordinator Kevin O’Connell and 49ers defensive coordinator DeMeco Ryans, while continuing to explore the possibility of hiring Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh, according to sources,” NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero reported on Sunday, January 30.
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Minnesota conducted first interviews with Ryans and O’Connell earlier last week before Harbaugh emerged as a dark horse candidate — a late development given stricter rules to interview college coaches.
“The Vikings requested and received permission from Michigan to speak with Harbaugh — standard process for NFL teams — and had an exploratory conversation with him Saturday afternoon to gauge his interest, sources say. Nothing further is scheduled, but Harbaugh remains a candidate for the job and it wouldn’t be surprising if the Vikings bring him to the facility this week,” Pelissero added.
All three coaches have ties to newly hired general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah from their days with the San Francisco 49ers.
Below are breakdowns for each of the three reported finalists.
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DeMeco Ryans, San Francisco 49ers Defensive Coordinator
Getty49ers defensive coordinator DeMeco Ryans.
A former NFL linebacker, Ryans earned two Pro Bowl trips and an All-Pro mention during his six seasons as a third-round pick with the Houston Texans. He spent the final four years of his career with the Philadelphia Eagles before retiring in 2015.
Ryans, 37, has helped develop one of the most formidable defenses in the NFL in San Francisco since joining the coaching staff in 2017. In Ryans’ first season as defensive coordinator, the 49ers defense played a vital role in handing the Dallas Cowboys and Green Bay Packers home upsets and amassing 10 sacks and 20 quarterback hits between the two games. They’ve allowed an average of 13.5 points per game in the postseason. Pro Football Focus (PFF) ranked San Francisco the eighth-best defense in the 2021 regular season.
Ryans overlapped with Adofo-Mensah for three seasons in San Francisco for three seasons before the Vikings general manager joined the Cleveland Browns in 2019.
He received ringing endorsements as a head coach candidate around the NFL after disarming Aaron Rodgers in the NFC divisional round a week ago. He held Rodgers to a career-low 19.3 quarterback rating.
49ers DC DeMeco Ryans was an awesome player. Former SEC Defensive Player of the Year and later an NFL rookie of the year and then made All-Pro. He’s also proving to be a hell of a coach. And still only 37.
Former Eagles LB and current 49ers defensive coordinator DeMeco Ryans deserves to be a head coach! He’s exceptionally bright, tough, and the very definition of a leader. What a memorable win over the Packers!
Kevin O’Connell, Los Angeles Rams Offensive Coordinator
GettyKevin O’Connell
A former third-round pick at quarterback, O’Connell was Tom Brady’s backup on the New England Patriots in 2008 and bounced around the league for several years before retiring in 2012.
He began his coaching career in 2015 as the quarterbacks coach for the Cleveland Browns. He also coached with the 49ers, Washington Football Team before landing the Los Angeles offensive coordinator position in 2020.
O’Connell, 36, is one of the league’s rising offensive minds in helping the Rams rehaul their offense. Los Angeles ranked fifth in passing yards and second in passing touchdowns this season, all without their top running back, Cam Akers, to balance the passing game for most of the season.
There is some warranted skepticism surrounding O’Connell, who is not the Los Angeles’ offensive play-caller — a role held by head coach Sean McVay.
In an interview with Denver Broncos.com‘s managing editor Ben Swanson, Beacham broke down O’Connell’s role and brilliance in Los Angeles, saying the offensive coordinator has been “at the control of the Rams’ offense in almost every way.”
“The thing about Kevin O’Connell is he’s been at the controls of the Rams’ offense in almost every way, except actually calling the plays, for two years, which makes him a guy who’s seen what Sean McVay does and what makes the Rams so successful over the last five years,” Beachum said. “And there’s only a handful of guys in the world who can say that; three of the other assistants who can say that are currently head coaches of their own teams, and two are still in the playoffs along with Sean McVay, so the pedigree is impeccable. There’s no doubt that Kevin is the next guy in that lineage.”
Jim Harbaugh, Michigan Head Coach
GettyMichigan football head coach Jim Harbaugh.
A former first-round quarterback drafted by the Chicago Bears, Jim Harbaugh is the most experienced coaching candidates fo the Vikings.
He landed his first NFL head coaching gig in 2011 in San Francisco — anticipated rebuilding season for the franchise that hadn’t made the playoffs or had a winning season since 2002.
Harbaugh worked wonders immediately, leading the 49ers to a 13-3 regular season and an NFC Championship Game appearance. He won three consecutive NFC West titles en route to three straight conference championship games and a Super Bowl appearance in 2012. But amid a turbulent 8-8 season in 2014, Harbaugh was told he would be fired at the end of the season but stayed to the finish the season before the 49ers announced they had “parted ways” with him.
“Yes, I was told I wouldn’t be the coach anymore — and you can call it mutual. I wasn’t going to put the 49ers in a position to have a coach they didn’t want anymore,” Harbaugh said, per NFL.com. “That’s the truth of it. I didn’t leave the 49ers, I felt like the 49er hierarchy left me.”
As a lower-level executive, Adofo-Mensah likely wasn’t at the center of Harbaugh’s conflict with the front office.
If Harbaugh returns to the NFL, he will pick up his 44-19-1 NFL coaching record. His .695 winning percentage as a head coach ranks fifth all-time.