Questions Answered: Danielle Hunter Sights on NFL Record, Zimmer’s Son, Rashod Hill Replacement
Dustin Baker
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The following questions are about current Minnesota Vikings topics, answered by PurplePTSD. Today is the July 30th edition, addressed in a from-the-hip fashion. If you have questions, please email them to [email protected].
Also, please note: These are opinion-based responses. Some answers will be incorrect from time to time. But we’ll try to keep that to a minimum.
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Q: Danielle Hunter said he wants to break Jared Allen’s sack record for Vikings. Wouldn’t that also break the NFL record?
A: It would, indeed. Jared Allen somehow had 22 sacks inside the terrible Vikings season of 2011. So, if Hunter delivers on his word, he’d likely hit 23 and take down Michael Strahan’s 22.5-sack mark from 2001.
Hunter claims to be a man of action, not relying on words-only as hype for the record.
To break the record, he’ll need to play in all 18 Vikings games — after missing 79% of all games in the last two seasons. But with Za’Darius Smith on the team, attention should free up a bit, enabling Hunter to wreak havoc.
He is unlikely to break the all-time record or even Allen’s, but it’s exciting that he has the number in his purview.
Q: Is Mike Zimmer’s son really coaching offense in Cincinnati?
A: Yes, Zimmer is taking an offensive analyst job with the Bengals.
After 16 years of coaching defense — he’s been a coach in some capacity since age 21 — the son Zimmer will take a turn on the other side of the field. With the Saints, Chiefs, Bengals, and Vikings, Zimmer coached linebackers, defensive backs, and even the whole shebang on defense for the Vikings in 2020 and 2021. Zimmer also won a Super Bowl in 2009 with the Saints.
If he takes off as an offensive analyst, Zimmer will presumably eye a head coaching job later in life. His final two years with the Vikings didn’t end wonderfully — the team’s defense plummeted from 2020 on — but that sometimes happens to coaches along their journies.
Q: With Rashod Hill now playing for the Washington Commanders, who will take his snaps on the Vikings offensive line?
A: Jesse Davis and Vederian Lowe. Or perhaps Oli Udoh and Blake Brandel.
Quietly, Davis played in 90% of Vikings games in the last five years. He was the go-to guy for “breathers” when OL starters came off the field, played special teams, and also started 22 games for Minnesota.
In Washington, he’ll compete for a job backing up Charles Leno and Samuel Cosmi. Hill’s a savvy veteran who knows his role, so catching on with the Commanders is feasible.
The Vikings have plenty of options to replace Hill’s swing-tackle talent. You’ll have a more precise answer at the end of August when the team reveals the 53-man roster.
Dustin Baker is a political scientist who graduated from the University of Minnesota in 2007. Subscribe to his daily YouTube Channel, VikesNow. He hosts a podcast with Bryant McKinnie, which airs every Wednesday with Raun Sawh and Sally from Minneapolis. His Viking fandom dates back to 1996. Listed guilty pleasures: Peanut Butter Ice Cream, ‘The Sopranos,’ and The Doors (the band).
