The Plot to the Vikings Defensive Coordinator Search Thickens Again
Josh Frey
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It’s certainly been an interesting process throughout the Vikings defensive coordinator search. Thus far, they’ve interviewed four candidates: Sean Desai, Brian Flores, Ryan Nielsen, and Mike Pettine.
However, Nielsen has accepted a spot with the Atlanta Falcons in the same role, and on Friday, it was reported that Desai would be withdrawing from consideration, throwing a wrinkle into the process.
For the past few days, we’ve known that the Minnesota Vikings have been enamored with one candidate in particular: Broncos defensive coordinator Ejiro Evero. Earlier in the week, news came out that the Vikings wanted to get an interview with Denver’s DC before making a decision on their hire.
However, up until Saturday, the Broncos had been blocking Minnesota’s attempt to interview the DC following their trade to acquire head coach Sean Payton. That changed on Saturday afternoon when Ian Rapoport reported that Denver will, in fact, allow Ejiro to leave his current contract with the Broncos in order to interview with the Vikings.
Ultimately, this always felt like the end result in Denver’s saga, especially considering Payton has been a thorn in the Vikings side throughout the week, opting to interview the exact same candidates that Minnesota has talked with. Desai’s decision to withdraw from consideration for the Vikings job was motivated by the opening in Denver, and the Broncos have also requested an interveiw with Flores.
Evero stands out amongst the remaining candidates because of his connection to both Kwesi Adofo-Mensah and Kevin O’Connell throughout his coaching past. He and Adofo-Mensah crossed paths with the San Francisco 49ers, and he was on Sean McVay’s coaching staff alongside O’Connell in both 2020 and their Super Bowl winning season of 2021.
In all, we’re likely still days, perhaps even another week or two, away from the Vikings making a final decision on their defensive coordinator candidate. It will be interesting to see what kind of path they take, though, now that they have the chance to interview Evero.
Josh Frey is a Class of 2020 graduate of The College of Idaho with a bachelor’s degree in Creative Writing. He also earned minors in History, Human Biology, and Journalism. When he’s not writing about the NFL, Josh enjoys marathon training, playing video games, or rooting for the Milwaukee Brewers and Bucks. For more of his opinions, check out his Twitter account: @Freyed_Chicken.