The Vikings Turn to Seattle for Their 2nd DC Interview
Josh Frey
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The Minnesota Vikings have officially conducted their second interview regarding their vacant defensive coordinator position. This time, the Vikings turn to Seattle to interview Sean Desai for the position. This is the second straight year that Desai has been a candidate for the Vikings DC job, and on Tuesday, the team announced that they had completed an interview with him.
Desai actually was a finalist to get the job in 2022, but Minnesota opted to sign Ed Donatell to the position instead. Now, he is in the running once again after a year in Seattle as an assistant coach to Pete Carrol for the Seahawks.
Prior to that, Desai was the defensive coordinator for the Chicago Bears in 2021 and was a part of three separate head coaching tenures with the Bears. The continuity in his status with that franchise speaks volumes of his reputation with players, and there’s a reason he was considered for the Vikings job in 2022.
The current Seahawks assistant head coach also spent a large chunk of time coaching in college. From 2006-12, he held various roles at Temple, Miami (FL), and Boston College.
During the 2022 season, the Seahawks certainly had their struggles on the defensive side of the ball, ranking among the bottom 10 in both points and yards allowed. However, the 2021 Chicago Bears ranked sixth in yards allowed with Desai at the helm.
Funny enough, Desai and Donatell actually crossed paths in Chicago as well for an extended period of time. From 2015-18, Donatell was the Bears secondary coach while Desai was in charge of defensive quality control.
Overall, it should be unsurprising that Desai is once again in the running for the Vikings DC job. He has a long history of coaching success on that side of the ball, and he is one of the more sought-after candidates around the league.
The Vikings have also conducted an interview with New Orleans Saints co-defensive coordinator Ryan Nielsen. Neither coach interviewed thus far has had any coaching experience alongside Vikings head coach Kevin O’Connell, which is an interesting trend early on in this process. We’ll see if it continues, or if more coordinator candidates with familiarity with O’Connell are on the horizon.
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.