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NFL coaching, GM tracker: Latest news, interviews, developments in 2021 hiring cycle
A lot of good information here to use as a base for us moving forward for 2022.
Shows all the HC and GM candidates that were interviewed/hired last year.
4 teams hired both a new GM and a new HC. I assumed that the GM would be hired first almost 100% of the time but that was not the case. Could be dysfunctional organizations or maybe just tried to work out a deal earlier but couldn't. The Jags hired there HC Myer a week before they hired the new GM?? The Falcons were only days apart but they also hired HC before GM but that could just be logistics. I don't think that bodes well for the new GM if the owners have already hired a HC for you (Frazer/Spelly).
The Lions and Texans hired their GM's first.
Anyway, one of points I have been trying to make all year is when Zimmer is let go what about Spelly - are they tied at the hip? Zimmer was Spelly's first HC hire and we know the Wilf's were heavily influenced by Parcell's to hire Zimmer as well. So I am not real sure how much autonomy Spelly had even in that decision. I am not knocking the hire because I was all for it at the time and the results were pretty immediate. Zimmer turned around our Defense quickly but was never able to align up all 4 phases of the game (Off, Def, ST, and coaching). His immediate impact was on his forte which has all but disappeared after the Philly massacre. Thus I wanted to move on 3 years ago.
I would think the Wilf's already know or have a very strong lean on whether Spelly stays. I think he stays and hires his second HC.
Also, there is a lot of talk about getting rid of Zimmer now but I noticed that of the 7 coaches HC hired last year all were hired after the regular season and all before the Super Bowl.
I think Spelly is eyeing up his second HC hire now and doesn't really need a look at any of internal candidates.
Lastly, if Spelly is let go I don't think he will go even a year without a GM position.
Nice point about Wilf and the HC hire.
Rick is probably a top 5-10 drafter. FA and trades he's probably in the bottom third of the league. Right now I lean towards keeping him, but the foundation of that belief isn't on solid ground.
Quote: @JustinTime18™ said:
Nice point about Wilf and the HC hire.
Rick is probably a top 5-10 drafter. FA and trades he's probably in the bottom third of the league. Right now I lean towards keeping him, but the foundation of that belief isn't on solid ground.
Rick has been here since 2006. He's been GM since 2012. No SB appearances, let alone Lombardi's in that time. How many other teams have had their GM for that long? Rick also has to go. A new broom sweeps clean.
Slight edge to keeping Spelly but only 7 votes.
I've been back and forth on RS and have been able to think about him separately from Zimmer.
end of the day? I think they should go for the clean sweep. But I wouldn't get out the pitchforks if they kept RS either.
Rick Spielman deserves as much criticism as Mike Zimmer from Vikings fansThey are partners running the football side of the Vikings. Don't separate Mike Zimmer and Rick Spielman in your critiques of team leadership.If the Vikings conducted a popularity poll this week, Mike Zimmer would not rank high on the list. He might even be below the backpedaling Cameron Dantzler. The only way the head coach's seat could get any hotter in public opinion is if he plopped down directly onto the sun.
Criticism of Zimmer in the wake of an irritable-bowel loss to the previously winless Detroit Lions is warranted, but to pin the judgment of this entire season solely on one person would be too clean and convenient.
Zimmer's boss should not escape scrutiny as an inferno of frustration rages within the fan base. The outcome of this season demands an accounting of General Manager Rick Spielman's regime as well.
Zimmer and Spielman have been a package deal for eight years now. They have trumpeted their alignment and collaboration on key personnel matters. A relationship between coach and GM of that length in modern NFL feels like an eternity. Their professed symmetry in directing the football side of the organization should compel the Wilf ownership to give a thorough examination of the entire operation.
At 5-7, the Vikings likely need to win four of their final five games to make the playoffs for the fourth time under Zimmer. This team has been impossible to understand, so forget trying to predict with any confidence how the rest will play out.
But from the moment they gathered at training camp, everything about the season felt like a referendum on the Spielman/Zimmer era. Star Tribune colleague Ben Goessling noted this week that in the 15 seasons that Spielman has overseen the personnel department, the Vikings have been to the playoffs six times but also are one of only four NFC teams not to reach a Super Bowl, along with Washington, Dallas and Detroit.
Barring a late-season charge that dramatically changes the tone and perception, the question the Wilfs must ask themselves is whether they truly see something grand on the horizon, enough to stay the course with the full regime?
It is clear by now that Zimmer has considerable influence over roster decisions, but he also has a boss in Spielman who has final say on personnel. There are obvious flaws in the roster, just as Zimmer's game management has been confounding.
Zimmer described his team's depth during camp as "concerning" while calling the roster "top-heavy with finances." Any GM with Spielman's longevity is going to own a mixed bag of hits and misses in drafting. His resume includes Danielle Hunter and Justin Jefferson but also Christian Ponder and Laquon Treadwell. We could play that game all day.
What made this season feel so pivotal from Day 1 is the duration of this leadership tandem and year-to-year inconsistency in record. The "if not now then when?" argument. That has put every decision and performance under a brighter spotlight.
One example: The Vikings are fighting for their playoff lives. That the coaching staff felt right guard Oli Udoh represented the best option as an emergency fill-in at left tackle last week against the Lions was an indictment on roster construction.
Another one: Spielman signed free agent cornerbacks Bashaud Breeland and Mackensie Alexander during the offseason. Out of 82 cornerbacks who have played at least 400 snaps this season, ProFootballFocus ranks Alexander 80th overall and Breeland 78th. Patrick Peterson, another free agent cornerback addition, sits 44th in PFF's rankings.
Since 2012, Spielman has used five first-round picks and one second-round pick on the secondary. Only Harrison Smith and Alexander remain from that group, and Alexander is on his second stint. Watching Dantzler misplay the game-winning touchdown on Sunday reminds one of the ongoing problems in the secondary despite that being Zimmer's area of expertise and a position that has received significant organizational attention.
Zimmer has worn a bull's-eye this week. Losing to the winless Lions dials up the pressure on a coach whose job security already appeared tenuous.
The rest of the season will provide clarity about what comes next. Zimmer and Spielman have been together a long time — tag-team partners in running the show. They shouldn't be separated when evaluating the whole picture.
https://www.startribune.com/rick-spielma...600125327/
Quote: @purplefaithful said:
Rick Spielman deserves as much criticism as Mike Zimmer from Vikings fansThey are partners running the football side of the Vikings. Don't separate Mike Zimmer and Rick Spielman in your critiques of team leadership.
The rest of the season will provide clarity about what comes next. Zimmer and Spielman have been together a long time — tag-team partners in running the show. They shouldn't be separated when evaluating the whole picture.
https://www.startribune.com/rick-spielma...600125327/
Yes they should they have completely different roles.
I am not saying that in a defense of Spelly or Zimmer.
You need to evaluate their responsibilities separately in every organization not just the Vikings.
I would think a small part of evaluating a GM/Spelly is who he hired as HC and how they work together but final say on all roster personnel is solely on Spelly.
The development of those players is solely on the HC. Also, who the HC hires for his coaching team is solely on the HC.
In any organizational chart you have to someone solely responsible for each task and be able to separate those evaluations. Otherwise, you end up with what the naive Wilf's did at first with the Triangle of no responsibility and finger pointing.
I wouldn't want to see Rick pick out our next coach, or attempt to draft our next QB. I think he's done some good things and is above average, but obviously his "hits" aren't exceeding the "misses".
When you field a team that can dominate the best teams for long stretches/halves and then crap the bed with the same players for other long stretches is that a HC/coaching staff issue or is that a player talent/drafting/personnel issue - GM?
So far with 10 votes:
4 - Yes to keeping Spelly (with my vote)
6 - want him gone with Zimmer
There is no debate about moving on from Zimmer so I won't continue to beat that horse unless it highlights the differences between coaching/developing/scheming etc vs the actual roster talent.
Edit: not that the Steelers are one of the best because they are not. I am talking about teams like this years Cards, Packers
Quote: @purplefaithful said:
I've been back and forth on RS and have been able to think about him separately from Zimmer.
end of the day? I think they should go for the clean sweep. But I wouldn't get out the pitchforks if they kept RS either.
This is the way I feel as well.
One other thought I have is with Cousins and the impact of Spelly vs new GM.
Spelly is the one that went after Cousins 4.5 years ago and also gave him the extension that will result in a $45 million dead cap next year.
Here is some detail from Spotrac:
Current ContractKirk Cousins signed a 2 year, $66,000,000 contract with the Minnesota Vikings, including a $30,000,000 signing bonus, $66,000,000 guaranteed, and an average annual salary of $33,000,000. In 2021, Cousins will earn a base salary of $21,000,000, while carrying a cap hit of $31,000,000 and a dead cap value of $76,000,000.
| CONTRACT TERMS:2 yr(s) / $66,000,000 | SIGNING BONUS$30,000,000 | AVERAGE SALARY$33,000,000 | GTD AT SIGN:$31,000,000 | TOTAL GTD:$66,000,000 | FREE AGENT:2023 / UFA |
| | BONUS BREAKDOWN | CAP DETAILS | CASH DETAILS | |
|---|
| YEAR | | AGE | BASE SALARY | SIGNING | WORKOUT | CAP HIT | DEAD CAP | YEARLY CASH | |
|---|
| 2020 | ![[Image: min.png]](https://d1dglpr230r57l.cloudfront.net/images/thumb/min.png) | 32 | $9,500,000 | $11,000,000 | $500,000 | $21,000,000 | $62,500,000 | $40,028,856($40,028,856) | | | 2021 | | 33 | $21,000,000 | $10,000,000 | - | $31,000,000 | $76,000,000 | $21,000,000($61,028,856) | | | 2022 | | 34 | $35,000,000 | $10,000,000 | - | $45,000,000 | $45,000,000 | $35,000,000($96,028,856) | | | PRE-6/1 RELEASE2022 Dead Cap: $45,000,0002022 Cap Savings: $0 | PRE-6/1 TRADE2022 Dead Cap: $10,000,0002022 Cap Savings: $35,000,000 | POST-6/1 RELEASE2022 Dead Cap: $45,000,0002023 Dead Cap: $02022 Cap Savings: $0 | POST-6/1 TRADE2022 Dead Cap: $10,000,0002023 Dead Cap: $02022 Cap Savings: $35,000,000
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So, if I understand this right, we would incur a $10 million dead cap hit no matter when/if we do a trade. Obviously, we won't release him.
I do not see Spelly wanting to admit that Cousins was a mistake and then also incur a $10 dead cap hit on top of that.
A new GM will have no skin in the game (unless the Wilf's interfere and tell him what to do with Cousins).
A new GM will be able to come in and evaluate with no bias.
I am changing my vote now mostly because I am not a cousin's believer after 3.5 years of saying he is good enough to win us a SB I no longer believe that at all.
The above poll was 13 total - 5 for keeping Spelly and 8 for a clean sweep. I was one of the 5 and I have now concluded (Cousin's ramifications) that I want a clean sweep. So, 70% for starting over at GM and 30% for keeping Spelly.
Now when you identify a problem what is our solution at GM/HC?
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