Mike Zimmer, Rick Spielman Somehow Land in the Same Spot
Dustin Baker
|
Former Minnesota Vikings bosses Mike Zimmer and Rick Spielman departed the team in January but somehow landed in the same spot, an NFL analysis website — The33rdTeam.com.
The site, led by Mike Tannebaum and Joe Banner, is described as “a new football think tank and media platform” where Zimmer and Spielman are evidently featured as analysts.
Altogether, the platform hosts 27 reputable personalities like Brett Favre, Bill Parcells, and Rich Gannon. The 33rd Team offers general NFL analysis, fantasy football advice, and training camp coverage, an apropos topic this month.
Zimmer and Spielman paired in Minnesota for eight seasons, leading the Vikings to the NFL’s 10th-best record during the timeframe. The product was more successful in the first six seasons, though, and culminated with a 2017 NFC Championship appearance. From 2020 on, the Vikings succumbed to playoff-less mediocre seasons, causing the move by ownership to hire Kevin O’Connell as head coach and Kwesi Adofo-Mensah as general manager.
Spielman, hired by the Vikings in 2006, oversaw three Vikings coaches from Brad Childress, Leslie Frazier, to Zimmer. On his watch, Minnesota reached two conference titles games (2009, 2017). And he’s even writing on The 33rd Team‘s site, opining on Kyler Murray’s contract extension and the OTA process this summer.
Zimmer, who appears to be new at The 33rd Team, is also contributing, evidenced by an article about holdouts late in July.
Zimmer and Spielman ending up in the same post-Vikings spot will surprise some as the two weren’t necessarily linked at the hip down the stretch of their careers in Minnesota. Some reports after their dismissals hinted at disharmony during the 2021 season. And while Spielman has latched on to writing and a hip TikTok account, everything relating to Zimmer since January has been quiet.
But they’re both on the payroll of The 33rd Team — coworkers once again.
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).
Vikings Territory: Longtime Viking Signs with Packers
You must be logged in to post a comment.