Former Vikings Coach on Deion Sanders’ Radar
Mike Zimmer claimed to retire this offseason, but folks may have to pump the brakes on that theory.
Former Vikings coach Mike Zimmer could be on his way to join Deion Sanders in Colorado. A new tidbit suggests the two could link with the Buffaloes in 2025.
The skipper who led the Minnesota Vikings from 2014 to 2021 could be back, perhaps as a part of the Colorado Buffaloes’ staff this fall.
Deion Sanders, the man in charge of, well, everything at the University of Colorado, wants Zimmer on his staff. He’s not shy about it.
Mike Zimmer Could Join the Colorado Buffaloes’ Staff
Zimmer on Sanders’ squad actually makes a lot of sense.
Deion Sanders Eyes Mike Zimmer for Buffaloes’ Staff
Sanders hopped in front of a microphone last week — always an experience for listeners — at Big 12 Media Days, pounding the table for Zimmer and former NFL quarterback Byron Leftwich.
He said, “Our coaching staff, this is without Byron Leftwich, which I’m praying that he does the right thing, and Mike Zimmer, we have 160 years of NFL experience. With those two added, that’s 204 years of NFL experience. And I want those years.”
Sanders is a savant at assembling “Avengers” style coaching staffs, and 2025 may be no different. He frequently targets high-profile names for his operation out in Boulder.
A Would-Be Reunion for Sanders, Zimmer
Zimmer defensively coordinated the Dallas Cowboys in 2024 — the arrangement didn’t work out well for anybody — but in 2022, he worked with Sanders as a consultant at Jackson State while Sanders’ coaching career was getting off the ground.
And, of course, in the 1990s, Zimmer coached Sanders, the player, with the Cowboys during Dallas’ dynastic run. The two have remained close, and in fact, each man touts the other when given a chance. They’re lifelong buddies, a friendship that could extend to the Colorado Buffaloes in 2025.
Retirement Theories in Doubt
Zimmer told Ed Werder in January that he would not be returning to the Cowboys after a one-year pit stop and that his upcoming plan likely involved retirement.
No one questioned the retirement plan because Zimmer is old by NFL coaching standards, and the experiment in Dallas didn’t go very well. But the Sanders momentum is a new twist this summer.
It’s a “stay tuned” on whether Zimmer takes the bait.
Mike Zimmer with the Vikings
Zimmer somewhat successfully coached the Vikings for eight seasons, culminating in an NFC Championship appearance in 2017. His calling card featured a robust defense, a potent rushing offense, and, before things went south in 2020, consistent performance across the board.
In fact, with Zimmer at the helm, the Vikings showcased the NFL’s 10th-best winning percentage from 2014 to 2021. However, in 2020 and 2021, the enterprise became stale and sour, and Minnesota’s ownership moved on from Zimmer and his boss, Rick Spielman, paving the way for head coach Kevin O’Connell and general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah to take over early in 2022.
PFT on Deion Sanders’ Plan
Pro Football Talk‘s Michael David Smith added more context about Sanders’ strategy, “Although there was a report in March that Colorado had already hired Leftwich, Sanders’ comments made clear that Leftwich has not yet agreed to join the Buffaloes’ staff. Leftwich was a first-round pick of the Jaguars in 2003 and spent a decade as an NFL quarterback, and he has also been an NFL assistant coach, most recently as the Buccaneers’ offensive coordinator from 2019 to 2022.”
“Zimmer was reportedly planning to retire this offseason, but Sanders would like him to change his mind about that. Zimmer is best known to football fans as the head coach of the Vikings from 2014 to 2021, but he also has a great deal of experience as an assistant, including working as the Cowboys’ defensive coordinator last year, a previous stint as the Cowboys’ defensive coordinator from 2000 to 2006, and defensive coordinator jobs in Atlanta and Cincinnati as well.”
The ex-Vikings skipper turned 69 last month.
David Smith added, “After the Vikings fired him, Zimmer worked as a consultant for Sanders, first at Jackson State and then at Colorado. Zimmer’s nephew, Andrew Zimmer, is already on the Colorado staff as a quality control analyst. Sanders has transformed Colorado into a high-profile program, and major NFL experience on his coaching staff has been a big part of that.”
“Sanders also has Pro Football Hall of Famer Marshall Faulk coaching running backs, Pro Football Hall of Famer Warren Sapp working as defensive pass rush coordinator, and former NFL head coach Pat Shurmur as offensive coordinator.”
Sanders has talked big before about assembling a “Dream Team” coaching staff, but his full plan has not quite worked out. Perhaps this time will be different.
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