Vikings Make Yet Another Shakeup to the Franchise’s Leadership
The Minnesota Vikings have made some pretty significant changes to their leadership this weekend.
On Friday, the franchise made national headlines by firing general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah after four seasons despite signing him to a contract extension just last offseason.
Then on Saturday, the Vikings made new coaching hires, including bringing in Dolphins offensive coordinator Frank Smith as the assistant head coach alongside Kevin O’Connell.
Sunday brought yet another shakeup for the franchise’s leadership as yet another coach joined the team.
Vikings Shake Things Up Again
The new coach is Ryan Nielsen, who will be the team’s defensive running game coordinator in 2026, according to a report from ESPN’s Adam Schefter.
Nielsen, a Los Angeles native who will turn 47 years old on March 20, spent the 2025 season as a senior defensive assistant for the Buffalo Bills, a team that ranked 12th in points allowed per game.
Prior to last year, the defensive specialist has coached for nearly a decade at the NFL level. His first job came with the New Orleans Saints as the defensive line coach. He held that role four years and was also the assistant head coach in New Orleans during 2021 before being promoted to co-defensive coordinator in 2022.
During 2021, the Saints had the No. 1 rushing defense in terms of yards allowed per carry. However, in 2022, that ranking took a big dip to 20th.
In 2023, Nielsen decided to leave the Saints and take the defensive coordinator and defensive line coach positions with the Atlanta Falcons. During that season, the Falcons had the 18th ranked scoring defense, allowing 21.9 points per game.
That being said, their run defense was their strength, allowing just 4.0 yards per carry, good for ninth in the NFL.
Nielsen was on the move once again in 2024, joining the Jacksonville Jaguars as defensive coordinator. Many will recall that season ended up being a lost year for the Jaguars, and it was the same story on defense. Jacksonville allowed 25.6 points per game during their 4-13 campaign, prompting the franchise to clean house. As a result, Nielsen ended up in Buffalo during 2025.
The Vikings have had a strong run defense under Brian Flores’ tutelage over the past few years, ranking fourth, fourth, and eighth in yards allowed per carry during his three-year tenure.
Minnesota is hoping to get back into the top five with Nielsen on the staff.
Editor’s Note: Information from Pro Football Reference helped with this article.
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