Once Again, Vikings Risk Losing a Coach as AFC Team Requests Interview
Recent weeks haven’t been kind to the Vikings’ coaching staff, at least in terms of Minnesota being able to retain the in-house talent. Yet another may get plucked off the team’s coaching staff.
The update arrives courtesy of ESPN’s Adam Schefter: “Raiders have requested to speak with Vikings assistant offensive coordinator Jordan Traylor to be their QB coach, a job with the potential to work with expected No. 1 overall pick Fernando Mendoza. Traylor, 33, has worked with Kevin O’Connell, Sean Payton and Klint Kubiak, the latter two in New Orleans.”
Vikings Risk Losing Jordan Traylor
Most prominently, DC Brian Flores has been retained. He has seen his staff hollowed out, though.
Washington snagged Daronte Jones, meaning Minnesota lost its DBs coach. The d-line coach from recent seasons, Marcus Dixon, is now with the Cowboys. Safeties coach Michael Hutchings is now a college DC. Assistant head coach Mike Pettine didn’t see eye-to-eye with Coach Flores, but he’s gone due to retirement.
Former o-line coach Chris Kuper was shown the door. A spot on Philly’s coaching staff opened up, allowing Kuper to help the large lads in the City of Brotherly Love.
And then tight end coach Brian Angelichio got snagged to help out Mike McCarthy in Pittsburgh. Tony Sorrentino had been helping Keenan McCardell with the receivers, but a shot in Arizona meant losing him.
The latest development — possibly losing Traylor to the Raiders — would mean that the Vikings’ coaching staff needs to adjust to one more subtraction.
As Schefter suggests, the position with the Raiders comes with the promise of being able to develop Fernando Mendoza. Already, the Raiders are on the clock since they earned the No. 1 selection in the 2026 NFL Draft. Very little is certain until it’s certain, but Mendoza appears super likely to make his living in Sin City soon.
Also appealing is that Las Vegas boasts TE Brock Bowers alongside RB Ashton Jeanty on offense. These weapons will make life easier for whoever is tossing the pigskin.
In the Twin Cities, Kevin O’Connell is facing plenty of pressure.
The top skipper has been in town since 2022, achieving some success along the way but not enough to feel completely secure. Most prominent within O’Connell’s issues is the playoff success, or lack thereof. A pair of strong regular seasons ended quickly in the playoffs, putting O’Connell down at 0-2 in his playoff career.
What’s also needed is some semblance of a running game. Committing to handing the ball off makes life easier for all facets of football: the defense, the offensive linemen, and the quarterback.
As it relates to the quarterback, Coach O’Connell needs to arrive at a cure for the illness that’s plaguing the passing game. J.J. McCarthy was either hurt or inconsistent as a sophomore. The talent is evident for the Vikings’ highly-picked quarterback, but he needs to elevate. Expect a strong add to build up the QB spot.
Working against the Vikings even further is that Sam Darnold happened to do pretty alright in Seattle. Seeing the departed QB win a Super Bowl stings in the worst way for the Vikings, especially since QBs are supposed to be O’Connell’s specialty.
Losing Jordan Traylor isn’t a foregone conclusion. There is, nevertheless, a decent chance that he slips away to become a QB coach. Possessing ambitions of becoming a head coach means that landing a QB coach job if a nice stepping stone.
Soon enough, we’ll learn if the Vikings need to search for another replacement for the coaching staff.
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