Former Minnesota Vikings head coach Mike Zimmer, who previously had stints as the defensive coordinator of the Dallas Cowboys, Atlanta Falcons and Cincinnati Bengals, told NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero that he wants to return to the sidelines in 2024. Zimmer has been out of the NFL since he was relieved of his head coaching duties in 2021 but might be willing to be someone’s defensive coordinator next season.
Zimmer went 72-56-1 as the head coach of the Vikings. Prior to his run in Minnesota, he had won a Super Bowl as a defensive backs coach with the Cowboys and earned NFL Assistant Coach of the Year honors in 2009 as a defensive coordinator for the Bengals. With the Vikings, Zimmer’s defenses were primarily heralded for their ability to generate interceptions and prevent rushing touchdowns.
According to Zimmer, he’s currently studying league-wide film and diving into new analytics for quality control purposes. When asked why he wants to return to the NFL, Zimmer told Pelissero, “The biggest thing right now is I love to teach. I love to coach.”You can go ahead and add Zimmer to the list of potential defensive coordinator hires for the Green Bay Packers if they ever come around to firing Joe Barry. Previously, we at Acme Packing Company made a list of the 17 candidates who took defensive coordinator interviews with teams last offseason but are still performing assistant coaching duties as we approach the end of the 2023 regular season. Among that list of candidates, Zimmer would appear to be the top target for a coordinator-needy squad.
1958 — The Baltimore Colts beat the New York Giants 23-17 in overtime to win the NFL championship at Yankee Stadium. Quarterback Johnny Unitas takes the Colts 80 yards in 13 plays, the last a one-yard carry by Alan Ameche at 8:15 of sudden death overtime. The regulation game ends 17-17 when Baltimore’s Steve Myhra kicks a 20-yard field goal with 20 seconds left in the game. The game is widely known as “The Greatest Game Ever Played.” With a national television audience watching, this game is believed to have made the NFL a challenger to baseball as the national pastime.
1968 — Arthur Ashe leads the United States to its first Davis Cup title since 1963 with a 4-1 victory over Australia.
1975 — The Dallas Cowboys beat the Minnesota Viking 17-14 on Roger Staubach’s desperate 50-yard pass to Drew Pearson in the final minute of an NFC Divisional playoff game. Staubach connects with Pearson down the right sideline with 24 seconds
1988 — Division II Alaska-Anchorage, behind Michael Johnson’s 20 points, pulls the biggest surprise of the college basketball season by stunning No. 2 Michigan 70-66 in the opening round of the Utah Classic.
2000 — Robby Portalatin becomes the fourth bowler to roll a 900 series according to the American Bowling Congress. Portalatin, a 28-year-old worker for an auto parts company, accomplishes the feat at Airport Lanes in Jackson, Mich.
2003 — Jamal Lewis becomes the fifth player in NFL history to run for 2,000 yards in a season. He gained 114 yards on 27 carries in Baltimore’s 13-10 overtime victory against Pittsburgh, finishing the year with 2,066 yards — second-most in NFL history.
2003 — San Diego’s LaDainian Tomlinson rushes for a career-high 243 yards and two touchdowns in a 21-14 win over Oakland. Tomlinson also becomes the first halfback in NFL history to catch 100 passes.
2008 — The Detroit Lions lose to the Green Bay Packers 31-21, making them the first team to go winless through a 16-game season.
