While the concerns expressed by folks like the father of former Vikings tight end Rhett Ellison seem overblown, it’s not a stretch to conclude that something has gotten out of whack in Minnesota. Exhibit A would be a 3-8 record after a 5-0 start to the season.
The comments of Riki Ellison, a former NFL linebacker who won a trio of Super Bowls with the 49ers, caused us to dust off comments from Vikings coach Mike Zimmer at the Scouting Combine regarding advice he received from his players after the 206 season ended.
“I had several veteran, mostly defensive, players come in and they said, ‘Coach you know I want you to be the best head coach you can possibly be and here are some things that I think you could do better,’” Zimmer said. “‘Not schematically but do better in handling some of these situations where the team was a little bit uneasy about how you said things or did things.’”
Whatever the changes suggested by the veteran defensive players, there would be no need for any suggestions if everything was fine. The fact that Zimmer was willing to hear them out and to talk openly about the input should be regarded as encouraging by Vikings fans.