Eric Canha-USA TODAY Sports activities.
Minnesota Vikings defensive coordinator Brian Flores and quarterbacks coach Josh McCown might not land head teaching jobs throughout this carousel, however assistant quarterbacks coach Grant Udinski may very well be on the transfer.
Promising Younger Vikings Coach Will get One other Nibble
Udinski, 28, is already a finalist for the Seattle Seahawks vacant offensive coordinator place, however now the New England Patriots are within the combine, too.
SI.com’s Albert Breer tweeted Tuesday, “The Patriots interviewed Vikings assistant OC/assistant QBs coach Grant Udinski for their offensive coordinator job yesterday, per sources. Udinski’s very valuable in Minnesota — and considered a rising star in the field. The 28-year-old is also a finalist for the Seattle OC job.”
Seattle not too long ago fired 2024 offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb, paving the best way for interviews with candidates like Udinski. Udinski is in Yr No. 3 as a Vikings coach, coming aboard on the daybreak of the Kevin O’Connell period in 2022. The Patriots cleaned the entire this offseason — after doing the identical factor one 12 months in the past — canning Jerod Mayo and hiring Mike Vrabel.
Steve Roberts-Imagn Photographs.
Udinski, in idea, may very well be on faucet to mentor rookie passer Drake Maye in New England, a quarterback linked to the Vikings’ pre-draft cycle advert nauseam.
The younger coach performed school soccer at Davidson and Towson and have become a coach shortly after, becoming a member of Baylor as a graduate assistant beneath Matt Rhule. Then, Rhule turned the Carolina Panthers head coach for a few seasons whereas Udinski adopted as an offensive assistant.
That led to O’Connell’s workers in Minnesota, the place Udinski has remained. He’s credited with mentoring J.J. McCarthy this season because the rookie recovers from a torn meniscus.
Eric Canha-USA TODAY Sports activities.
O’Connell stated concerning the up-and-coming coach months again by way of Star Tribune, “He’s got such an unbelievable understanding, from his background on offense and defense, and his sheer football stamina is something I really admire. I joke with him all the time, ‘Nobody loves football like you, man.’ His mind never really wanders from it.”
In November, Bleacher Report theorized a number of would-be candidates for Chicago the Bears’ 2025 offensive coordinator job, and Udinski grabbed a point out.
“Grant Udinski has elevated his status in coaching circles with the work he’s done during the last two seasons as the Minnesota Vikings’ assistant quarterbacks coach. Minnesota surprisingly finished 2023 as a top-five passing offense despite losing starting quarterback Kirk Cousins halfway through the season to a torn Achilles,” BR’s Alex Kay wrote. “Udinski helped get the most out of unheralded backups such as Nick Mullens and Joshua Dobbs, salvaging an otherwise lost campaign.”
Neville E. Guard-Imagn Photographs.
Nevertheless it may very well be the Seahawks or Patriots for Udinski, not the Bears, in spite of everything, a membership that employed Detroit Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson this week.
New England’s offense ranked twenty seventh per EPA/Play this season.
If Udinski doesn’t earn the Seahawks or Patriots job, he’d return to Minnesota and assist in J.J. McCarthy’s growth.
Dustin Baker is a political scientist who graduated from the College of Minnesota in 2007. Subscribe to his every day YouTube Channel, VikesNow. The present options visitors, evaluation, and opinion on all issues associated to the purple staff, with 4-7 episodes per week. His MIN obsession dates again to 1996. Listed responsible pleasures: Peanut Butter Ice Cream, ‘The Sopranos,’ Basset Hounds, and The Doorways (the band). He follows the NBA as intently because the NFL.
All statistics offered by Professional Soccer Reference / Stathead; all contractual info offered by OverTheCap.com.
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