Veteran coach Ed Donatell has emerged as the favorite to be the next defensive coordinator for the Minnesota Vikings, ESPN reported Wednesday.
Donatell, 65, spent the last three seasons as DC under Vic Fangio in Denver. He had been linked to Pete Carroll’s staff in Seattle recently.
Donatell would join current Los Angeles Rams offensive coordinator’s Kevin O’Connell’s staff in Minnesota, however O’Connell can’t be named the new head coach until after the Super Bowl. The 36-year-old O’Connell would be getting a 31-year veteran to run the Vikings’ defense.
The post would be Donatell’s fourth as defensive coordinator in the NFL and fifth overall. Prior to Denver, Donatell was last a coordinator with the University of Washington in 2008, after previous stints running defenses in Green Bay (2000-03) and Atlanta (2004-06).
Donatell was the secondary coach in Chicago from 2015-18 while Fangio was the DC.
The Vikings also announced Wednesday that they have hired former Indianapolis general manager Ryan Grigson to their front office. Grigson reunites with Kwesi Adofo-Mensah, who was named GM last month. The pair worked together in Cleveland.
–Field Level Media