The Kansas City Chiefs walked off their second straight Super Bowl victory with a touchdown pass from Patrick Mahomes to Mecole Hardman Sunday evening.
Kansas City sent the San Francisco 49ers home without a Super Bowl victory for the 30th straight season and officially kicked off the 2024 offseason.
This 2024 offseason will look a little different for the Dallas Cowboys now that Dan Quinn has moved on after three years as the defensive coordinator.
In comes Mike Zimmer, veteran coach of 22 NFL seasons, the last eight years spent as head coach of the Minnesota Vikings.
Zimmer returns to Dallas to reprise his role as defensive coordinator, where he served the first seven years of his coaching career.
He hasn’t coached since he was relieved of his duties in 2021, marking the end of the only head coaching opportunity he’s had in the NFL.
After moving on from Dallas after the 2006 season, Zimmer spent one year in Atlanta as the defensive coordinator before spending six years in Cincinnati in the same role.
Zimmer has had a hand in many great defensive players over the years, and that’s the topic we will be discussing today.
Which players can most benefit from Zimmer’s coaching based on previous players’ performance?
Micah Parsons
Player comparison: Anthony Barr
Let’s start with the best player the Cowboys have on defense, Micah Parsons.
Parsons may be the sole reason Zimmer was willing to take on the defensive coordinator position in Dallas.
Any defensive coordinator in the NFL has to be salivating at the prospect of coaching what could be one of the greatest defensive players of a generation.
Zimmer once coached a player similar to Parsons, and that history could show us what could be in store.
That player was Anthony Barr, drafted by the Minnesota Vikings with the ninth overall pick of the 2014 NFL Draft.
Barr was used in Minnesota similarly to how Parsons is currently being utilized in Dallas.
Parsons can be considered a tweener when it comes to his position on defense, a hybrid off the ball and pass-rushing linebacker.
Barr was used this way by Zimmer, doubling as a sideline to sideline linebacker on early downs, and dropping down to rush the passer on passing downs.
He finished his Vikings career with 17.5 sacks in six seasons, performing at a high level while Zimmer was coaching.
Trevon Diggs
Player Comparison: Terence Newman
Zimmer, already fortunate enough to take over a defense featuring Micah Parsons, also has the pleasure of coaching another All-Pro.
Trevon Diggs should be back from an ACL tear suffered early in 2023, and he brings with him 18 interceptions in just three full seasons played.
Zimmer is no stranger to ball-hawking cornerbacks being a cornerstone of his defense.
He has coached several talented cornerbacks, but none stick out further to me than former Cowboys Terence Newman.
Newman was Bill Parcells’ first draft pick as head coach of the Dallas Cowboys, selecting Newman with the fifth overall pick of the 2003 NFL Draft.
Zimmer and Newman had a very fruitful and lasting relationship, also spending time together in Cincinnati and Minnesota.
Newman has 42 career interceptions, something Diggs has shown us he knows a little bit about.
Bigger things could be in store for Diggs under Zimmer’s tutelage.