With Leslie Frazier being promoted to the position of Head Coach of the Minnesota Vikings this afternoon, somebody needed to step up and take the role of defensive coordinator. Frazier said that that decision had not been made at the press conference that he conducted with owner Zygi Wilf today, but according to Vikings sources the decision has now been made.
Current linebackers coach Fred Pagac will serve as the Vikings’ defensive coordinator for the remainder of the season, according to Judd Zulgad of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune. Frazier will, however, still have “plenty of input” into the defense. No word on how much influence Frazier will have on the offensive play calling or anything of that nature, but I’m sure we’ll find out more about that through the course of the week.
Pagac has been a coach at different levels since 1978, when he got the job as the linebackers coach at his alma mater, (the) Ohio State University. He coached there until 2000, serving as the defensive coordinator from 1996 to 1999 and an assistant head coach in 2000. At the NFL level, he has been a linebacker coach for three different teams. . .the Oakland Raiders (2001-2003), the Kansas City Chiefs (2004-2005), and the Vikings from 2006 until the present.