MINNEAPOLIS -- After hiring general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah, the Minnesota Vikings have expanded their list of candidates for their head coaching vacancy.
The Vikings will have a virtual interview on Saturday with New York Giants defensive coordinator Patrick Graham, a source said Friday.
The Vikings conducted virtual interviews with eight candidates before Adofo-Mensah was hired as general manager on Wednesday to replace Rick Spielman. After the Vikings fired Spielman and head coach Mike Zimmer on Jan. 10, owner and president Mark Wilf said the team would first hire a general manager, and the general manager would have “input” in the search for a coach.
Graham, 43, was the Giants’ defensive coordinator the past two seasons under since-fired head coach Joe Judge after serving as defensive coordinator for the Miami Dolphins in 2019. He has 13 years of experience as an NFL assistant after being a college assistant for seven seasons.
Graham is a 2002 graduate of Yale, where he was a defensive tackle. When Graham was at Yale, Adofo-Mensah was also in the Ivy League; he graduated from Princeton in 2003.
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Of the eight candidates the Vikings have interviewed, two are off the table — Green Bay Packers offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett, who was hired Thursday to coach the Denver Broncos, and Dan Quinn, who has elected to remain Dallas Cowboys’ defensive coordinator. From that list, remaining are Tampa Bay defensive coordinator Todd Bowles, Philadelphia Eagles defensive coordinator Jonathan Gannon, Cowboys offensive coordinator Kellen Moore, Los Angeles Rams defensive coordinator Raheem Morris, Rams offensive coordinator Kevin O’Connell and San Francisco 49ers offensive coordinator DeMeco Ryans.
