San Francisco 49ers defensive coordinator DeMeco Ryans has reportedly withdrawn his name from the final list of candidates to be the Minnesota Vikings next head coach.
The news comes as a bit of a surprise with Ryans being considered as a serious candidate for the job.
He worked as a quality control coach and a linebackers coach during the time when Vikings general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah was still working in the football research and development department for the team.
So there was obviously some familiarity there that made him stand out from other candidates.
Per ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler, the decision for Ryans simply came down to him being happy in San Francisco. He’s in no rush to jump into a head coaching role, which makes sense considering he’s only 37 years old with one year under his belt as a defensive coordinator.
He’s an ascending assistant coach, and there are going to be plenty of other opportunities for him down the road.
For the Vikings, however, they are now down to only four candidates: Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh, Los Angeles Rams offensive coordinator Kevin O’Connell, Rams defensive coordinator Raheem Morris and New York Giants defensive coordinator Patrick Graham.
