Minnesota Vikings Hire New Assistant Offensive Coordinator and QB Coach

The Minnesota Vikings were fortunate to keep most of their coaching staff from last year intact. Defensive coordinator Brian Flores was a head coaching candidate early in the offseason, as was quarterbacks coach Josh McCown. Wide receivers coach Keenan McCardell was looking to become an offensive coordinator, but didn’t land the promotion. Even head coach Kevin O’Connell was in trade rumors before signing an extension.

The Vikings did lose one prominent coach, however. Assistant offensive coordinator and QBs coach Grant Udinski took the Jaguars’ OC job, leaving a decent sized hole in the staff. That hole was just filled on Monday night by a guy many thought wasn’t leaving his previous spot.

Minnesota Vikings hire Jordan Traylor to coaching staff

After Udinski took the Jaguars job on Feb. 5, the Vikings have now found his replacement. Jordan Traylor is coming over from the Saints to be the Vikings’ assistant OC and assistant QBs coach. He’s spent the last two years as an offensive assistant in New Orleans.

The 31-year-old Traylor has been with the Saints since 2019. He started as a scouting assistant before becoming a defensive assistant in 2021. He spent two seasons on that side of the ball before moving to offensive assistant. With Kellen Moore being hired as the Saints’ new head coach, there was likely to be a lot of turnover in the coaching ranks in New Orleans.

Just a week ago, though, it was assumed that Traylor would be retained by Moore after he was seen at the NFL Combine with the Saints brass. He was highly regarded by the team and is expected to be a future OC. But, after Moore hired Doug Nussmeier as his OC, Traylor’s services will now be welcomed by the Minnesota Vikings.

The Saints have also hired former NFL head coach Scott Linehan to the offensive staff, as well as Tobijah Hughley to be an offensive assistant. If either were to get an expanded role with the team, it would hurt Traylor’s chance at a promotion. Moore would’ve been his third head coach he’s worked under in seven years, so maybe he wanted some more stability above him, when deciding to take the job with the Vikings.

Jordan Traylor brings experience to Vikings despite young age

Before joining the Saints, Traylor was an offensive analyst at Arkansas in 2018, primarily working with quarterbacks. He also worked as an offensive graduate assistant at Texas in 2016 and 2017. While there, he worked with quarterbacks and wide receivers. He also worked with quarterbacks at this year’s Senior Bowl, serving as the coach for the National Team.

Traylor is the son of UTSA head coach Jeff Traylor, so he’s been around coaching his entire life. He briefly played in college as a quarterback, transferring to Texas A&M for the 2014-15 season. While the job with the Minnesota Vikings is a promotion, he has the background that makes him a reasonable choice for the position.

His experience with quarterbacks will be especially valued. While the Vikings aren’t sure what they’re doing with the position just yet, the expectation is that J.J. McCarthy will start when he’s ready. A guy like Traylor with a background in QB coaching could be a big piece in getting McCarthy prepared for the season.