Mike Ziimmer is currently without an NFL job after parting ways with the Dallas Cowboys during the latest hiring cycle.
That could give Zimmer added time to focus on his fledgling second career.
Not This Boy, a horse owned by Zimmer Ridge Ranch, scored a big win at historic Churchill Downs over Father’s Day weekend. It may not have been the Kentucky Derby — but 2024 Derby winner Brian Hernandez rode to an easy victory in Race No. 9 of Saturday’s slate. The winning margin was 6 ¾ lengths.
Zimmer, 69, is likely to make his retirement from the NFL official this year. After a couple seasons as a consultant for Deion Sanders at both Jackson State and Colorado, he joined Mike McCarthy’s staff as the Cowboys’ defensive coordinator in 2024. It ended up being an ugly season for Dallas, which finished 28th in total yards allowed and 31st in scoring defense.
Zimmer’s coaching hey day came in Minnesota, where he spent eight years as the Vikings’ head coach and posted a 72-56-1 overall record with three playoff appearances. He was fired after a 2021 season that saw the wheels come off his defense, as the Vikings surrendered over 130 yards per game against the rush that year.
Longtime mentor Bill Parcels helped get Zimmer into horse racing early in his coaching career. He bought his first 40 acres of land in Kentucky in 2013, the year before he was hired by the Vikings as head coach.
Time will tell if Not This Boy becomes a name to watch on the horse racing circuit, but Zimmer may have found his next career. The total purse for Saturday’s win was $134,000, and about 80% of that traditionally goes to the horse’s owner.
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