Vikings To Request Interview With 49ers DL Coach Jim Tomsula

Add yet another name to the list of coaches that the Minnesota Vikings are looking to interview for their vacant head coach position, and this one appears to be a bit off the beaten path.

According to our friends over at Niners Nation, the Vikings will request an interview with current San Francisco 49ers defensive line coach Jim Tomsula. The San Francisco defense has been very good for a number of years, and Tomasula appears to have played a significant role in that. (If you read the comments on the Niners Nation piece, they don't appear to be terribly enthusiastic about the idea of losing Tomasula. . .read into that what you will.)

Tomsula got his start as a coach in NFL Europe. He was the defensive line coach for both the London Monarchs (1998) and the Scottish Claymores (1999-2003) before moving on to become the defensive coordinator for the Berlin Thunder, and was on their staff when they defeated the Frankfurt Galaxy in World Bowl XII in 2004. He concluded his NFL Europe time by serving as the head coach of the Rhein Fire in 2006.

(Man, having NFL Europe was awesome. Just putting that out there.)

He joined the Niners as the defensive line coach in 2007, and has served in that capacity ever since. Tomsula also served as the Niners' interim head coach for one game in 2010, following the firing of Mike Singletary. San Francisco defeated the Arizona Cardinals in that game by a score of 38-7.

The Vikings can't interview Tomsula until the 49ers are eliminated from the post-season, but they've made it clear that they are going to give him an interview. They're also waiting for the Niners' season to end in order to interview their offensive coordinator, Greg Roman.