Vikings Terence Newman starts new NFL career as Nickel/Defensive Backs Coach

After 15 seasons in the NFL, Terence Newman will now see the field from a different perspective as the Nickel/Defensive Backs Coach for the Minnesota Vikings

Newman announced over the weekend that he would be retiring effective immediately but would remain in Minnesota as a coach.

Newman started playing in the NFL in 2003 when he was drafted by the Dallas Cowboys. He then moved from the Cowboys to the Cincinnati Bengals, and then to Minnesota. Most of Newman’s 15 seasons have been spent with head coach Mike Zimmer.

Newman spoke today and said it’ll be a strange transition from player to coach, but being able to relate to and working with the team will make it easy, “I guess I kinda felt like, you know, helping out some of the younger guys is a form of coaching I guess. And I think everybody just assumed I would do it, so I would like to give a shot and see how I can help impact some young guys and teach them what I know.”

And after 15 seasons, Newman knows a lot. He has played 221 games and has 205 starts, 42 career interceptions (with three of those he returned for a touchdown), a fumble recovery, and 2.0 career sacks.

While he still feels his body is in fairly good shape, he knew it was time to walk away and give the younger players a shot at starting. ‘’Some of the younger talent, obviously, you have to either say, ‘I’ll be selfish,’ and maybe take the roster spot or get somebody else an opportunity to live their dream. So, it was pretty easy.”

But it wasn’t just his selflessness that drove Newman to decided to move to coaching. “‘At some point, you have to be true to yourself and say, ‘Hey, do I want to keep going forward, have a chance to maybe tear up your back or neck or whatever?” His decision to move to coaching may have not been an easy one but Newman is happy to still be working on the sidelines, “Everybody’s asking me if I’m OK and all this. I’m good. I’m still in football. I still have an opportunity to chase a Super Bowl ring.”

As his new journey starts he is unsure of how he’ll feel the when the Vikings play the San Francisco 49ers but he knows he knows he is going to make the best of it. “I mean, I don’t know what the feeling I’ll have or if I’ll have a rush of emotions, or be nervous as hell because I can’t do anything on the field depending on how the game is going or whatevr, That’ll be one I just let happen and just go with it.”