Katarina Elizabeth Miketin, the supermodel who dating former Vikings coach Mike Zimmer, has put ex-Vikings GM Rick Spielman on blast in response to his recent media tour.
Recently, Deion Sanders suggested that Zimmer and Spielman — who were both fired by the Vikings in early January — were not speaking with each other at the end of their tenures.
This past week, Miketin has given credence to that report in two separate tweets. On Thursday, she responded to a clip of Spielman speaking to Colin Cowher about the challenges of having a defensive coach in a quarterback league, accusing the former GM of deflecting blame.
“What about the GM having a relationship with the organization?” she asked. “Not talking to your coach for three months? Rick, Back-peddling and ‘spin’ have always been your ‘game’. You should be embarrassed by your media blitz of, ‘it wasn’t my fault.'”
Spielman also appeared on NFL Media’s “Move the Sticks” podcast a few weeks back. And while he didn’t hit Zimmer with anything resembling a nuclear blast, he did talk about the constant turnover the team had at offensive coordinator.
“I think we went through maybe six different [offensive coordinators] during coach Zimmer’s era,” Spielman said at the time. “It was constantly like a moving target all the time. You try to do your best to adapt and the guys that we do have, can you do some things from your scheme to adjust to their skill set? But when you have the coaching turnover that it is and you’re always trying to marry up the personnel to the scheme, are there ways that some of these coaches that say, ‘Hey, I have to adjust my scheme to what the players can do as well.’ Some coaches are saying ‘This is what we run and this is what we have to have and if they don’t fit this then I don’t want them.”
Miketin took issue with Spielman’s comments.
“Rick, How can you build a team when you refuse to talk to the coach and don’t show up?” she asked. “You talk a lot to everyone else, just not the ones who mattered when the organization needed unity. YOU caused separation. Your gossip needs to stop. Let’s talk facts.”
Miketin also took aim at Spielman in her Instagram Stories, according to Awesemo.com, writing, “No respect for MN. Take responsibility.”
Miketin, 39, is a Northwestern MBA and has graced the cover of Maxim Australia. Her parents were immigrants from Yugoslavia, and she has spent most of her life in Minnesota. She and Zimmer were rumored to be dating as of Fall 2020, and she confirmed the relationship this past November.
Zimmer coached the Vikings from 2014 to 2021, and his teams compiled a 72-56-1 record in the regular season.
