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PDF versionThe games are his refuge. They're the only time Cincinnati Bengals defensive coordinator Mike Zimmer can find some normalcy and escape the personal tragedy that has turned his life upside down.
On Oct. 8, Zimmer walked into his home and found his wife, Vikki, dead. An exact cause of death has yet to be determined, though it is believed she died of either a heart attack or a stroke.
Zimmer, who was an assistant coach at Missouri in 1981-82, has been with Cincinnati for only two years after stops in Dallas and Atlanta, but Vikki, 50, had become a popular figure around the Bengals. The homemade chocolate chip cookies she sent to Zimmer's players brightened the drudgery of daily meetings and practices.
So amid a remarkable turnaround season for the Bengals, who at 7-2 have the second-best record in the AFC, Zimmer has tried to persevere.
It hasn't been easy.
"The wins are not nearly as good now," Zimmer recently told reporters in his first interview since the death of his wife of 27 years. "We beat Chicago (Oct. 25 ), played pretty good on defense that game. I go home, and it was actually a hard day because I go home and I'm there.
"We beat Baltimore (17-7 on Nov. 8). Everyone's excited and I'm excited, but it's not the same excitement. I'm more concerned about how (son) Adam is doing and the girls (daughters Marki and Corri) are doing. I'm happy that we won, just not as ecstatic. Those are the things that I notice."
During the Bengals' bye week, Zimmer visited his daughters in Dallas and son in New Orleans, where he is a defensive assistant with the Saints. The off week allowed Zimmer a chance to find some perspective.
"It helped me realize that I have to help my family more than what I am," Zimmer said. "I saw my daughters and realized that I have to help them more than what I did. Then we went to New Orleans and saw Adam and realized it's tough on him, maybe more so than I anticipated. He used to call Vikki every night on his way home from work. The girls, I'll call them and the one is just crying like crazy on the phone, and I'll ask what's wrong and she'll say, 'I'm sad.' Those things kind of helped me realize I got to do better with them."
The Bengals' players have taken it upon themselves to look after Zimmer, too, stopping in to his office to say hello and ask how he's doing.
The Bengals, bidding for just their second winning season in the last 18 years, have won three straight going into today's game at Oakland and have taken command of the AFC North by sweeping the season series from division rivals Baltimore and Pittsburgh.
They haven't lost since Oct. 18 against Houston, which came at the end of a week that included Vikki Zimmer's funeral.
In beating Chicago 45-10, Baltimore 17-7 and Pittsburgh 18-12 -- Zimmer's unit has allowed just two late fourth-quarter touchdowns.
"Every Wednesday we go in, and he tells us what they do and you see everyone scribbling down notes," defensive tackle Domata Peko said. "He's doing a good job breaking down teams. He's tough on us during the week so we don't have to think about it twice during the game. We can just play ball."
And Zimmer, for three hours on Sundays, can just coach football.
