Cincinnati Bengals defensive coordinator Mike Zimmer honored with George S. Halas Award

Cincinnati Bengals defensive coordinator Mike Zimmer was awarded with the George S. Halas Award on Tuesday—an award given to an individual who overcame the most adversity to succeed last season—after his wife, Vicki, passed away unexpectedly last October.

Despite his loss, Zimmer still traveled to Baltimore that same week and lead his defense to a pivotal 17-14 win over the Ravens help the Bengals improve to 4-1 on the season and 3-0 within the division. His squad managed to shut down a Ravens’ offense that averaged 31 points per game the first four games of the season. For his effort, Zimmer received the game ball after the win.

In just two years, Zimmer has turned around a Bengals’ defense that ranked 27th overall in 2007. Cincinnati’s defense finished fourth overall last season, allowing just 18.6 points per game and containing one of the top units when it came to stopping the run. They allowed just three running backs—Jerome Harrison, Jamaal Charles, and Shonn Greene—to gain over 100 yards all season.

The Bengals awarded Zimmer with a three-year extension to make him the highest paid assistant in team history. He joined Cincinnati in 2008 after a one-year stint with the Atlanta Falcons as defensive coordinator. Before then, he spent 13 seasons with the Dallas Cowboys.