Jonathan Greenard only played one year at the University of Florida, but he made an impression on Dallas Turner. Greenard grew up in Hiram, Ga., outside Atlanta, and committed to Louisville as a three-star recruit out of high school. He played three seasons at Louisville before joining Florida for a season as a graduate transfer.
Turner grew up in Fort Lauderdale, 30 miles north of Miami, and considered playing at the University of Florida. Todd Grantham was Florida’s defensive coordinator from 2018 to 2021 and recruited Turner, a five-star recruit, in 2021. Turner ultimately committed to Alabama, and Grantham joined Nick Saban’s staff as a defensive analyst in 2022 before the New Orleans Saints hired him as their defensive line coach in 2023.
“It’s real ironic how we’re both on the same team because, when I was in high school, I was going to end up at the University of Florida because of him and a guy named Coach Grantham,” Turner said after the final day of minicamp on June 12. “So just watching him and watching how he played in college from now, even last year, I used to watch him a lot. But just being around him every single day, we hold each other accountable.”
The Minnesota Vikings signed Greenard and traded up to select Turner 17th-overall to replace Danielle Hunter. Minnesota could not pressure the quarterback with their front four last season, forcing Brian Flores to generate pressure creatively. His defense worked until the Cincinnati Bengals figured it out in Week 15. However, Greenard and Turner should allow the Vikings to pressure the quarterback more frequently without having to blitz.
They also added Blake Cashman and Andrew Van Ginkel to bolster the defense, but Greenard is the leader of Minnesota’s overhauled unit. At 27, he’s in his prime and has four years of experience with the Houston Texans. Greenard is impressed with Hunter’s athleticism and has started mentoring him, trying to get him ready for training camp and the regular season.
“Man, a kid like that running 4.4? I mean, it’s like factory-made,” said Greenard, smiling. “Doing the fine-tunings, making sure he understands the game better so that we can make his moves more natural and learn and progress in this league. Because that’s what it’s all about, just developing.
“Everybody’s fast and strong at this point. And honestly, those numbers don’t matter anymore. But I take that on my wing as a responsibility of mine to continue to help him develop and become the best version of himself. It’s too much potential for me not to. I’ll be spilling all my gems to him. He’s a great kid, willing to listen.”
Turner said he’s grateful that Greenard is helping him transition to the NFL.
“He pushes me every day,” said Turner. “He kind of took that role of taking me under his wing and just showing me the ropes and stuff like that. So I’m very grateful and appreciate having him in my room.”
Greenard must have already gotten through to him because Turner pulled off a “nasty” spin move, according to Christian Darrisaw. Turner and Darrisaw won’t say who Turner put in the spin cycle, but Turner pulled the move off effectively enough to catch everyone’s attention.
“It was kind of just a reaction,” Turner said with a grin. “Appreciate it, CD, for that compliment. CD [is a] real good tackle, for sure. My first day going against him, I kind of seen what he was like for real. He liked that for sure.”
Still, even after spinning one of his teammates into oblivion, Turner says there’s a lot he needs to learn before he can be a productive player at the next level.
“The workload from Alabama to the NFL, in general, it’s definitely a transition,” said Turner. “But it’s a good transition for sure with the workload and stuff like that and how intense things are. But I feel like it’s more of a technical thing and stuff like that at the NFL level, and really understanding of what you’re doing and the technique that you’re doing.”
Fortunately, Greenard is helping him out with the finer things. After watching Greenard as a Florida fan growing up in Fort Lauderdale, Turner is learning under him as he transitions to the NFL. It’s a full-circle moment for a player with a lot of raw talent who the Vikings hope will improve their pass rush.
Tom Schreier
Tom Schreier is the founder and proprietor of Zone Coverage. He created Zone Coverage with the goal of mixing new age media with old-school journalism. His goal was to create an economically sustainable platform for sports content for Minnesota fans. Before Zone Coverage, Tom wrote for Bleacher Report and Yahoo! Sports before joining 105 The Ticket in 2014.
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