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May 26 (UPI) -- Despite missing OTAs, Mike Zimmer says he'll be back soon to coach the Minnesota Vikings. Zimmer met with the media Friday, where he said he is not considering retirement. He has had eight surgeries on his right eye since last fall. On Monday, the team released a statement on the coach saying that he was taking time away from the team.
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Zimmer said Friday that even if he loses the eye, he will continue coaching.
"I think when you have this many things you always think about other scenarios but I really do think that they're doing the right things and that it's just been one thing after another," Zimmer told reporters. "I would like to put to rest, unfortunately I have too much time on my hands now, so I hear about 'oh, this might shorten his coaching career' and all these things. Like I texted Kyle Rudolph, I said, 'hey, I'll be back shortly with one eye or two, doesn't really matter, I'm going to be back.' So, we can put that me retiring thing or whatever to bed quickly."
The 60-year-old visited his doctor Wednesday in Cincinnati. He said the pressure was good on the eye and he was able to stop taking some of the eye drops he was using.
"Other than that, that's pretty much it," Zimmer said. "That and I've been watching the tape every day of the practices."
Zimmer is 26-22 and is entering his fourth season as an NFL head coach. His first torn retina surgery was in early November after the coach scratched his eye when the Vikings lost to the Chicago Bears on Halloween.
While Zimmer said he is not limited in the number of hours he can watch film, he did say he likes to give his eyes a break from staring at his iPad.
"What I'm trying to do is after practice I'll probably watch the practice film of the defense and then I'll take a break," Zimmer told reporters. "That might take an hour and a half or something and then I'll take a break. In the evening, I'll watch the offense, which is basically the same plays you just see it from a different angle. I've been pretty smart about it. I take a lot of breaks and get on my quad and ride around the property a little bit so I'm not looking at the iPad all the time."
His right eye currently has a "gas bubble" inside that the coach cannot see through. He said its "basically like looking through a water balloon."
Vikings defensive coordinator George Edwards talked about coaching without Zimmer on Wednesday.
"We are constant communication with him," Edwards told reporters. "We are relaying his message and his vision for this football team and I think everyone is pitching in to make sure we work through what we need to work through and get improvement in areas we need to improve."
Zimmer said his plan is to come back on June 4. He has another doctor appointment on June 5. His latest surgeries on the eye took place on April 17, April 25 and last week.
"Yeah, quite honestly I don't want to go blind in this eye, but if it is that's what it is."
"...So, this will not keep me from coaching. The doctors have told me, because I asked them one time "is this a lost cause?" If it is, just let it go. He said, "No, it's not like that. If it was, I would tell you." Obviously, I've thought about it. This is not going to keep me from coaching one way or the other."
The Vikings continue OTAs from May 30 to June 1 and from June 5 to June 8. Training camp begins on June 13.
