Good morning Horners! Within 24 hours after the Minnesota Vikings getting soundly defeated by the Seattle Seahawks, 21-7, there has been a big repercussion. Fans everywhere started discussing who was to blame, or how the blame should be shared for what is so far turning out to be a disappointing season because none of us suspected that we’d be 6-6-1 at this point in the season. Many have talked about the flaws in Kirk Cousins’ play, offensive coordinator John DeFilippo’s very predictable, almost Brad Childress like playcalling reminiscent of the Kick @$$ Offense, head coach Mike Zimmer’s ability to manage more than just the defense, and/or what seems like the inability of Rick Spielman to address the offensive line in any sort of real effective manner. Your favorite three old guys on GMG after the game questioned it like everyone else.
Ted Glover, Drew Bunting, and me, David Stefano shared our initial reactions following the Vikings performance at CenturyLink Field. Needless to say, frustration levels were a little high. We all knew that even though Kirk Cousins isn’t playing up towards what we feel his contract demands, that he is and will be the Vikings quarterback through 2020. Any changes in status would not affect him in a way that would take him off the field, less of future injury, Odin forbid. That left the logical choice being OC John DeFilippo because it was very unlikely that Mike Zimmer nor Rick Spielman were in any sort of danger of losing their jobs at this point in the season.
Playcalling was very inefficient and uncreative, to the point where after the game Seattle linebacker Bobby Wagner stated that they had watched everything on tape, and the offense did exactly what it did before. He also stated they were not ready to play. That gets put directly on JDF’s lap, and Zimmer made the decision to salvage the season and fire him. After arriving back in Minneapolis at, 4:30 in the morning DeFilippo was officially notified 11 AM of his termination. Kevin Stefanski was promoted from quarterbacks coach to interim offensive coordinator. He basically has a three-game working interview to secure the job for next year.
This change in December is very reminiscent of what happened in 2012 with the Baltimore Ravens when they did the exact same thing firing their offensive coordinator almost on the same day. The Ravens went on to win the Super Bowl that year, hopefully, history will repeat itself this time as well. Either way, it seemed to lift the spirits of many fans and instill a hope that seemed to be waning. What are your thoughts on the game and what has transpired since?
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As always, enjoy the watch!