The Minnesota Vikings have fired first-year offensive coordinator John DeFilippo following Monday’s 21-7 loss to the Seattle Seahawks, the team announced Tuesday.
Quarterbacks coach Kevin Stefanski has been promoted to replace DeFilippo on an interim basis and will handle playcalling duties for the remaining three games of the regular season.
The Vikings’ offense has sputtered as of late, averaging 12.8 points over the last four games and just 17 points combined in back-to-back losses to New England and Seattle. Minnesota has not been able to surpass 300 yards of offense in four of its past five games and sits at 6-6-1, in line for the sixth seed in the NFC playoffs, going into Week 15.
DeFilippo was the fourth offensive coordinator to serve under head coach Mike Zimmer since his tenure began in Minnesota in 2014. He is the second OC to depart a season early under Zimmer. Current Carolina offensive coordinator Norv Turner resigned in early November of his third season with the Vikings in 2016, a year the Vikings started the season 5-0 and slid to an 8-8 finish.
After ranking sixth in offensive efficiency under former offensive coordinator Pat Shurmur during the 2017 season, the Vikings have tumbled to 24th with DeFilippo. A large problem has been the lack of a running game, as the Vikings have averaged just 85.4 yards on the ground per game this season, ranking 30th in the league.
While Minnesota’s O-line has struggled in protection throughout the 2018 campaign, hobbled by injuries and players being forced to play out of position, quarterback Kirk Cousins has not been able to overcome what’s happening in front of him.
On Monday night, Cousins went 20-for-33 passing for 208 yards, a touchdown and a fumble that resulted in a Seahawks score. The Vikings were 2-for-10 on third down, 0-for-2 on fourth down and failed to score on four attempts inside the Seattle 4-yard line in the fourth quarter. They had no conversions on their eight dropbacks on third and fourth down in the game, per ESPN Stats & Information.
Stefanski, who has been with the Vikings since 2006 when he served as an assistant to head coach Leslie Frazier, was blocked by Minnesota from interviewing with the New York Giants to serve as Shurmur’s offensive coordinator. This will be his first time calling offensive plays in the NFL.