The Minnesota Vikings fired head coach Leslie Frazier.
Minnesota Vikings fire head coach Leslie Frazier
The Vikings will reset with a new head coach in 2014.
Adam Bettcher
James Dator has been covering a wide range of sports for SB Nation for over a decade, with a special focus on the NFL.
There was punctuated success for the organization under Frazier. The team went 10-6 and made the playoffs in 2012 on the back of MVP Adrian Peterson, but it was book-ended by two forgettable seasons. The Vikings were 3-13 in 2011, and just 5-10-1 in 2013. Frazier’s four-year total in Minnesota resulted in an overall record of (21-32-1), finishing last in the NFC North on three occasions.
“We have tremendous respect and appreciation for Leslie and what he has done for the Minnesota Vikings,” said owner Zygi Wilf. “He stepped in and established a strong positive culture here and he has been the consummate professional as our head coach and in this community. Making this change is difficult, but what we determined is best for the organization.”
Frazier was a long-standing member of the Vikings organization, joining the team as defensive coordinator in 2007 under then-head coach Brad Childress. He took the reins as head coach in 2010 as an interim, leading the team to a 3-3 record and earning the job outright.
Minnesota's issues extend beyond coaching. The team has failed to find reliable play at the quarterback position for the better part of a decade, with Brett Favre being the only standout -- and he only played two seasons. This will be the most important task for an incoming head coach. Whoever accepts the job will need to wade through Christian Ponder, Matt Cassel and Josh Freeman, hopefully finding someone who can be a long-term option that can pair with receiver Cordarrelle Patterson, who the Vikings took in the first round of the 2013 draft. It's unlikely the best option will come from the current group of signal callers which could force the organization to select their second first round quarterback in three years.
Frazier first came to the NFL in 1981, a defensive back signed by the Chicago Bears as an undrafted free agent. He was part of the Bears' 1985 championship team. A knee injury on a second-quarter punt return in the Super Bowl that season ended his career as a player.
He came back to the NFL as a defensive backs coach under Andy Reid with the Eagles in 1999. He spent four years in Philadelphia, working alongside Childress, John Harbaugh and other branches of that coaching tree, until he took as the Bengals defensive coordinator in 2003. He spent two seasons there and two more as a defensive coach in Indianapolis under Tony Dungy, before joining the Vikings.
There is no indication who the front office is interested in at this time to be the team’s next head coach.
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