NFL: Did Minnesota Vikings Make Mistake By Letting Norv Turner Go?

As we all know by now, the Minnesota Vikings and offensive coordinator Norv Turner have agreed to “part ways.” The two sides simply couldn’t agree on a specific game plan for the future, and this appeared to be the only viable option.

It’s safe to say that this decision surprised most NFL fans considering Turner’s proven track record. Did the Vikings make a mistake by splitting their relationship with Turner?

Let’s break it down.

At first glance, it’s hard to defend Turner’s offense. The Vikings rank a mediocre 31^st overall, 28^th in passing, and 31^st in rushing. The Vikings have only scored 10 points in each of their last two games. Wow, that’s about as abysmal as it gets. With rankings like that it seems pretty obvious on why they let Turner go.

But let’s tell the other side of the story.

While everyone in Viking land is panicking, let’s keep in mind they are 5-2. The Vikings have the second best record in the NFC, and they are in first place in the NFC North. They also beat the Green Bay Packers back in Week 2, and we all know nothing satisfies a Vikings fan more than beating the Packers.

Although the Vikings offense didn’t score a lot of points, they didn’t mess up a lot. They rank ninth in time of possession per drive and rarely turned the ball over.

“Turners offense has been too predictable” is the quote said by many NFL analysts over the last 48 hours. In all fairness, look what he has to work with. The Vikings don’t even have their starting quarterback playing and their offensive line is a mess. Oh, and let’s also not forget that Adrian Peterson is out this season. Essentially speaking, Turner is (or was) working with a backup running back, a beat-up offensive line and an average at best quarterback who has never even had a winning record in his career.