John DeFilippo Talks Vikings and QB’s on KFAN

Image courtesy of Vikings.com

Minnesota Vikings offensive coordinator John DeFilippo appeared on KFAN radio Friday morning. Speaking with host Paul Allen, the newly hired DeFilippo talked about how it felt winning a Super Bowl title with the Philadelphia Eagles, moving to Minnesota immediately following the season, and his initial thoughts on the team’s personnel.

DeFilippo on winning a Super Bowl:

“It’s pretty cool. I’ll be honest with you it’s pretty cool. You know it’s kind of surreal. It really doesn’t sink in really until you step back and think about the year and think about the journey it takes to get there. The ups and downs of the season. I mean even when you’re 13-3 in the regular season just like the Vikings were last year you know there’s ups and downs to the season. So, when you think about the journey in the locker room and the camaraderie of all the players and coaches it really makes it special.”

On moving his family to Minnesota:

On what makes him excited about the Vikings job:

“When I was in Philadelphia we played this team two years in a row. Obviously the Eagles came out on top in those two games. Offensively we were very concerned about playing the Vikings. It’s obviously a great defense, a lot of good players. I know this team a little bit more right now, early, defensively because I had to game plan against them for two years. We’ve been in there grinding as a staff and I’m getting to know some of the guys on offense. Obviously existed as heck about Dalvin Cook. I think he has a chance to be a very, very good player. Obviously our two wideouts in [Adam] Thielen and [Stefon] Diggs are very good players. [Kyle] Rudolph’s a really good player. We’re much better up front than we were two years ago. So all of those things really excite you to be here.”

On quarterbacks:

DeFilippo, who loves evaluating quarterbacks, said leadership and being a great teammate are huge in terms of finding the right guy for the job. He reinforced what he believes are the three most important components of a quarterback; decision-making, timing and accuracy. He also answered questions regarding certain signal callers the team is evaluating as the organization develops its plan to fill the position this offseason.

On Case Keenum:

“Case did some really nice things last year. He extended plays, he threw the ball accurately. I know he didn’t turn the ball over very much. So Case did a lot of nice things here last year… From what I hear from a leadership standpoint, I know the guys rally around him… Case has some of that “it” factor where guys have a tendency to play hard for him and really like him.”

On Sam Bradford:

“I had a great relationship with Sam. Sam is a fantastic person and a fantastic player. Sam is probably the purest passer that I’ve ever coached, and I’ve been fortunate enough to coach some really good quarterbacks. And he’s probably the most accurate pure passer I’ve ever coached. Obviously he brings a ton of physical attributes to the table. He can drive the football to the perimeter better than most people think. Sam’s a tremendous quarterback.”

On Kirk Cousins:

From Vikings Territory contributor Jordan Reid’s twitter feed.

On Teddy Bridgewater:

Allen said he did not ask DeFilippo about Bridgewater because he hasn’t played in two seasons. He wants to let the O.C. watch film on the quarterback first and thought that would be a good subject to inquire about in the future.

On his offensive philosophy:

“First off, I’m a team guy. I buy into the team. So our philosophy on fourth down and on two-point plays is going to be what the head coach wants because Coach Zimmer is the head football coach of our team… Our philosophy is going to back up what the head coach wants… There’s a reason why this team was 13-3 last year and coach Zimmer was a major reason for that so our philosophy is going to be whatever he wants.”

Coach DeFilippo stressed “diversity” among running backs, a balanced offensive attack and a strong offensive line.

“Obviously we want to run the football and be as balanced as we can. But when you’re dominant up front, it really helps you close out football games.”

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