Vikings Could See Familiar Face on Monday Night
Dustin Baker
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With all of the COVID effects in the NFL amid the last week, the Chicago Bears were hit particularly hard. Twelve players were on COVID reserve near the end of the week for the Bears.
And Chicago’s coaching staff was affected, too. Nearly all of the team’s coordinators were attributed to the virus, leaving head coach Matt Nagy as the last man standing (Nagy had COVID earlier in the season).
Vaccinated players and coaches still have time to test negative twice in hopes of participating in Monday Night Football.
If the primary coaching staff does not test negative, the stage is set for a former Vikings to have a crack at his old team. That’s John DeFilippo, who could act as offensive coordinator versus Minnesota in relief of Bill Lazor.
DeFilippo was Minnesota’s offensive coordinator during an underwhelming 2018 season. It was the season Kirk Cousins first joined the Vikings, and DeFilippo wanted to test out Cousins’ arm, throwing the ball all over the place.
The only problem? Vikings skipper Mike Zimmer doesn’t do that. The Zimmer brand of football — especially in 2018 — is to run the ball, hit big plays downfield via pass, and suffocate opponents with barbarous defense. And at the time, Zimmer’s defense was still remarkable, ranking second in the per defensive efficiency.
With DeFilippo at the helm calling plays, the Vikings passed the ball 64% of the time — the fourth-most in the NFL. Minnesota missed the postseason. The following year, 2019, the Vikings reached the playoffs while passing the ball the fourth-least in the NFL.
Ultimately, DeFilippo was fired by Zimmer in mid-December of the 2018 season. There was no love lost. He then ran the Jacksonville Jaguars offense in 2019, an experiment lasting one season. The Bears scooped him up.
Now, in all likelihood, DeFilippo will have a chance to call plays against Zimmer for the first time since the rift. The Bears offense is led by rookie quarterback Justin Fields and productive halfback David Montgomery. According to the same analytics measurement tool reference above, Chicago’s 2021 offense ranks fifth-worst in the business so far in 2021.
So, that’s the storyline. Zimmer vs. DeFilippo. Former coworkers, defensive mind versus offensive mind, and [most importantly] Vikings versus Bears.
Minnesota has toppled Chicago twice in the last four seasons at Soldier Field on Monday Night Football. But, on the whole, the Vikings have lost 15 out of their last 20 games at Chicago.
Dustin Baker is a political scientist who graduated from the University of Minnesota in 2007. He hosts a podcast with Bryant McKinnie, which airs every Wednesday with Raun Sawh and Sally from Minneapolis. His Viking fandom dates back to 1996. Listed guilty pleasures: Peanut Butter Ice Cream, ‘The Sopranos,’ and The Doors (the band).
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