Minnesota Vikings: Time To Move On From Bill Musgrave

Brace Hemmelgarn-USA TODAY Sports

The Minnesota Vikings have the best running back in the NFL with Adrian Peterson, yet offensive coordinator Bill Musgrave continues to hold this team back with questionable play calling. Yes, the biggest problem for the Vikings is the lack of consistency from the quarterback position, but the play calling Musgrave employs makes it tough for whoever is under center to be successful.

The Vikings took on the Carolina Panthers this afternoon, and with the Vikings trailing 14-0 with just seconds remaining in the first half and the ball inside the Panthers’ 10-yard line, they were unable to score a touchdown, as Musgrave elected to throw the ball instead of running it with Peterson. After failing to pick up a first down with two pass attempts, Musgrave and head coach Leslie Frazier decided to kick a field goal on fourth-and-one instead of handing the ball off to the tenacious Peterson. This lack of confidence in the offense is a great example of Musgrave’s time in Minnesota as the offensive coordinator.

Musgrave has been the Vikings’ offensive coordinator since 2011, which is when the team tried to win with Donovan McNabb, before eventually giving the starting job mid-season to rookie Christian Ponder to simply give him experience. Despite the lies Frazier continues to spout out of his mouth, Ponder is clearly not the future in Minnesota, which is why the obvious choice going forward is to move on from both Frazier and Musgrave, as neither has earned a second chance.

The Vikings have employed one of the most conservative game plans in recent memory, as they routinely run the ball on both first and second down before eventually opting for a 3-yard pass on a third-and-long. Musgrave was even seen this previous Sunday with his “play card,” which is about six times smaller than the normal offensive coordinators, which just goes to show how unimaginative he truly is. Just as the 2013 Vikings’ season appears to be over, so should the coaching tenure of both Frazier and Musgrave in Minnesota, as both have failed to build any forward momentum during their time coaching in Minnesota.

Nick Baker is a contributing writer for Rant Sports and you can follow him on Twitter, Facebook, and add him to your network on Google.