NFL Rumors: Norv Turner Resigns From Minnesota Vikings, Surprises Mike Zimmer

A shocking thing has happened with a team that was considered a Super Bowl favorite earlier in the season. Their offensive coordinator has abruptly resigned from his position. Norv Turner has decided that the Minnesota Vikings would be better without him, as reported by ESPN.

When an NFL team is sitting on a 5-2 record, not too many people expect there to be a lot of turmoil. Even fewer would expect that an offensive coordinator would be leaving his post. For whatever reasons, the Minnesota Vikings have decided to panic after losing two games in a row despite winning the previous five games to start the regular season.

BREAKING: Vikings OC Norv Turner has resigned from the team. (via @AdamSchefter) pic.twitter.com/7b8B8jAbrx

— NFL on ESPN (@ESPNNFL) November 2, 2016

Norv Turner has been in the NFL for years, so he is no stranger to knowing what to say. When he informed the press that he was stepping down from his post, he said all of the right things. Turner stated that he wanted the Minnesota Vikings to be in a position to win, and he no longer felt that he was the right person to make that happen.

An interesting tidbit from Norv Turner, though, was revealed when he stated that he and Mike Zimmer had a difference of opinions when it came to the direction in which they each wanted the offense to head.

Minnesota Vikings head coach Mike Zimmer took the high road when questioned by the media. He stated that he was “very, very surprised” that Norv Turner was resigning. Zimmer also noted that he and Turner were very good friends. The relationship between the two coaches has been very well documented, so many are aware that they are close.

There have been talks over the past couple of years that Mike Zimmer was hoping that Norv Turner would run an offensive system for the Minnesota Vikings that would be closer to the scheme that Hue Jackson ran when he was the offensive coordinator of the Cincinnati Bengals.

To replace Norv Turner, the Minnesota Vikings are promoting Pat Shurmur from tight ends coach to offensive coordinator. He has experience at the position and was even the head coach of the Cleveland Browns for a short period of time.

One of the main positives of promoting Pat Shurmur is that he was the offensive coordinator for the St. Louis Rams and Philadelphia Eagles. During those two stings, he worked closely with Sam Bradford, who is now the starting quarterback for the Minnesota Vikings. That familiarity should make the mid-season transition a little bit easier than normal.

Pat Shurmur is going to have to work quickly. The Minnesota Vikings have a game against the Detroit Lions coming up in a few days. More than likely, he is going to keep utilizing a lot of the terminology and plays that were left behind by Norv Turner.

Scott Turner, the son of Norv Turner, will remain with the team. He currently functions as the quarterbacks coach for the Minnesota Vikings.

Interestingly enough, Norv Turner is not the first NFL offensive coordinator to leave his post this season. The Buffalo Bills fired Greg Roman. The Baltimore Ravens fired Marc Trestman. Greg Olsen was fired by the Jacksonville Jaguars earlier this week. Turner is the only one that resigned from his position.

It will be interesting to see what Norv Turner does next. There are those within the NFL that believe that he is ready to retire from coaching. He will more than likely take some time to figure out what he wants to do. If Turner wants to do another stint, his resume should open up a lot of doors for interviews next summer.

[Featured Image by Hannah Foslien/Getty Images]