He exited the team's flight from Seattle near dawn Tuesday morning as the quarterbacks coach. A few hours later, Stefanski got word he'd grip the play-calling sheet for the first time in his NFL coaching career when head coach Mike Zimmer fired offensive coordinator John DeFilippo in an effort to resurrect this Vikings season.
"That's the tough part," said Stefanski, who was named interim coordinator. "These are not ideal circumstances to do this. I'm ready for the challenge."
His preparation for this audition, the 36-year-old Stefanski said, is more than a decade of NFL seasons in the making under six offensive-minded bosses.