EDEN PRAIRIE, Minn. — Vikings offensive coordinator Norv Turner abruptly resigned Wednesday, two days after Minnesota lost its second consecutive game with its offense nowhere to be found.
The Vikings have scored only 10 points in each of those losses after a 5-0 start to the season. Turner was replaced on an interim basis by Pat Shurmur.
Coach Mike Zimmer picked Turner to run his offense when he was hired by the team in 2014. After two seasons of unremarkable production, Zimmer hired Tony Sparano as offensive line coach and Shurmur as tight ends coach to work with Turner.
That put three former NFL head coaches on the offensive staff. Zimmer said he valued the diversity of perspectives and voices that brought to the strategizing on that side of the ball, but Shurmur's arrival raised plenty of eyebrows around the league since he was overqualified for simply coaching tight ends. This is Shurmur's 18th year in the NFL, including two seasons as Cleveland's head coach and three years as Philadelphia's offensive coordinator.
Last season, Shurmur had Sam Bradford as his quarterback, and his input helped Vikings general manager Rick Spielman make the emergency trade for Bradford on Sept. 3 after Teddy Bridgewater was hurt. Shurmur was also Bradford's offensive coordinator in 2010, the quarterback's rookie year with St. Louis.
Zimmer was scheduled to discuss the move later Wednesday before practice in preparation for the upcoming game against Detroit. The Vikings (5-2) host the Lions on Sunday, still in first place in the NFC North despite their stumble out of the bye.
Turner has been a head coach in the NFL for 15 years. This was his 10th season as an offensive coordinator in the league. The 64-year-old has been with nine different NFL teams. Turner's son, Scott, remains Minnesota's quarterbacks coach.
NFL
Steelers: Roethlisberger hopes to play
PITTSBURGH — Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger says there's still pain in his left knee two weeks after surgery, but isn't ruling himself out of Sunday's game in Baltimore.
Roethlisberger planned to practice on Wednesday. He practiced in a limited capacity last week and again on Monday. He says the key issues for this week are swelling, pain tolerance and the ability to protect himself in the pocket.
Swelling has not been an issue so far though Roethlisberger will continue to monitor the knee as he ramps up his workload. Roethlisberger said the decision on whether he can play will be made by coach Mike Tomlin.
The Steelers (4-3) will go with Landry Jones if Roethlisberger can't play. Jones played respectably in a 27-16 loss to New England on Oct. 23, throwing for 281 yards with a touchdown and an interception.
Chiefs: Nick Foles to start Sunday; surgery for Charles
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Chiefs coach Andy Reid had just declared Alex Smith out with a head injury, announced Jamaal Charles was undergoing knee surgery and revealed that Spencer Ware had yet to pass a battery of concussion tests.
Then it started to rain.
It was a fitting soundtrack for a stunningly gloomy midweek briefing.
Reid went on to say defensive lineman Jaye Howard is dealing with a hip flexor injury and offensive lineman Mitch Schwartz will be resting his sore ankle in practice. There is also the belief offensive lineman Parker Ehinger is done for the season with a knee injury.
"It's part of the National Football League," Reid said with a shrug.
The biggest news was that Smith, whose head was slammed off the hard turf in Indianapolis twice last weekend, had been ruled out for the Chiefs' game against Jacksonville.
Smith passed concussion tests after both of the hits, the second of which knocked him from the game, but decided to err on the side of caution.
The decision was made after consulting with an independent neurologist, talking with Reid and others in the front office — including team owner Clark Hunt — and having the results of his concussion tests reviewed by a concussion expert at the University of Pittsburgh.
"There's no blood test where you can go in and take it and they say, `Yeah, you have a concussion,'" Smith said. "I've got three little kids. You only get one brain, far as I know. The last thing I wanted was to go out there and yeah, something happens again and all of a sudden you're asking different questions.
"I'm not ready for that," Smith added. "I don't want to be thinking about any of that."
Nick Foles will start in his place on Sunday and Tyler Bray will serve as the backup, and Smith and Reid both expressed confidence that he will be available the following week at Carolina.