Coaches

Ryan Silverfield returns for his 5th season with the Vikings and will continue to work with the offensive line in 2012.

In 2011, Silverfield moved over to the offensive side of the ball with the Vikings coaching staff to assist Jeff Davidson with the offensive line after starting his NFL career on defense.  He assisted the offensive line in helping the Vikings offense rush for 2,318 yards over the course of the season, ranking 4th in the NFL. The offensive line also helped WR Percy Harvin set the Vi- kings all-time record for rushing yards in a season with 345 and career rushing yards with 587. The line was hampered by injuries throughout the season with only OTs Phil Loadholt and Charlie Johnson starting all 16 games up front.

Silverfield spent his first season with the Vikings focused on offensive quality control before assisting the defensive line in 2009 and 2010. During his 2 seasons with the Vikings defensive front the unit ranked in the NFL’s top 10 both seasons and landed 2 players- DE Jared Allen and DT Kevin Williams on the Pro Bowl squad. The 2009 Vikings defensive unit led the NFL with 48.0 sacks.

Prior to joining the Vikings, Silverfield spent 2 seasons at the University of Central Florida where he worked under former Vikings defensive coordinator George O’Leary. In Silverfield’s 2nd season at UCF in 2007, the Knights closed the regular season with a 7-game winning streak en route to winning the Conference USA crown, the 1st conference championship in school history.

In 2005, Silverfield served as the quarterbacks coach at Jacksonville University. Before working on the JU Dolphins staff and at the age of 23, he was the head coach at Memorial Day H.S. in Savannah, GA. That opportunity followed 4 seasons as an assistant coach at his alma mater, Hampden-Sydney College in Virginia, where he began as an offensive assistant in 2000. At the age of 20, he became the DL coach, making him one of the younger position coaches in all of college football. He held that position for 2 seasons before moving to TEs and H-backs in 2003, a season in which the Tigers went 9-1 and had the #1-ranked scoring offense in the country, averaging over 47.0 points per game.

Silverfield’s coaching career began as an assistant at The Bolles School in Jacksonville in 1999. During his playing days, Silverfield helped Bolles win 2 state championships and earn the title of the #1-ranked high school team in the country by USA Today. As a senior, Silverfield was a 1st-Team All-First Coast selection after leading his team to the Florida Class 3A state title.

Silverfield graduated Cum Laude with a bachelor ’s degree in economics from Hampden-Sydney. He and wife, Mariana, reside in Shakopee.