The Minnesota Vikings have announced that they have sacked head coach Leslie Frazier after three-and-a-half years in the position.

Frazier took the helm at the Vikings midway through the 2010 season replacing Brad Childress and steadied the ship, despite a down year in the 2011 season. Last year, they reached the playoffs with a 10-6 record but were defeated in the Wild Card round.

However, this year the club struggled as Adrian Peterson missed time with injuries and they failed to find a starting quarterback out of Christian Ponder, Matt Cassel and Josh Freeman, which led to them finishing with a 5-10-1 record.

"We have tremendous respect and appreciation for Leslie and what he has done for the Minnesota Vikings," owner Zygi Wilf said in a statement.

"He stepped in and established a strong positive culture here, and he has been the consummate professional as our head coach and in this community. Making this change is difficult but what we determined is best for the organisation."

Frazier finished his tenure in Minnesota with a 21-32-1 record during his spell as head coach.