By Chris Tomasson

St. Paul Pioneer Press

MINNEAPOLIS — The Vikings have hired Tony Sparano as offensive line coach, a source said Wednesday.

Sparano, 54, replaces Jeff Davidson, who was fired earlier in the week.

Sparano was Miami’s head coach from 2008-11 and Oakland’s interim coach in 2014. He spent last season as San Francisco’s tight ends coach.

Sparano coached with Vikings coach Mike Zimmer in Dallas from 2003-06 under head coach Bill Parcell. Zimmer was defensive coordinator and Sparano was tights ends coach and later offensive line coach.

Zimmer said this week he has been talking with Parcells regularly since Minnesota’s season ended Sunday with a 10-9 playoff loss to Seattle.

Sparano had a 29-32 record as Dolphins coach, winning the AFC East Division in 2008. During his first two seasons in Miami, his linebackers coach was George Edwards, now Minnesota’s defensive coordinator.

Sparano took over as Raiders interim coach four games into the 2014 season and went 3-9.

The Vikings also reached out to Dan Campbell, who finished 2015 as Miami’s interim coach, for a possible position on Zimmer’s staff. But Campbell was hired by New Orleans as assistant head coach and tight ends coach on Wednesday.