Kevin O'Connell highlights path for first-round pick to prove he's ready to start with one major way to do so
When the Minnesota Vikings selected Donovan Jackson in the first round of the NFL Draft, the idea was that he would be the starter at left guard for this season and beyond. However, earning that starting spot isn't going to be handed to him. Head coach Kevin O'Connell was asked about what Jackson needs to […]
When the Minnesota Vikings selected Donovan Jackson in the first round of the NFL Draft, the idea was that he would be the starter at left guard for this season and beyond. However, earning that starting spot isn't going to be handed to him.
Head coach Kevin O'Connell was asked about what Jackson needs to do to prove he's ready to be at that level, and he had a really good answer.
"I think for Donovan, the perfect example would be day to day, right? So, day one, there was a couple things. That was his first reps of full speed team. We jogged through in the spring, and there was a couple things Kup [Chris Kuper] hit them on, Keith [Carter] hit him on. Talking to Ryan Kelly or even CD [Christian Darrisaw] sitting next to him in meetings, and you show back up the next day, and he immediately fixes those things, whether it's fundamental recognition, hand usage, which I thought was really, really, really cool to see because that's what this position is all about inside.
"And then, the other thing they carried over was his ability to react and sustain through downs even when it wasn't perfect. I think that's what gets young players sometimes, is it's not the plays that you do your job and you get commended for it. It’s, Hey, you do get beat quickly. Can you recover and not just make the total down a loss?’ And there was a play that hits my mind, Jonathan Allen, kind of got him off balance with a hump move that Jonathan's really good at as a strong, three technique rusher. And he was in less-than-ideal base, balance, body position, to fight this legitimate rush off. And he was able to anchor down and survive the down for JJ to get the ball thrown. So that right there was the types of things that I'm looking for and we're looking for as a staff. But once again, we haven't put the pads on yet, so we've got a lot to still see with our football team, not just Donovan.
One of the things that makes O'Connell great is that he's a teacher first. He wants to help these guys not just be better players, but also better people. He made an appearance on The Rich Eisen Show back in May, highlighting that exact fact.
“Rich, right now, the rules prohibit even Minnesota Vikings defensive players from lining up across from Minnesota Vikings offensive players. So we would be imagining one heck of an opponent if we said it was us coaches standing out there as a defense, or some of the other offensive players forming a defense. That’s not what this time of year is about. This is the learning, the teaching phase. So much growth and development can happen during this time when there’s really no negative outcomes. There’s no plays that don’t go your way and have a real impact on the team. They’re all just learning moments right now, but there’s going to come a time where that changes, and it’s going to come very rapidly and quickly.”
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That's going to be no different here with Jackson, especially as O'Connell made one specific play the focus of his discussion, finding ways to learn through each practice and showing improvements.
The other element that is really important is something that O'Connell alluded to: the pads haven't gone on yet. You don't get to see what's really going on with the trench players until that happens. Once Monday hits, it won't take long to find out.
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