Vikings HC Kevin O’Connell’s play calling shined in the fourth quarter, but one decision emphasizes a recurring issue
Sometimes, Kevin O’Connell is too creative and intelligent when it comes to play calling.
When the Minnesota Vikings hired head coach Kevin O’Connell ahead of the 2022 season, they didn’t know what kind of play caller they were getting, as he was mainly the behind-the-scenes guy for Sean McVay during his time with the Los Angeles Rams. They hired O’Connell because they believed he would be a leader, and they were right, but they also got one of the league’s best play callers in the NFL.
Where O’Connell really thrives is the idea of “illusion of complexity.” He runs a lot of the same concepts across the board, but dresses them up with a different look each time. Think of how many different ways he would get to dagger early on in his tenure.
Kevin O’Connell goes to the well one too many times
The red zone has been a house of horrors for the Vikings. They are currently 21st in the NFL in red zone touchdown percentage with 15 touchdowns in 27 attempts. Against the Detroit Lions, they ended up scoring three touchdowns in five trips, but it was the final trip to the red zone that raised a lot of questions.
The first play of the drive was a really nice call. When you have a defense as aggressive as the Lions do, especially at edge rusher, there is a way to exploit that: run the ball right at it with counter and jet action.
With the tight end motioning, it gets the linebackers flowing the opposite way, and Jordan Mason can get the edge pretty easily. If this were Aaron Jones, it would likely be an even bigger gain due to his burst.
It didn’t stop there to take advantage of that over pursuit, as Aidan Hutchinson is the biggest culprit of just that.
The jet sweep from Addison isn’t something that O’Connell calls very often, but when he does, it usually gains in the neighborhood of 10 yards. It’s a great change of pace to keep the defense on its toes. If you are thinking on defense, you’ve already lost.
This idea of over pursuit was a smart way to attack for O’Connell, but he went to the well one too many times. On third and goal from the two-yard line, one play after throwing it to Justin Jefferson in the flat, he called one more with a J.J. McCarthy naked bootleg, and the results weren’t the same.
When the Vikings had success in attacking the over pursuing edge rushers, they did a good job. However, trying to do so three times in the same drive is where O’Connell made his biggest play calling mistake of the game. Not only did it put McCarthy in a tough spot with trying to score a touchdown, but he also failed to keep the clock running with the Lions needing to save time to end up getting two scores once the Vikings kicked the field goal.
It’s a tough one for O’Connell, as the idea was a good one in a vacuum. Get McCarthy on the move and try to catch them off guard. However, the Vikings had done something similar two other times on the drive, likely forcing the Lions to play slightly differently. Plus, the idea of O’Connell not wanting to run the football is becoming an Achilles heel of his.
A lot of good from O’Connell on Sunday, but there is still room for improvement.
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