Vikings head coach Kevin O'Connell sheds light on playing Sam Darnold and J.J. McCarthy in preseason
The Minnesota Vikings are less than a week away from their 2024 season debut in the preseason against the Las Vegas Raiders at U.S. Bank Stadium. The first preseason game usually doesn't hold a lot of intrigue, as starters rarely play any snaps in those games.For the Vikings, things are a little bit different than […]
The Minnesota Vikings are less than a week away from their 2024 season debut in the preseason against the Las Vegas Raiders at U.S. Bank Stadium. The first preseason game usually doesn't hold a lot of intrigue, as starters rarely play any snaps in those games.
For the Vikings, things are a little bit different than in years past. There isn't an incumbent quarterback like there has been over the last five years with Kirk Cousins. That changes the circumstances for the Vikings in how they will approach the preseason.
Head coach Kevin O'Connell spoke to the media on Tuesday and was asked about how he will handle the preseason for both Sam Darnold and J.J. McCarthy.
"There is a general plan, for not only the quarterbacks but all of our guys, to. We’ll keep you posted, it’s not a matter of game planning secrets for this game more so than any other preseason game we've ever had. It's more about communicating directly to the player, so they hear it from myself or coaches first before, it's out there in the world for them to read about. It's really a matter of, we're still in training camp mode. I mean, today's practice and tomorrow will be fully padded. We'll be, continuing to move forward with our competitions. This isn't by any stretch an in -season type of day where you're really thinking about, hey, we got a Saturday game, we got to be smart. No, we're going, competing, really trying to get right back into that training camp mode. Our guys were super flexible with the kind of the weather and storms that rolled in here last night. I'm fortunate to be able to have a schedule where it can adapt, still get the night practice in in a few days and not miss any pads days throughout training camp. We've got a good plan for the week and as that information kind of gets out to the players, you guys will receive it as well."
O'Connell also said earlier in the press conference that he and his staff has met and discussed everything in terms of the preseason. It's important on many levels.
On one hand, getting Darnold in the game will get him experience running the offense against live competition. The same goes for McCarthy who currently doesn't have a single snap in the National Football League.
The counterpoint is that both of them are susceptible to injury by playing in a game that doesn't matter. O'Connell also spoke on how each season is different, something that will be a major factor in how he handles this Saturday's game.
"Every year is a new year and we've handled it differently based upon the team we originally started coaching in (20)22 we had a plan for, got off to a fast start. Thought we needed to change it a little bit in regards to maybe playing a couple more guys that we wouldn't have previously last year. Didn't get off to a great start, but none of those things really matter. It's about this year's team, how we've handled training camp, a little bit more from a physicality standpoint, a little bit more bumps and bruises here and there because of how it's going. But my hope is we've got a good group of guys to go out there and be competitive with on Saturday."
We will find out later this week how the Vikings will handle their preseason games, but the vibe is that we will see a decent amount of both quarterbacks.
