Vikings HC Kevin O’Connell states the obvious about Kyler Murray, and it stirred up some controversy for the wrong reason
Sometimes as a head coach, you can state the obvious and it ends up being the wrong way to go.
Ahead of joint practices on Thursday afternoon, Minnesota Vikings head coach Kevin O’Connell talked to the media, and was asked about quarterback Kyler Murray throwing with anticipation over the middle of the field. His answer was not what you’d expect.
O’Connell admitted straight up that Murray couldn’t see over the offensive line.
“In [Hall of Fame QB] Drew Brees’ Hall of Fame speech, he told the story about when he told [Former Los Angeles Chargers Offensive Coordinator] Cam Cameron and [Former Los Angeles Chargers Quarterbacks] Brian Schottenheimer he couldn’t see somebody who was open. They told him, it’s your job to see,” said O’Connell.
“So, the other day in practice, because I showed the quarterbacks that clip. I showed him [QB Kyler Murray] some other things because I thought Drew did an unbelievable job in that speech. But he couldn’t see on a play, and he didn’t want to tell me that, so he prefaced it with, ‘I know I’m not allowed to say this, but.’ We both got a laugh out of it. It’s going to happen from time to time, depending on the angles and how the protection and the rush pattern works.”
Kevin O’Connell admitted that Kyler Murray couldn’t see over the offensive line
It’s a ballsy move for O’Connell to admit it straight up, and it irked ESPN’s Myron Metcalf, who called him out for it on First Take.
“I need to start a PR crisis firm for NFL coaches and just tell them, ‘Here’s the thing: you cannot say in this situation. You cannot say that your 5-10 quarterback can’t see over the line.’ Maybe it’s true. Maybe everybody in training camp knows it. Maybe Kyler Murray is telling all his teammates he can’t see. You cannot tell the public that that’s the situation with Kyler Murray.”
I can understand where Metcalf is coming from, as the PR from that could be taken poorly across the fanbase. However, he’s not exactly revealing state secrets. Murray measured in at 5-10 at the NFL Scouting Combine coming into the league, and it’s been an issue for his entire career.
Why is it a big deal that O’Connell said it out loud? Everyone already knows that Murray’s height can create issues, and trying to avoid the elephant in the room can only get you so far.
Metcalf continues by essentially saying that it will perpetuate bad PR about him possibly being the future.
“Everything’s going to be about Kyler Murray’s durability, his size. Say anything but that. Your quarterback cannot see over the offensive line because it’s only going to encourage the narrative about whether or not Kyler Murray’s the guy, whether or not he’s big enough, in an era full of giant quarterbacks, come to my PR crisis firm, Kevin O’Connell, and I’ll tell you what not to say in these moments,” said Metcalf.
Is that a big deal? Considering that the Arizona Cardinals are currently paying the majority of Murray’s salary, removing any kind of possible bad PR is a good move. Even so, it’s not a big deal either way, because we all know it to be true.
Metcalf makes good points, but this won’t be anything more than a quick soundbite that we forget in 48 hours.
