That, more than anything, is what OConnell wants to eliminate. These cookies allow us to count visits and traffic sources so we can measure and improve the performance of our site. Kevin O'Connell believes Justin Jefferson has 'just scratched the Certainly the facilities would have gotten an A+ last year but its hard to imagine they would have ranked No. I think we laid a foundation for where we want to go. Heck, it was even over 70 degrees outside. The assessments of inherited players were made a year ago through film study and advanced metrics. Following his All-Pro wideout's 1,809-yard, 128-catch, eight-touchdown campaign, Vikings head coach Kevin O'Connell believes Jefferson can soar even higher. With Cousins in his mid-30s, the Vikings need to figure out a succession plan at quarterback. Finding a suitable compromise appears to be the current strategy. [23], On January 16, 2020, O'Connell was hired by the Los Angeles Rams as offensive coordinator. [20], On January 20, 2017, O'Connell was hired as the Washington Redskins' quarterbacks coach, working under head coach Jay Gruden. Kevin O'Connell (American football) - Wikipedia The Vikings tried to identify another quarterback when trading up for Teddy Bridgewater in 2014. 2023 Minnesota Vikings Football, LLC , All Rights Reserved. Set to earn just $2.399 million in 2023, with a potential fifth-year team option in 2024, Jefferson is due a massive pay increase in line with his value. KARE 11 Sports Director. Already Subscribed? At the end of the day Wednesday, the Vikings head coach left the building with one of the easier media sessions youll ever run across in the NFL. Coming off a Super Bowl LVI victory over the Cincinnati Bengals, O'Connell joins the Vikings after serving as the offensive coordinator for the Los Angeles Rams the past two seasons. The day the Vikings introduced defensive coordinator Brian Flores, OConnell mentioned the thorough self-evaluation process that took place when the season ended. Kevin O'Connell traveling with Vikings to Washington after his daughter How do you build the rest of the team? Adofo-Mensah asked. If not, they could ride Cousins another year and try their luck to acquire their guy in 2024. Vikings Players Close Out Season with Locker Room Clean Out. 2023 Minnesota Vikings Football, LLC , All Rights Reserved. And in 2022, Cousins is scheduled to cost the Vikings $45 million on their salary cap. "Very thankful for him in Year 1 and really looking forward to seeing him growing both as a leader and continued dominance at the receiver position.". Kwesi Adofo-Mensah and Kevin O'Connell have only held their posts for a year, but they deserve the faith of the Vikings community. Vikings, Cousins agree to 1-year, $35M contract extension Adofo-Mensah was hired on Jan. 26, 2022 and O'Connell was named head coach on Feb. 16 after the Rams beat the Bengals in the Super Bowl. Weve got some real decisions to talk through and things to work through, OConnell said. O'Connell graduated from San Diego State University in December 2007 with a degree in political science. He made his NFL debut on September 21, 2008, in the fourth quarter against the Miami Dolphins, throwing his first four career passes and completing three. Thielen notched 716 receiving yards and 6 touchdowns in 2022. How OConnell and the front office maneuver through these personnel decisions to counteract the way defenses have played them could well become a key story in 2023. NFL+ gives you the freedom to watch LIVE out-of-market preseason games, LIVE local and primetime regular season and postseason games on your phone or tablet, the best NFL programming on-demand, and MORE! Since then, there have been postseason appearances after the 2012 (loss in Wild Card), 2015 (loss in Wild Card), 2017 (loss in NFC Championship), 2019 (loss in Divisional) and 2022 (loss in Wild Card) seasons. Kupp's 145 receptions and 1,947 receiving yards both ranked as the second-highest single-season totals in NFL history, trailing only Michael Thomas's 149 receptions in 2019 and Calvin Johnson's 1,964 receiving yards in 2012. "As crazy as this sounds, leading the league in yards and receptions, I think he and I have just scratched the surface of where we want to go as an offense, particularly with him as our premier receiver," O'Connell said Wednesday at the NFL Scouting Combine. ", O'Connell said the next step is "a championship standard" and that he wanted to wrap his evaluations and dialogue about the 2022 season the "way it should, with the same type of connection" with players and the "foundational building blocks of what we want to be. Thielen will turn 33 this summer and incur a $19.9 million cap hit against the Vikings salary cap. Kevin William O'Connell (born May 25, 1985), nicknamed "KOC",[1] is an American football coach and former player who is the head coach for the Minnesota Vikings of the National Football League (NFL). "I feel like that foundation's in place. They help us to know which pages are the most and least popular and see how visitors move around the site. Vikings coach Kevin O'Connell, wife Leah welcome fourth child O'Connell was signed by the San Diego Chargers on July 29, 2012, to serve as an emergency back-up in the Chargers' practices with Charlie Whitehurst suffering an injury and Kyle Boller announcing his retirement from the league. Thats because talking about culture is a good way to spend time talking about anything else other than upcoming decisions, draft philosophies, scheme changes etc. The following browsers are supported: Chrome, Edge (v80 and later), Firefox and Safari. They were together in Washington and grew their connection this season as the veteran QB led eight game-winning drives, won the division for the first time since arriving in Minnesota and put together one of his best games in the playoffs vs. the Giants. 4 takeaways from Vikings HC Kevin O'Connell's combine press conference He categorized the current state of rushing in the NFL into three separate strategies: deploying a running quarterback, operating in the run-pass option world, and going the traditional route with run-pass deception from under center. 5 Things to Know About Head Coach Kevin O'Connell - Minnesota Vikings O'Connell worked on special projects with the San Francisco 49ers in 2016, where he overlapped with Vikings General Manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah. Before his NFL career ended in 2012, O'Connell spent time with the Miami Dolphins, a second-stint with the Jets and the San Diego Chargers. We want to be.". "I think we showed a building full of people, players, coaches, staff, ownership group, this guy next to me, would have the ability to be their best when their best is required. But Adofo-Mensah gave his own review about his starting quarterback. [27][28] O'Connell's Vikings hiring reunited him with quarterback Kirk Cousins, whom O'Connell had coached in 2017 (Cousins' final year with the Washington Redskins). By COURTNEY CRONIN. If I demand our team to improve in certain areas, OConnell said, Ive got to do the things we need to do as a staff.. Sometimes how you have to mold and adapt how you play while still staying true to your football philosophy at its core and its not always easy to do, but hes demonstrated that hes been very successful doing it time and time again.. The browser you are using is no longer supported on this site. I think theres a conversation to be had to really see what that looks like: playing time and roles and responsibilities., "I feel better than I ever have about our chances moving forward." It's supposed to sting.' Kevin O'Connell: Vikings have 'some real decisions' ahead to get under View photos of new Vikings Head Coach Kevin O'Connell in photos from his time with the Rams. The Minnesota Vikings announced Wednesday that Rams offensive coordinator Kevin O'Connell has been hired as the 10th head coach in franchise history. Whatever the plan, timing is everything for the Vikings. It is something Ive thought a lot about.. Browse our online application for MLB, NBA, NFL, NHL, EPL, or MLS player contracts, salaries, transactions, and more. The Vikings left the Zimmer-Spielman era in desperate need of improved morale. Under the guidance of O'Connell, Rams QB Matthew Stafford and WR Cooper Kupp both had a career years in 2021. He spent his childhood in Carlsbad, California, where he attended La Costa Canyon High School. To better myself and make sure I'm doing everything that I can in this role that I feel so lucky to have and also so prepared to have. "He is a strong leader, an innovative coach and an excellent communicator. 4 takeaways from Vikings HC Kevin O'Connell's combine press conference But its hard not to wonder what would have happened if he looked ahead, saw Andrew Luck on the horizon and just rode the corpse of Donovan McNabb to the finish line to select Luck, Russell Wilson, or Cousins (!!!) On third-and-8, for example, the Vikings personnel options were limited. The more I can learn about details and particulars of our current situation, previous situations and what it looks like moving forward, OConnell said, the more my conversations can not only come from an accurate place of where we are but where we hope to get to.. Vikings finalize hire of champion Rams OC Kevin O'Connell I am committed to working tirelessly to bring them a Super Bowl championship.". The home runs and long ones are great, but as a play caller, Id love to be second-and-5. At the 2008 NFL Combine, O'Connell ran the 40-yard dash in 4.61 seconds; only University of San Diego quarterback Josh Johnson had a faster time. That will motivate us to lead this organization to the place we want to go. The Lions traded O'Connell to the New York Jets, for a 7th round 2011 draft pick, on September 6, 2009. It is highly recommended that you use the latest versions of a supported browser in order to receive an optimal viewing experience. O'Connell, 36, was a third-round pick . O'Connell also played for the Detroit Lions, Miami Dolphins, New York Jets, and San Diego Chargers before retiring in 2012. You do hope it was a perfect world where you can have everybody and have everybody finish their careers where they should and feel great about it, but its just so hard to do and still build for the future the way the rules are set up, OConnell said. The Vikings Are Still Trying To Find Mr. Right At QB Hes the epitome of a hometown hero, universally loved, and the type of player who should retire with the Vikings. But the things we did accomplish, I think, were incredibly impactful. All other NFL-related trademarks are trademarks of the National Football League. [24] In O'Connell's second season with the Rams, their offense ranked 2nd best in receiving touchdowns (41), 5th highest in total yards (4,893), 8th best in total touchdowns (63), and the team won Super Bowl LVI (defeating the Cincinnati Bengals, 2320). O'Connell led the Vikings to a 134 record on the season, tying Matt LaFleur and Jim Harbaugh for the second-most wins for a rookie head coach in NFL history. That ultimately led the Vikings to Cousins. Kevin O'Connell had some interesting things to say about the direction the Minnesota Vikings want to go as they look ahead to the 2023 NFL season. With their limited salary cap . However, neither seem like a good option now. But even if they do like mayo in their coffee, it seems like OConnell is bringing a thorough evaluation process to find their guy. You won't want to miss a moment of the 2022 season! 2023 NFL Enterprises LLC. He takes it very seriously how much people and young kids look up to him. Maybe its not even for any one particular year.. In the early 1990s, Dennis Green used a revolving quarterback carousel that featured Jim McMahon, Warren Moon, Randall Cunningham, and Jeff George. The 2020 Rams offense featured the 10th-ranked rushing attack, posting 126.1 yards per game on the ground, behind two 600-plus rushing seasons from RB Cam Akers and RB Darrell Henderson. Those are all questions we got to answer. In basketball, he was a two-year letterman, and a teammate of Arizona standout Chase Budinger. It is highly recommended that you use the latest versions of a supported browser in order to receive an optimal viewing experience. Right. [22] After the 201920 regular season, O'Connell was not retained by the incoming new head coach, Ron Rivera. And when I think about all that went into it, from a coaching staff standpoint, our players, our leadership of our core leaders and foundation of such a great leadership group that I was able to have in my first year as a head coach in the National Football League, I truly feel very fortunate and blessed," O'Connell added. A significant part of the positive culture was OConnell and Cousins working together in lockstep. During the 2018 season, O'Connell was tasked with getting three different quarterbacks (Josh Johnson, Colt McCoy and Mark Sanchez) up to speed following a devastating injury to starting QB Alex Smith. The Raiders plan to place the franchise tag on running back Josh Jacobs if the sides cannot come to a deal on a long-term extension by Tuesday's deadline, NFL Network Insider Tom Pelissero reported Friday. "Now, we've got to all the last phase of that is the accountability to each other, to make sure that that standard is championship worthy, and we're putting ourselves in that conversation to a man and to a woman in this building that we're looking at each other and asking ourselves the question, 'With everything we do, is it championship worthy? Also, by disabling these cookies you will also disable banner ads served by Google Adsense on this website.. For more information about these items, view our complete privacy policy.Read More. Theres a lot of different directions you can go, OConnell said, and (each decision) affects another one and another one. Vikings Kevin O'Connell and Kwesi Adofo-Mensah have a long to-do list Its not always easy to maintain that, but I will never change from that because I just believe thats the way youre supposed to operate.. Different quarterbacks require different things around them but we know for sure that [Cousins] meets that threshold. O'Connell was claimed off waivers by the Jets on September 4, 2011.[16]. The obvious answer? Justin Jeffersons superstar turn. - Page 5 . 3 Minnesota Vikings offseason moves with Kevin O'Connell - Sportsnaut pic.twitter.com/WKHqPZU8ea, Minnesota Vikings (@Vikings) March 1, 2023. O'Connell's NFL coaching career began in 2015; he held various assistant coaching roles on the Cleveland Browns, San Francisco 49ers, Washington Redskins, and Los Angeles Rams (where he won Super Bowl LVI, as offensive coordinator, in the 20212022 season). [29]. It is highly recommended that you use the latest versions of a supported browser in order to receive an optimal viewing experience. The information does not usually directly identify you, but it can give you a more personalised web experience. But in Kevin OConnells case on Wednesday, he was able to beam about the Vikings culture after an NFL Players Association survey showed proof that he made good on the cultural promises he made at the last NFL Combine. The personnel department continued to be on the lookout for players who became available after their release by other teams, and the coaching staff usually helped integrate the acquired player quickly, whether it was Za'Darius Smith in Week 1 or T.J. Hockenson in Week 9. OConnell knows safety Harrison Smith has done much of the same. Kevin O'Connell believes Vikings are really good and have an 'elite' QB