Wes Phillips Will Be K/O’s Partner in Crime
Another piece of the coaching puzzle has fallen into place. The Vikings will be bringing in Wes Phillips to take over at OC.
PFT offers a few thoughts on the news:
Phillips joined the Rams as their tight ends coach in 2019 and added the passing game coordinator title in 2021. He spent the previous five seasons coaching tight ends with Washington and worked for the Cowboys from 2007-13. His father, Wade Phillips, was the head coach of the Cowboys from 2007 until his firing eight games into the 2010 season.
The Rams connection, of course, is the most significant here. The two coaches obviously know each other well.
Kevin O’Connell explained in his press conference that he’d be calling the plays in Minnesota, so this has a similar dynamic to Mike Zimmer and his DCs. K/O will be the main offensive architect, the one tasked with not only coming up with the design but also calling the right plays at the right time. It’ll be on Phillips to give K/O support, wisdom, and insight.
The Wes Phillips profile from Rams.com says that the news Vikings OC coached at Baylor and that he has a degree in philosophy. It also indicates that he has 15 years of coaching experience.
His background with tight ends ought to be good news for Irv Smith Jr. The fourth-year TE is coming off a season-ending injury before the 2021 season began. He’s thus looking to put forth a great 2022. Smith Jr. will have a veteran coach to help get the best out of him.
The team now has Kevin O’Connell at HC, Mike Pettine at assistant HC, Ed Donatell at DC, and Wes Phillips at OC. There are a few other hires that need to be made, but the coaching staff is largely falling into place.
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