The Great News for the Vikings that’s a Bit Overlooked
According to Kevin O’Connell, Brian O’Neill is progressing nicely in his recovery from his Achilles injury. That’s great news and yet it has been a bit lost in the shuffle.
In fairness, Vikings fans — often an anxious bunch — have been preoccupied with a variety of other issues. Jordan Addison made a super dumb mistake, driving insanely fast and thus getting into a bit of legal trouble. Danielle Hunter has been a hold-in at training camp but has now progressed toward a short-term solution in the form on a revamped 1-year deal. Justin Jefferson and T.J. Hockenson are present and participating as their extensions get worked on.
Otherwise, Vikings fans may have even been distracted by the renewed chatter about a Kirk Cousins extension, Cameron Dantzler getting cut yet again, Wes Phillips’ plan for Josh Oliver, and the various rumors about trade targets.
All of these topics deserve our attention. Nevertheless, we can’t miss just how important Brian O’Neill is going to be for the upcoming season.
The Great News about Brian O’Neill
Blake Brandel and Oli Udoh — God bless them — are wonderful backup tackles. Capable of being a full replacement for Mr. O’Neill? Well, that’s a different story.
Back in 2018, the Vikings made a tremendous decision by opting for O’Neill at 62nd overall in the NFL Draft. If there was a re-draft, there’s a good chance the 6’7″ Pittsburgh alumnus would be in the running for the top 10.
He’s a sensational option at right tackle, someone who delivers consistently high play. Last year, O’Neill finished the season as the 8th-best OT in the PFF rankings. His 82.4 run blocking grade is particularly impressive, but he also has a rock-solid 77.9 grade for his pass blocking.
As we all know by now, Kevin O’Connell is fond of passing the ball. Even with Dalvin Cook in the backfield, O’Connell opted to pursue an aerial attack at almost every turn. Pursuing that pass-first strategy is extremely difficult unless the team has the requisite tackles to help keep the QB on his feet.
Christian Darrisaw has emerged as one of the best tackles in the NFL. There’s no exaggeration in saying that CD looks like he could be an All Pro before long.
O’Neill’s ceiling isn’t as high as Darrisaw’s, but he’s still a fantastic player. He did get dinged with allowing 6 sacks while committing 5 penalties in 2022, so the RT isn’t without flaw. Ideally, another year working under the tutelage of OL coach Chris Kuper will help O’Neill to continue progressing.
Very wisely, O’Connell isn’t rushing his right tackle. The best approach is to slowly get O’Neill back into shape as he continues eyeing a Week 1 return. The HC has confirmed that the opening game is the goal.
In the Tampa Bay game, the Vikings will face the tough task of trying to slow down Vita Vea and Shaq Barrett. Things don’t get any better in the following games. The Eagles boast talented pass rushers like Haason Reddick, Brandon Graham, and Josh Sweat. The Chargers will be putting Khalil Mack and Joey Bosa onto the field.
Games that follow similarly offer notable challenges.
Brian O’Neill, 27, goes into the season carrying a cap hit a touch below $19.7 million. He was a common part of the offseason salary cap speculation since restructuring his deal offered the potential of saving more than $10 million. Kwesi Adofo-Mensah seems content to leave the deal untouched, at least for now. Next offseason, O’Neill is likely to re-enter the cap chatter since his deal can be adjusted to give the purple budget new life.
Until then, let’s hope for a return to full health and ongoing excellent play.
Editor’s Note: Information from PFF and Over the Cap helped with this piece.
