Is Untying the Vikings’ Knot as Easy as 1, 2, 3?
Admittedly, NFL football is far more difficult than armchair coaches care to admit. Few, if any, could jump from a living room onto a pro sideline and find success once there.
Nevertheless, one wonders if the Vikings’ knot isn’t too difficult to untie.
On Sunday, the Minnesota Vikings lost to the Baltimore Ravens. Failing to secure the win largely flowed from Kevin O’Connell’s team continually displaying a proclivity for mistakes. Some of those mistakes involved the Ravens making a great play, but there were several (the false starts come to mind) that had nothing to do with the opposition. Where’s the adjustment?
Untying the Vikings’ Knot
Start off with an issue that’s getting a ton of focus in the Vikings airwaves: the discrepancy between running the ball and passing the ball.
Every offseason, Coach O’Connell talks of adjusting the play calling. Place a greater burden on the running game, a facet of the offense that has never been good enough since the head coach took over in 2022. And then reality hits. Some combination of poor play from the running backs alongside an obvious preference for passing leads to dramatically overemphasizing the pass.
Consider how Dustin Baker framed the issue over on Vikings Territory.
“Jones opened the afternoon against the Ravens like a man on a mission,” Baker began, “rattling off chunk runs that set the early tone. When the dust settled, he’d logged 9 carries for 47 yards — good for 5.2 yards per pop — yet somehow, that was it. The Vikings went away from what worked, shelving a tailback who looked ready to torch Baltimore’s front. Jones was cooking, and Minnesota turned off the stove.”
The other wild detail rests in how seldom RB2 Jordan Mason was used.
The trade acquisition is a sturdy, heavy runner who brings the oomph that Kevin O’Connell has claimed to desire. The rubber hits the road and then O’Connell asks Mason to stay in the garage. He finished his day with just 4 carries for 25 yards. Moreover, there was a single target that got turned into a catch for 6 yards.
At some point, Kevin O’Connell needs to put actions behind his words. Put differently, Kevin O’Connell needs to actually commit to running the ball. Doing so makes life easier for the young passer and the offensive line (the big boys like firing off the ball with aggression instead of constantly being on their heels).
Consider how the game began.
Brian Flores, the defensive coordinator who has a reasonable claim on frustration, forced the Ravens into a 3-and-out. Minnesota’s offense could get onto the field quickly, which is exactly what the coaching staff wants. Seeing the defense remain on the field for six or seven minutes can be a buzzkill, stifling the sense of adrenaline-fuelled momentum that can be conjured before a game.
So, a tip of the cap to Coach Flores and the defensive players.
And then consider the game’s opening plays on offense:
- Incomplete pass to the right side to Aaron Jones
- Aaron Jones run to the middle for 4 yards
- Pass to Justin Jefferson along the right for 10 yards
- Aaron Jones run to the middle for 2 yards
- Pass to Aaron Jones to the right for 4 yards
- Deep pass to Jalen Nailor to the left for 62 yards
- Aaron Jones run to the left for a 4-yard touchdown
Okay, there’s a decent bit there, so give it a second read if you need to do so. Notice the pattern? It’s to the middle and to the right several times. Were this a boxing match, Kevin O’Connell is tossing body shots to get the other fighter to drop his mitts.
After working the ribs, Coach O’Connell then brings the massive uppercut. Middle, short right, middle, short right, and then boom. Explosive play deep left. That’s not a coincidence, folks.
Pay attention, as well, to another key detail: converting a pair of 3rd downs. The day finished off having gone 3/14 on 3rd down, so earning roughly 67% of those conversions on a single drive makes one want to zero-in on what was working. The most obvious detail is simply that Aaron Jones ran three times within a seven-play sequence.
Now, we should note that an NFL team scripts its opening plays. J.J. McCarthy and the offense could lean on those pre-planned calls to gain an edge early, so there’s a degree of artificiality to the early success that doesn’t arrive later on when things become more unpredictable.
What can be simulated, however, is the balance and the uncertainty that it breeds in the defense.
Aaron Jones touched the ball plenty. Mr. Jefferson earned a catch, someone who wasn’t close to good enough overall. And then there was the beautiful rainbow ball to Jalen Nailor. The balance and unpredictability directly fed into that completion.
Kevin O’Connell is currently working on untying the Vikings’ knot. Without question, the ability to get things sorted out is more complex than any hack Vikings writer will suggest, but leaning on a more balanced, unpredictable offense appears to be a nice place to start.
The 6-3 Bears come to town on Sunday, November 16th. Kickoff is scheduled for 12 p.m. CT.
