If Vikings Want a “Young Offensive Mind” for HC, This Is the Guy
Dustin Baker
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As the NFL embarks on conference championship weekend, four offensive-minded head coaches remain in the field, with three of them “young” men. Andy Reid is the outlier.
While the NFL is deciding which teams attend the Super Bowl, the Vikings, in all likelihood, will be pondering their next head coach. The decision will be effectuated by new general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah.
Out of the gate for Adofo-Mensah, his head coaching choice will be his most important call of the next 2-3 years, followed closely by his decision of trading or extending Kirk Cousins.
After an era of defense-first football with Mike Zimmer – which worked most of the time but dreadfully floundered in spots offensively – most Vikings brains believed Minnesota would find an offensive-minded leader to guide the post-Zimmer aftermath.
However, as Minnesota narrowed its head coaching candidate list to a handful of suitors, the fanbase re-warmed up to the notion of a “defense guy” like DeMeco Ryans from the San Francisco 49ers or Raheem Morris with the Los Angeles Rams.
But if Vikings ownership and Adofo-Mensah want a young offensive thinker, the choice is obvious – Kevin O’Connell. He’s the offensive coordinator for the aforementioned Rams.
The “problem” with O’Connell is familiar. The 36-year-old indeed runs the Rams offense, but Sean McVay is the captain of everything. It is unclear how much McVay does to make the Rams offense tick versus O’Connell’s role. This is the same debate every time an offensive coordinator from a staff with a head coach who calls plays is up for head coach consideration.
Regardless, O’Connell fits the mold for a Shanahanian or McVay-ish hire. Just like those men, O’Connell spent time with the Washington Football Team – coaching Kirk Cousins in 2017, no less – and those men’s careers blossomed. Matt LaFleur is in the club, too.
Ties to Cousins, roots in Washington, young and offensive-minded, and on a current playoff team – that is the formula for the “young offensive guy” head coaching trend.
O’Connell, for now, is really the only man left standing inside the head coaching search for Minnesota to check the boxes. Otherwise, the organization will tap a coach with a defensive background, specializing in leadership of men devoid of the glitzy offense-first brain.
If you want a Mike Tomlin-like coach in Minnesota, it’s best to pound the table for DeMeco Ryan or Raheem Morris. If your desire is a Shanahan or McVay-style skipper, Kevin O’Connell is the Spider-man meme solution.
Dustin Baker is a political scientist who graduated from the University of Minnesota in 2007. He hosts a podcast with Bryant McKinnie, which airs every Wednesday with Raun Sawh and Sally from Minneapolis. His Viking fandom dates back to 1996. Listed guilty pleasures: Peanut Butter Ice Cream, ‘The Sopranos,’ and The Doors (the band).
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