Some Vikings Fans Have the Worst Idea Ever
Dustin Baker
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Minnesota Vikings head coach Kevin O’Connell has been in charge of the franchise for 31 games, also known as 1.82 seasons.
And because the skipper called back-to-back unsuccessful quarterback sneaks in a loss at the Cincinnati Bengals last Saturday, a small segment of Vikings fans want the man fired.
Some Vikings Fans Have the Worst Idea Ever
O’Connell’s 20 wins in 31 games are the most in Vikings history by a coach in as many games starting out with the team, but even winning games at a higher clip than any purple leader ever isn’t enough to satisfy the masses.
All over the place on social media — as in, widespread and relentless — Vikings fans called for O’Connell’s termination after Week 15. @SKOL_Scotty tweeted on the X app, “Vikings need to Fire Kevin O’Connell. This is the umpteenth time that this guy has failed in his late game playcalling in nut cuttin’ time. I’m done with him. He legit just costed us a chance at the division.”
“Kevin O’Connell is the dumbest coach alive. Fire this clown,” @NathanHam87 bemoaned on the app formerly known as Twitter.
And those are two tame examples; the fire-O’Connell sentiment was as popular on Saturday as Christmas stockings in living rooms.
As you can see, overreaction was a thing last weekend and will now likely persist anytime the Vikings lose a game because that’s how the world works during The Digital Age when a fringe theory takes hold.
Thankfully for O’Connell’s sake, he will not be terminated or anything close to it. Minnesota won an NFC North title on his watch in 2022, his first year in charge. That was a first-time-in-five-years feat. The Vikings could even snag another division crown in 2023 if they beat the Detroit Lions twice in the next three weeks, plus a Lions loss at the Dallas Cowboys next weekend.
The Vikings’ 2023 campaign fundamentally changed on October 29th when Kirk Cousins was injured. If the club had true-blue Super Bowl aspirations, they died the moment Cousins’ Achilles tendon popped. That’s just the way it goes without a QB1. NFL fans love to point at the 2017 Philadelphia Eagles as the example of how to win a Super Bowl sans a QB1. Well, that was nifty for the Eagles and all, but Nick Foles leading that franchise to the Promised Land is an extreme outlier, not the rule.
O’Connell has also battled life without Justin Jefferson for seven games in 2023.
Minnesota has the NFL’s eighth-best record since O’Connell took over. That doesn’t grow on trees. In fact, he should be applauded, generally speaking, by Vikings fans — not chided.
Like any person at a new job, O’Connell will have growing pains. Examples are sticking with Joshua Dobbs out of the bye week or stubbornly clinging to Alexander Mattison at RB1. The man can grow and improve, just like you at your job.
But the rallying cry is out there. Fire the man with a 20-11 (.645) record, they say.
Dustin Baker is a political scientist who graduated from the University of Minnesota in 2007. Subscribe to his daily YouTube Channel, VikesNow. He hosts a podcast with Bryant McKinnie, which airs every Wednesday with Raun Sawh and Sal Spice. His Vikings obsession dates back to 1996. Listed guilty pleasures: Peanut Butter Ice Cream, ‘The Sopranos,’ Basset Hounds, and The Doors (the band).
All statistics provided by Pro Football Reference / Stathead; all contractual information provided by OverTheCap.com.
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