Vikings Fans Unhappy with Kevin O’Connell Snub
Minnesota Vikings head coach Kevin O’Connell may be a Top 10 skipper in your heart, but he has not earned such recognition from the national masses, at least not yet.
Kevin O’Connell was not a part of a new ranking list, and Vikings loyalists reacted adversely. Here’s who took O’Connell’s spot.
Pro Football Focus released its list of Top 10 NFL coaches entering the 2025 campaign, and O’Connell was nowhere to be found — not even an honorable mention.
Naturally, Vikings fans were a bit sour about it.
No Top 10 Love for Kevin O’Connell in Recent Coach Rankings
A couple of “coach power ranking” lists have snubbed Vikings head coach Kevin O’Connell in the last week.
Kevin O’Connell Snubbed in PFF’s Top 10 Head Coach Rankings
At the bottom of PFF’s list, Kevin Stefanski (No. 10, Cleveland Browns), Dan Campbell (No. 9, Detroit Lions), and Nick Sirianni (No. 8, Philadelphia Eagles) prevented O’Connell from placement.
PFF’s Dalton Wasserman described his criteria for the Top 10: “Players ultimately decide who wins and loses football games, but coaching plays a massive part in optimizing their performance. There certainly isn’t a shortage of excellent head coaches, both old and young, in the NFL, and we’re ranking the best among them.”
“This will be a ranking of head coaches returning to their incumbent positions in 2025. Newly hired coaches — Aaron Glenn, Mike Vrabel, Liam Coen, Pete Carroll, Brian Schottenheimer, Ben Johnson and Kellen Moore — will not be included.”
No O’Connell. Zilch.
The Audacity?
Fans used social media to decry the list. One user on X tweeted, “Kevin O’Connell gets snubbed. Head coach of the year. What the f*** who put this together?”
Another Vikings fan kept it simpler, “No KOC 😂😂😂.”
O’Connell is well-known around the sport as a quarterback whisperer, guiding Minnesota to the league’s sixth-best record since taking over in 2022. His elusive first playoff win may be sinking his prestige.
Last week, Pro Football Network called O’Connell the 12th-best coach in the business, an article that wound up mirroring PFF’s rather closely.
2024 Coach of the Year Award Just Isn’t Good Enough
O’Connell won the NFL Coach of the Year award about four months ago. For that reason alone, Vikings faithful decided O’Connell needed attention on best-of lists henceforth. Fans obviously care about the playoff win drought, but with the COTY trophy in his case, they want their skipper to get a little more respect.
This offseason, PFF and PFN have shied away from Top 10 kudos.
The Case for O’Connell at No. 10 over Kevin Stefanski
Wasserman ranked Stefanski, a long-time Vikings coach turned head boss in Cleveland, at No. 10.
He defended the choice: “Stefanski has dealt with a cascade of issues in Cleveland, particularly surrounding the Deshaun Watson trade and subsequent contract extension. However, the two-time NFL Coach of the Year deserves respect as someone who gets his team to compete regardless of the circumstances.”
“Stefanski broke the Browns’ long playoff drought in 2020 and picked up the franchise’s first playoff win since reentering the league in 1999. He also led a surge to the postseason in 2023 with Joe Flacco as his quarterback from Week 14 onward. Stefanski has proven he can succeed if given even adequate offensive tools. The team just needs to provide him with that to complement its excellent defense.”
If O’Connell were to gain status on PFF’s pecking order, it probably would’ve been Stefanski’s spot. No cigar. Stefanski has won Coach of the Year twice.
Andy Reid, Sean Payton Lead the Way
Wasserman plopped Andy Reid of the Kansas City Chiefs atop his ladder and wrote, “Like Bill Belichick, Tom Brady and the New England Patriots teams before them, the Kansas City Chiefs are the masters of situational football. The Chiefs played in 12 one-score games last season, including the playoffs, and won all of them. They found a way to reach the Super Bowl for the third straight season because Andy Reid has his entire team prepared for any situation.”
“The Chiefs ranked 17th in PFF offensive grade during the first three quarters of games but slotted into fourth in that same category in the fourth quarter and overtime. They simply find ways to step up their game despite their flaws, injuries and lack of explosiveness. That’s a testament to Reid’s levelheaded approach to the game and wealth of experience.”
And at No. 2, hated-by-Vikings-fans Sean Payton checked in.
“Denver’s defense was still strong last season, and Nix’s excellent 1.8% turnover-worthy play rate perfectly represented a team that didn’t beat itself. The Broncos lost only two games all season by more than one score, defeats to AFC elites Baltimore and Buffalo. Denver has only added more talent this offseason and should continue to contend with its elite head coach leading the way,” Wasserman opined.
O’Connell will likely strut into the Top 10 once Minnesota tallies a playoff triumph on his watch. Until then, get used to the snubs.
You must be logged in to post a comment.