There comes a moment in everyone’s life when they come up with a brilliant idea. The idea opens a gateway of possibilities and seems like the perfect solution to all their problems. That person acts on the idea, the ball gets rolling, and it can’t be stopped on the autobahn of success.
The person is in control — until they realize it’s 2:00 a.m. and everything around them is on fire.
This is an example of “galaxy brain.” We all have moments where we think we’ve broken the system, only to look around and realize the only thing that’s broken is our pride. It came in various ways for the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday afternoon when they suffered a 34-23 loss to the Detroit Lions at a pivotal moment.
The Vikings entered the game at 10-2 and were ready to clinch the NFC North. The Lions were favored by 1.5 points but were a desperate team at 5-7. Both teams had something to gain in this game. However, instead of the analytics darling on one sideline, it was the venti-pounding, F-bomb-dropping dude listening to Master of Puppets in his headset who was about to put on a coaching masterclass.
The reality is that the Vikings’ galaxy-brain problem started long before kickoff. It was the 2022 NFL Draft when Kwesi Adofo-Mensah was on the clock with his first-ever pick. Inheriting a roster that had floated around .500 for the past several seasons, Adofo-Mensah had his choice of taking receiver Jameson Williams or Kyle Hamilton.
With two of the best players in the draft sitting in front of him, the clouds parted, the heavens opened, and Adofo-Mensah had a moment of enlightenment reserved for Aaron Rodgers on his fourth dose of ayahuasca.
What if we traded down and got more picks? Adofo-Mensah probably said as his eyes glowed.
Suddenly everyone nodded in unison, excited about getting several mid-tier players instead of one elite player. The Vikings traded down 20 spots to take Lewis Cine and traded down again two picks later, passing on Christian Watson.
There’s a giant butterfly effect that goes into these two decisions. But the consequences finally revealed themselves on Sunday. Harrison Smith was ruled out with a neck injury, leaving Camryn Bynum as the elder statesman in the secondary. Had Cine been healthy and developed as expected, there could have been a feeling of We got this when Williams lined up in the slot. Instead, Williams ran past Bynum for a 41-yard touchdown and immediately started prancing up and down on the sideline.
Not only had Williams scored his first career touchdown on his first career reception, but he had also done it against the team that had effectively sent him to Detroit.
It would have been easy to dismiss Williams’ touchdown had this been the only galaxy brain moment. Christian Watson dropped a wide-open 75-yard touchdown in Week 1, after all. But the front office wasn’t the only group to blame for Minnesota’s disaster in Detroit. The Vikings had fallen behind, 14-7, but were driving into Lions’ territory. Faced with a first-and-goal from the three-yard line, it appeared that Dalvin Cook would get the ball, burn Detroit’s final timeout, and get Minnesota back into the game.
But a familiar sight took place on the Vikings’ sideline. Kevin O’Connell’s eyes started glowing. He could smell colors, and he could see sound. He checked to make sure his headset was on before saying the magic words.
Let’s have Dalvin throw the ball!
In theory, it made sense. The Lions bottled Cook up all afternoon, limiting him to 23 yards on 15 carries. Johnny Mundt flashed open in the end zone, but Cook looked confused – mainly because he’s not a quarterback. Backup center Austin Schlottmann was thrown into Cook like a bowling ball, and Cook dropped the ball. The Lions recovered the fumble and kept the Vikings off the board.
Another galaxy-brain moment occurred later in the game as O’Connell tried to establish the run while still down by multiple scores. But even with a Klint Kubiak tribute in his game plan, it wasn’t the biggest blunder of the afternoon.
After falling behind 21-7, the Vikings scored on an Adam Thielen touchdown, making it a one-score game. With the game midway through the fourth quarter, O’Connell didn’t need to chase points, but once again, he felt the energy of a billion suns raining down on him as he stuck two fingers into the air.
Going for two isn’t a terrible decision here. ESPN’s Seth Walder explains that are several benefits for going for two when down eight points, including:
- The odds of converting a two-point play once in one try are higher than failing twice in two tries.
- Assuming the team is going to score another touchdown — and they prevent the opponent from scoring again — going for two now gives it an informational edge on their next touchdown.
- If the team converts a two-point conversion, it knows it only needs a PAT on the second touchdown to win.
- If it fails, the team knows it has to go for two again the second time to have a chance to tie.
- Attempting a two-point conversion when down eight points maximizes the chance to win the game.
Most of the scenarios make sense, but not when your defense makes the 2013 and 2020 Vikings blush. Minnesota was in the middle of their fifth-straight game allowing 400 yards or more in four of their past five games, they had allowed 450 yards or more. The Vikings are currently allowing more yards per game (403.6) than the 2013 (397.6) and 2020 (393.2) defenses, which are considered the franchise’s brown standard in letting the opposing offenses do whatever they want.
Led by a defensive coordinator with as much energy as your uncle after Thanksgiving dinner, Ed Donatell has his own brand of galaxy braining, which includes dropping back 12 yards on a third-and-eight and never blitzing even if there’s a fire.
With a 16% blitz rate charting as the sixth-lowest in the NFL, it was never a certainty that the Vikings were going to stop Jared Goff from tearing them apart. That may have been the reason why O’Connell decided to go for two. But, on another failed attempt, the Vikings put themselves in a bigger hole.
Dan Campbell proceeded to punk the Vikings for the rest of the game. He probably said something like What if we threw it to the offensive lineman? on a fourth-down conversion before it actually worked. With Campbell running around the field like the Ultimate Warrior, O’Connell and the Vikings were left to wonder exactly what happened.
This isn’t a condemnation of O’Connell’s season, but there’s something to consider here. Sometimes, the simple choice is the best choice, and it’s best not to get in your own way.
