The Minnesota Vikings lost to the Cincinnati Bengals on Saturday afternoon, and Vikings fans did not take the defeat well.
Perhaps it was because of the pair of three-and-outs in the fourth quarter that allowed the Bengals to stay in the game. Or maybe it was the decision to run back-to-back “tush pushes with 180 lb. receiver Brandon Powell as the bulldozer.
It could have even been the historic magnitude of the loss. According to ESPN’s Kevin Siefert, the loss marked the first time since Halloween night 1993 and just the fourth time in franchise history that the Vikings lost after carrying a lead of 14 points or more into the fourth quarter.
In today’s world of instant analysis, angry fans run to their keyboard after any loss — but this one hit differently. Some fans suggested that Minnesota should fire Kevin O’Connell and replace him with defensive coordinator Brian Flores or Michigan head coach and former Vikings coaching candidate Jim Harbaugh.
While the Vikings suffered a devastating defeat in the middle of a playoff race, O’Connell isn’t going anywhere. If anything, the complaints highlight that fans should appreciate what O’Connell is doing to keep Minnesota in the hunt for a playoff spot.
But that requires a macro view of the 2023 Vikings. They started 1-4, and talks of tanking for a quarterback naturally ensued. On past teams, a slow start could lead players to pursue their best interests, but O’Connell kept everyone on the same page.
Wins over the Carolina Panthers and a shorthanded San Francisco 49ers team followed. The Vikings looked like a team on the rise after dismantling the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field in Week 8.
Everything looked up for the Vikings – even without Justin Jefferson – until the football gods threw a lightning bolt at Kirk Cousins’ Achilles tendon.
With their starting quarterback out for the season and second-string quarterback Nick Mullens suffering from a back injury, the Vikings turned to third-string quarterback Jaren Hall. However, they lost Hall to a concussion on the opening drive against the Atlanta Falcons, and O’Connell plugged in Josh Dobbs. The Vikings acquired Dobbs at the trade deadline, and he led Minnesota to back-to-back wins over the Falcons and New Orleans Saints. But Dobbs hit a wall in losses to the Denver Broncos and Chicago Bears.
The Vikings barely escaped Las Vegas with a 3-0 win over the Raiders after turning to Mullens late in the game. Minnesota somehow went into Cincinnati with a 7-6 record.
If you told anyone about the Vikings season without disclosing their record, you would have thought that fans would be spending Saturdays preparing for a top-five draft pick by watching Caleb Williams or Drake Maye‘s tape. But Saturday’s game meant a lot, which is why fans went over the edge when Minnesota suffered a soul-crushing loss.
But the Vikings still have a chance at a playoff spot after losing to the Bengals. To examine how this happened, you must look at the culture O’Connell established. Perhaps there is a better play-caller or person to make game-day decisions than O’Connell at this stage of his career. But how many coaches can create a better culture? That’s where this discussion hits a snag.
Fans are enamored with Flores because he has turned Minnesota’s defense into one of the best units in the league this season after it was one of the worst a year ago. Flores has previously had success as a head coach, but his efforts to build a culture with the Miami Dolphins were compromised by efforts to tank and land Joe Burrow in the 2020 draft.
Perhaps Flores would thrive in a better environment. But his time with Miami wasn’t all positive, especially at quarterback, where he switched between Tua Tagovailoa and Ryan Fitzpatrick.
Tagovailoa has since resurrected his career under Mike McDaniel. Still, Fitzpatrick believes that Flores jeopardized his career with how he treated Tagovailoa during his time with the Dolphins.
“He was broken [from] Brian Flores, the way he treated him, the way he coached him,” Fitzpatrick said as an analyst during a Thursday Night Football broadcast earlier this month. “And what happens? Mike McDaniel comes in. He restores his confidence. He gets it back, and now he’s an MVP candidate.”
Flores still managed a 24-25 record. But in today’s quarterback-driven league, creating a working relationship with your quarterback is mandatory.
O’Connell helped Cousins hit another gear after working under a similar coach in Mike Zimmer. Since Cousins went down, O’Connell has the Vikings in a playoff race despite starting his fourth different quarterback on Saturday afternoon.
Perhaps Flores learned from his previous mistakes, but it doesn’t take the shine off what O’Connell is doing right now. Saturday’s loss damaged the Vikings’ hopes of making the playoffs. Still, it doesn’t take away from the main goal for a young team.
The Vikings probably aren’t winning the Super Bowl this year. But if they make the playoffs, they can get a taste of what the postseason is like and prepare themselves to make a run in the near future.
It’s the path the Philadelphia Eagles took when they made the playoffs as the NFC’s first seventh seed in 2020. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers destroyed the Eagles, 31-15, in the Wild Card round. But Philadelphia used that experience to go to the Super Bowl last year and go 24-6 over the past two seasons.
McDaniel’s Dolphins are another team on that list. They made the playoffs despite losing Tagovailoa to multiple concussions. After the Buffalo Bills bounced them a year ago, Miami is 9-4 and on the verge of making a return trip this season.
Going back over the past 20 years, 75% of the teams that went on to win the Super Bowl made the playoffs the previous season. While Tom Brady and Patrick Mahomes led some of those squads, teams rarely go on a championship run without any prior success.
That makes what O’Connell is doing even more impressive, considering the replacement-level team he’s working with. O’Connell needs to learn from his mistakes on Saturday afternoon. But they are the growing pains of a head coach in his second season with the Vikings, and it makes forging ahead toward a playoff berth a major accomplishment.
