The Minnesota Vikings allowed the Green Bay Packers to creep back into the game last Sunday for the second time this season. Jordan Love and the Packers erased a 27-10 deficit, cutting the lead to 27-25 with 2:18 remaining. But like the Vikings had done back in Week 4 against the Packers and many other opponents this year, they responded to adversity with a drive that sealed the game.
Sam Darnold faked a handoff on first-and-10, tossing a pass to a wide-open C.J. Ham in the left flat for a gain of 13 yards. Two plays later, Darnold connected with Justin Jefferson for a gain of nine to set up a third-and-two. When the Packers sold out to stop the run, Darnold again faked a handoff, finding Cam Akers open in the right flat to seal the game.
There was some frustration that Minnesota didn’t put the Packers away earlier after dominating for most of the first three quarters. But the game ended in signature fashion Kevin O’Connell’s squad. When the stakes were at their highest, they pulled through. The Vikings are 26-9 in one-score games under O’Connell. That’s the second-best mark in league history for a head coach in such games.
Some would call it luck that this team comes out on top of these one-score games, but this has been part of the team’s identity since O’Connell took over in 2022.
After a 23-7 win over the Packers in Week 1 and a 24-7 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles one week later, it looked like the Vikings could be looking at another lopsided game against the Detroit Lions in Week 3.
Minnesota fell behind 14-0 early in the second quarter. It was the kind of “no-show” game to which Vikings fans had grown accustomed.
Instead, Minnesota fought back, tying the game at 14 before halftime. They fell behind 24-14 heading into the third quarter, but the Vikings kept fighting. Alexander Mattison ran in a touchdown to cut the deficit to 24-21. The Lions missed a 54-yard field goal that would have given them a seven-point lead with 1:12 remaining in the game, which created an opportunity for the Vikings.
Kirk Cousins completed back-to-back passes of 28 yards to K.J. Osborn, the second of which was the go-ahead touchdown. The Lions couldn’t respond, and Josh Metellus, who was making his first career start in place of Harrison Smith, intercepted Jared Goff to seal the game.
That led to the first fiery postgame speech from O’Connell. The Week 1 victory over was as joyous as it was the coach’s first win with the team. But this postgame locker room was different, a game that previous coaches may have considered flawed and unworthy of celebration. Perhaps that was stifling potential enthusiasm. Sensing this, O’Connell waved his arms to get the team to celebrate louder.
He gave an impassioned speech, telling the team that winning like that is what made the team special.
“There are all kinds of things we could do better across the board,” O’Connell told the team as he walked around the locker room. “But what I love the most, as adversity hit, we could have checked out. We could have looked across and said, ‘No, you know what, we’re doing our thing today, but [the other side of the ball isn’t] doing their job.’”
O’Connell didn’t need to pump the team up in the locker room following last Sunday’s win against the Packers. The Vikings are used to close wins now. Instead, cameras caught O’Connell standing at the back of the locker room and looking on as the team doused Darnold in water and hoisted him on their shoulders. Afterward, O’Connell gave his speech again about the team’s ability to finish games.
“I know I love watching this team play,” O’Connell said. “But it’s obvious to me [that] there’s a whole lot of people that love everything about this team. What you’re made of, the fight, and more importantly, your ability to go finish a game just like we just did.”
O’Connell joined Paul Allen’s 9 to Noon show on Tuesday for his weekly segment, “X’s and O’s.” He discussed how preparing for situational football isn’t just preached throughout the week. He’s taught it since he arrived in 2022.
“We talk about situations a lot,” O’Connell told Allen. “We talk about, ‘What situation is this to close out a game?’ And they’re not all the same. A lot of them require attention to detail that you’ve got to be willing to build within your team for months and months and months. And as you said, years in [many] ways to build up a fabric of who you are.
“And we’ve won those games. We’ve won a lot of them, and I just know the feeling I have in those moments because of our players, [and] because of our coaches. I feel very confident we’re going to win those games. And to be 100% honest, I’m somewhat shocked if we don’t just because of the belief I have in everyone.”
O’Connell has been building this mindset since he arrived, but it was tested for the first time when the Vikings beat Detroit in 2022. The victory didn’t just shape that season. It helped shape the team’s culture and mindset, giving them the confidence to defeat the Packers last week on that final drive.
The Vikings are 14-2 and will play in Detroit this Sunday night to determine who wins the NFC North. Whoever wins also gets the NFC’s No. 1 seed and home-field advantage in the playoffs. If the season was a football game, Week 18 is the last five minutes of the fourth quarter. And that’s when Kevin O’Connell and the Vikings have been at their best.
