06-13-2022, 01:05 PM
"How are the Vikings looking?" It's perhaps best asked with the follow-up question, "How much does it really matter?"
O'Connell's first set of organized team activities, and his initial mandatory minicamp as Vikings coach, might have revealed more about the team's drastic philosophical changes than it did about their on-field performance.
During the five full-team practices open to reporters, players rarely practiced for more than 75 minutes, with some OTAs functioning like a passing camp. At times, O'Connell told the Vikings' linemen to work at half speed while keeping exterior players at full speed, emphasizing a player's thought process and technique over aggressive snaps that might leave players fatigued or injured.
"We'll have plenty of time to find out about our pass rush, to find out about our ability to protect full speed, and it'll be great work because I feel really good about both the offensive line and our defensive front," O'Connell said Wednesday.
"So it's really a matter of working the situations, working two-minute. It's reps for me, calling the plays and seeing our guys respond to the things that I'm calling, [defensive coordinator] Ed [Donatell] calling plays, and then all of those full-speed adjustments that take place on the back end. Then the team periods ... you can demonstrate [you] not only know what to do but how to do it, without that strain to finish where so many guys are lost this time of year because we are just wearing helmets.
"You can say it's football and you can say, 'Go 11-on-11 full speed,' but you're putting your team at risk, in my opinion."
The coach repeatedly referred to the Vikings' offseason program as "class on the grass," and in an offseason with a new coaching staff and new defensive scheme, there was plenty to learn. At least in O'Connell's first set of full-team workouts, practices felt like a workshop more than a showcase.
"Coach made it very clear that no one is making [the team] or getting cut from the couple of practices that we are out on the field," cornerback Patrick Peterson said. "We want to pretty much be above-the-shoulders emphasis. We want to see how we learn on the fly. How do we learn when it's time to make a check? How do you adjust when offenses are shifting and you've got all the jet motions and things like that? This period was basically just a mental aspect of the game."
https://www.startribune.com/new-coach-ke...600181309/
O'Connell's first set of organized team activities, and his initial mandatory minicamp as Vikings coach, might have revealed more about the team's drastic philosophical changes than it did about their on-field performance.
During the five full-team practices open to reporters, players rarely practiced for more than 75 minutes, with some OTAs functioning like a passing camp. At times, O'Connell told the Vikings' linemen to work at half speed while keeping exterior players at full speed, emphasizing a player's thought process and technique over aggressive snaps that might leave players fatigued or injured.
"We'll have plenty of time to find out about our pass rush, to find out about our ability to protect full speed, and it'll be great work because I feel really good about both the offensive line and our defensive front," O'Connell said Wednesday.
"So it's really a matter of working the situations, working two-minute. It's reps for me, calling the plays and seeing our guys respond to the things that I'm calling, [defensive coordinator] Ed [Donatell] calling plays, and then all of those full-speed adjustments that take place on the back end. Then the team periods ... you can demonstrate [you] not only know what to do but how to do it, without that strain to finish where so many guys are lost this time of year because we are just wearing helmets.
"You can say it's football and you can say, 'Go 11-on-11 full speed,' but you're putting your team at risk, in my opinion."
The coach repeatedly referred to the Vikings' offseason program as "class on the grass," and in an offseason with a new coaching staff and new defensive scheme, there was plenty to learn. At least in O'Connell's first set of full-team workouts, practices felt like a workshop more than a showcase.
"Coach made it very clear that no one is making [the team] or getting cut from the couple of practices that we are out on the field," cornerback Patrick Peterson said. "We want to pretty much be above-the-shoulders emphasis. We want to see how we learn on the fly. How do we learn when it's time to make a check? How do you adjust when offenses are shifting and you've got all the jet motions and things like that? This period was basically just a mental aspect of the game."
https://www.startribune.com/new-coach-ke...600181309/
