Raise your hand if you expect the Minnesota Vikings to immediately emerge as contenders under first-time coach Kevin O’Connell. It’s Week 9, and the Vikes 6-1 holds four games in the loss column over the rest of the NFC North. no one He saw it coming.
While I’m in the group of football watchers who were unsure of Minnesota’s next potential this season, I’m not surprised the team is thriving under a head coach with exceptional communication skills and leadership ability.
As a former advisor with O’Connell on a series of preparatory football events (Elite 11) In early 2010, I watched him work closely with young quarterbacks in a camp environment near the end of his football career. Although working for a quarterback camp is clearly not the same as leading an NFL team, the job requires a combination of communication skills, patience, and teaching skills. This is how high school players master the charts, the footwork, and the basics. And this is a transferable skill that makes it easy to mentor a group of aspiring professionals in 2022. From using different teaching methods to helping inexperienced players understand complex concepts to whispering sweet things in a midfielder’s ear to build his confidence, a high-level coaching experience has helped O’Connell schoolchildren In learning how to communicate with today’s players. I really believe in that.
Just see how it helped Justin Jefferson He took his gaming to another level in its third season. After some early season struggles in which the Pro Bowl pass catcher didn’t get enough touches, O’Connell made a concerted effort to feed WR1 a slew of goals throughout October. The scripts of the Vikings caller game have been written with some easy touches on screens, speed and isolation methods to keep wide participation in the game. In addition, O’Connell combined a few different moves, twists and alignments to put Jefferson in a prime position to get the ball against any coverage.
With his best playmaker happy and involved, the attack spread despite the schematic change. Part of the success of the attack is definitely related Kirk Cousins“Consistent play through the first half of the season. While the raw numbers might indicate otherwise — Cousins assists per game, yards per attempt and passer rating decreased from 2021 — the Year 11 pro made enough critical plays to help His team is on the cusp of winning five games in a row.Here’s the vital part: O’Connell threw his support behind the quarterback at every turn.This is a radical departure from the way his predecessor dealt with the quarterback, but it surely could pay off for the rising man, with more confidence in the QB1 is willing to heed his coach’s advice because he feels loved and supported.As the coach-midfield dynamic is so important, O’Connell’s communication skills and relationship-building tactics have created trust between players and coaches which is essential to the team’s long-term success.
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