November 5, 2025 • 20 mins
PA hosts Xs and Os ahead of the matchup with the Ravens and is joined by Vikings HC Kevin O’Connell!
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Speaker 1 (00:04):
It is time for XES and o's with Minnesota Vikings
head coach Kevin O'Connell on the Minnesota Vikings Radio Network
now from the TCO studios at Egan. Here is the
voice of the Vikings, Paul Allen.
Speaker 2 (00:18):
Welcome man x's and o's with Kevin O'Connell, presented by
Ken Moore. And Minnesota needed to go to sports everything
high school sports. That's why the Minnesota starts abune creative
Strib Varsity Sign him now, start Tribune dot com, slash
Strib Varsity, X's and o's. Kevin O'Connell kicks off.
Speaker 3 (00:32):
Now Here comes Kevin O'Connell, head coach of the Minnesota Vikings,
for XES and o's. The Minnesota Vikings hosts the Baltimore
Ravens at US Bank Stadium Sunday at noon. Ravens are
three and five and more on the Ravens coming up
soon because the Lamar Jackson's back. They've won two consecutive
(00:54):
and it's the National Football League, which means National Football
League Trade deadline day today and the head coach of
the Minnesota Vikings joins us. Now, guys working on any
whoppers up there in the old second floor, mister O'Connell, I.
Speaker 4 (01:08):
Would say the whoppers are more on the whiteboard right
now with the coaching staff drawing some plays, more so
than me being involved directly right.
Speaker 5 (01:17):
Now with any of that stuff. But I know there's
a lot of calls going on. Quacy and his staff
do a great job with that. And see where the
day goes all done. Yeah, there you go.
Speaker 3 (01:27):
The locker room after the Alliance win, wild, loud and joyous,
and it reminded me it's like you got four wins,
So locker room after the Bengals game, cool, after the
Browns game, everybody's tired, wants to get home.
Speaker 5 (01:42):
Cool.
Speaker 3 (01:43):
But after the Bears win and after this win kind
of reminded me of each other there and and you know,
with the joyous nature of the locker room after that victory,
you could just tell that those guys worked really really
hard during the week and during the day to win
that game, didn't they.
Speaker 4 (02:01):
Yeah, it was Uh, it really started the monday after
we got back from you know, played on Thursday, gave
the guys the weekend off, and then when they came
in on Monday, you know, I was I'd spent a
lot of time thinking about the direction we needed to
go last week, and I was pretty direct, and I
told them exactly what where I thought we were at
(02:23):
and where we needed to go, and how wildly capable
we were to do the things required to win the
football game last Sunday, And just so proud of the guys,
proud of our leadership.
Speaker 5 (02:34):
It's just one game in this league, you know.
Speaker 4 (02:36):
Obviously the NFC North battles always seemed to mean a
little bit more, especially on the road.
Speaker 5 (02:41):
And we're two and zero on the road this year.
Speaker 4 (02:43):
In the division, right, and we've got we've got to
keep having many of the same principles that we were
able to kind of put in play and really envision
for this team, you know, many many days and months ago.
We got to put it into action every single week.
And this league, the hardest, the true measure of teams
is their ability once they find their rhythm once there
(03:06):
through some of the adversity that we went through early
on in the season injury wise, can you be consistent.
That's the hardest thing is week in and week out,
teams are game.
Speaker 5 (03:15):
Planning, coaching at a high level.
Speaker 4 (03:17):
You're playing against another great quarterback this week, and a
team that has really found themselves again. And when they have,
you know, their team built the way they want around
that quarterback and a defense flying around with a bunch
of talent. This is one of the best teams in football.
So we're gonna have to make sure that we don't
just you know, expect that feeling in that.
Speaker 5 (03:38):
Locker room post game. A lot goes into it.
Speaker 4 (03:40):
Players deserve all the credit and now I'm gonna put
it on them to try to make sure we can repeat,
well repeat.
Speaker 5 (03:47):
Those performances well. Also, I think there's a lot of
things we.
Speaker 4 (03:49):
Can still do better, Pa, you know, as we continue
to grow. And it sounds crazy to say that after
playing eight games, but it does feel like in many
ways a new season for our team, just the feeling of,
you know, wanting to continue to grow through getting guys
back on the field, really finding that formula of what
the twenty twenty five vikings are going to be when
(04:09):
it's all said and done.
Speaker 3 (04:10):
Kevin, I'm really glad you said that about the division,
the NFC North, because into that game, okay, it's you
guys were either perceived underdogs or pointspread underdogs into.
Speaker 5 (04:22):
That game on the okay, right off place to go play.
Speaker 3 (04:24):
However, I'm rarely stunned when a perceived underdog wins a
division game. Yep, because of the familiarity, you know what
I mean, Yeah.
Speaker 5 (04:33):
And you just I mean, you know them well, they
know us well.
Speaker 4 (04:36):
There's a there was some new coordinators on that side,
but obviously Dan's done a heck of a job, you know,
building a staff that can kind of transition from losing
both coordinators and kind of keep guys that were very
much aware of how they've had a lot of their
success on offense and on defense. So but yeah, it's
they always mean a little bit more.
Speaker 5 (04:56):
But it also means a little bit.
Speaker 4 (04:57):
More because in both the Chicago and Detroit wins, we
know we're gonna see these guys again, and we're gonna
see them at us Bank Stadium. But that doesn't mean
we're gonna let one get away from us today and just.
Speaker 5 (05:08):
Try to play good football.
Speaker 4 (05:09):
And it helps to have a team that you know
well and you know some of the big cast of
characters that you've got to basically, you know, try to
win matchups against and see if you can win enough
of the one on ones across the field throughout the game.
Speaker 5 (05:22):
In all three phases that they add up.
Speaker 3 (05:24):
Yeah, division wins are the bomb, and really the underdog
status kind of gets thrown out the window no matter
the records, because they know each other so well, not
all the time, but sometimes. Now to the meat and
potatoes and McCarthy portion of the equation, and from a
meat and potatoes standpoint, and I'm gonna have to read
this because I don't want to mess it up. Is
(05:44):
they get down there? The Porter goes three sixty six
and one. All right, places loud, they're up seven zero. Yep,
you get that kick return which so well timed to
like get people to sit down for a second. Ford
Field has become a place that said this during the
radio broadcast. The fans are always up. I mean they're
just really really into it. The stands are close to
(06:04):
the field, so it can be a really really daunting
home environment. Miles gets that sixty one. But on that
play with that kick return after laporter score Baddie and Felton,
I mean, what wonderful meat and potatoes work they did
to help free him. And then you get Eric Wilson,
all right, the same Eric Wilson who's tied for the
(06:26):
team lead, in sacks messing with a guy late where
Miles price that gave him a chance to get clear.
I was just so impressed by that, the meat and
potatoes aspect of Baddie and Felton, but then leading sacks
guy out there trying to free him for a touchdown.
Speaker 4 (06:41):
Yeah, no, it was a huge play for Miles, who's
a guy that we think every time he touches the
ball's got a chance to do something with it, especially
because of those guys he's had on that unit in
front of him. And really we've had some really really
good execution, specifically in the kick return phase and punt
return phase. But many of those opportunities you've seen that
(07:02):
yellow flag come flying on the field, just as guys
it's a different play. Guys are a lot closer together.
There's a lot bigger bodies out there. The change of
direction with all those bodies clumped together basically five yards apart,
you've got to know when, as we learned on the
touchdown later in the game, you got to go know
when to let go. But you win those one on
(07:22):
ones in those in those blocking battles with guys like Baddie,
you know, felt and then obviously you will, it will
give you a chance to very at the very least
flip the field, at the very least give us a
little shot of life there after they did score early,
and then what I loved about that is the offense
getting the ball in the end zone and then the
defense going out and getting to stop and we go
(07:44):
right back. And for the first time and since I've
been the head coach here, really felt like we had
total control the football game early. Obviously, against a really
good team like that, you can lose it in a heartbeat,
but it just felt like our team's kept on stacking
plays when we needed him to have them happen to
maintain the momentum pay that we had in the game,
(08:04):
and then that allowed us to play things like field
position that still matters in twenty twenty five in the NFL.
I think a lot of people have lost sight of
what it's like to win that battle, Ryan right, you know,
keeping those guys inside the ten. And then obviously us
being able to have short fields coming back for a
variety of different reasons.
Speaker 3 (08:22):
And meet and potatoes than McCarthy more meet and potatoes.
The Jones long one, the one that they took from
a pass to a run. Nice floater by McCarthy. You
hit on that at your press conference yesterday. It was
a really nice touch floater. Hockinson did enough with Branch,
all right, so that was fine. Jordan Addison demolished Arthur Molett,
(08:45):
the cornerback, legally demolished him. And I think Terry and
Arnold wanted to fight Jordan Addison during the play until
he saw Jones whipping down the up the sideline.
Speaker 5 (08:57):
Hey, I got to go get him. Yeah, but you know,
you know what I'm talking about here.
Speaker 3 (09:02):
Yeah, Addison crushes Mallett and then like Terry and Arnold
took umbrage to it right there, and I thought he
was going to go after Jordan.
Speaker 5 (09:09):
Yeah, it was.
Speaker 4 (09:10):
It was a play we we didn't have a lot
of plays up in the game with both Jordan Mason
and Aaron Jones on the field, So when I called
that personnel grouping, everybody knew what play was coming.
Speaker 5 (09:22):
But it was the execution. We got the exact look
we wanted.
Speaker 4 (09:25):
Jordan actually was being covered by Terry on Arnold on
the play, so he gets you know, he trails Jordan
down in there as he's blocking Mallet and when he
makes that block and puts him on the ground. You're right,
Terry On didn't know whether to you know, stick up
for his guy or go try to run down the play.
And I did think that was a big time throw
by JJ. Not an easy one, not for you know,
(09:46):
to get that up and over the defensive end right
there and give Aaron a chance to be out the
gate for what was a huge play in the moment.
Speaker 5 (09:53):
Thought it was pass yards.
Speaker 4 (09:54):
You know, JJ's would have been in the one seventies
if that was past yards.
Speaker 5 (09:59):
But hel the yards for attempt the whole thing. I
watched it. I watched it. Really don't understand it.
Speaker 4 (10:04):
I watched it really close. It is as close as
you can possibly be. So whoever was scoring the play
on the day, I think they were more of an
Aaron Jones or maybe not a JJ McCarthy fan who
knows well.
Speaker 3 (10:18):
Keeping momentum obviously is key. And we have a talk
back each and every Tuesday for Viking's head coach Kevin O'Connell.
Speaker 5 (10:25):
And here's this week's.
Speaker 6 (10:29):
Good Morning Nordo on PA. It's Mike from Tampa. This
is for the head coach. Koc First and foremost, congrats,
on a great win, a great team effort from coaching
on down, firing on all cylinders, a couple of things
for improvements.
Speaker 5 (10:43):
Where we can tighten up.
Speaker 6 (10:44):
I think the biggest question that fans and myself have
is how do you keep the team on a high
off a great win like that at Ford Field with
a strong Baltimore team coming in and keep them focused
so that they keep firing on all cylinders upcoming.
Speaker 4 (10:58):
Yeah, Mike, I think it's a great question, and you
think a lot about those things as many times as
in minutes and hours you plan. Like I mentioned of
having the team back after that long weekend where we
had some time off, you spend a lot of time
thinking about what is the direction that I need to
make sure I present and then actively hold our guys too.
(11:19):
Throughout the week after a win like that, you absolutely
have to give it the same amount of care and concern.
But what I would say is the journey we've been
on this year has been filled with many, many moments
where it'd be easy for these guys to, you know,
just say, you know, maybe it's not our year.
Speaker 5 (11:38):
There's a lot of things going wrong.
Speaker 4 (11:39):
There's a lot of things injury wise where we just
need that guy or this guy and we just don't
have him, maybe in game losing linemen, right.
Speaker 5 (11:46):
Tackle, left, haack, whatever it is.
Speaker 4 (11:49):
We've kind of taken a journey up until this point
that I think has kind of calcified us as a
team to know these guys are really it's a different
kind of it's a different kind vibe in a good
way where hey, we get off to a five and
oh start. Last year, we lose two in a row
and it's hey, let's write this ship and get back
to where we were. We really never felt, you know,
(12:10):
outside of you know, beating Chicago and the opener, and
even then we didn't play a good game in the
first half, specifically on offense, we never have really felt
like we've earned the right to feel like we've arrived.
Speaker 5 (12:21):
And through that time we've had.
Speaker 4 (12:23):
To really look inward and have a little grit and
and a different kind of feel to how we go
about our business and persevering through some adversity directly starting
you know, the season where it hasn't really been like
that always for us. I know we started oh and
three a couple of years ago, but Pa, what I
mean by that is, I think these guys are showing
back up in the building with kind of a workmanlike
(12:46):
approach now of understanding the margin of error is razor thin,
and we need to do everything in our power to
prepare for every every game each week like it is
the only thing that matters, and do it with our
same culture and guys having an absolute you know blast
competing daily and getting better and all those things that
we do around here. But in the end, there is
(13:07):
a level of edge to this team now that I
think Vikings fans you know, hopefully can appreciate because of
the journey we've been on that we have not been
happy about up until this point in the season. But
nine games left and I feel like this team is
now prepared to do a lot of the things required
and have the personality of a football team that can
go do those things.
Speaker 2 (13:27):
Join the Vikings Middle LIGHTE and k FA N for
the Salute to Service Bar Tour November fourth through the seventh,
when Vikings tickets, merch and enjoy a beer. Final The
details on the Viking Street Team Instagram page at Vikings
Street Team. More x's and o's around the corner on
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(13:49):
Learn more at pays dot com pa Ze pays dot Com.
Back to X's and O's the Kevin O'Connor.
Speaker 3 (13:54):
Garra saw with O'Neill, it just changes everything, doesn't.
Speaker 4 (13:58):
I mean, there's these guys, it's hard to put into
words just what they mean to our offense and the
combination of both those guys together. I thought Christian had
one of his, you know, one of his best games
he's had this season, and.
Speaker 5 (14:12):
And just the fight.
Speaker 4 (14:13):
I mean, he's he's he's still in a position, pa
where you know, the reps as they stack up and
and and he gets into a game where it is
a mental test for him, you know, every single week,
but he's passing it and and he is continuing. I
love the way he handled himself in the football game.
He was one of the first on the field out
(14:33):
in the huddle, set in the tone for those guys.
And then I thought Brian O'Neill, you know, had a
really tough matchup ended up having Hutchinson on him quite
a bit on that right side, and.
Speaker 5 (14:44):
He fought a heck of a battle against what you know.
As now, I don't know whether he is or not.
Speaker 4 (14:48):
I haven't done the math on it, but feels like
they made him a pretty well compensated pass rusher last week.
But somehow about the block on the early screen against
the zero pressure, Yeah, where he gets out on the
corner and kid just some of the other things he did.
Those guys are so so important to what we do.
And and also you know, Donovan Jackson played a really
(15:10):
great game, having seventy one in there right next to him,
and then Will Fries with bo and just how the
Nick Finett's blocking in the run game and stepping in
for Josh Oliver and next to those tackles.
Speaker 5 (15:20):
They have a lot to do with a lot of
our success.
Speaker 3 (15:22):
All right, Ravens to close here with, By the way,
did Christian Christian exit the game?
Speaker 5 (15:27):
Okay?
Speaker 3 (15:27):
Yes, Darrisaw came out of it. Okay, good the Ravens.
What does the number five fifty two mean to you?
Five fifty two Ravens, I don't know. Uh, it's the
combined weight of Derrick Henry and Patrick Ricard, which means
that's a two man jumbo package runner right at you.
Speaker 1 (15:47):
Right right.
Speaker 5 (15:47):
Yeah, we're gonna see it. We're gonna see it.
Speaker 4 (15:49):
We've seen bigger groupings from people just about in every
game we've played this year. You hear the official announcing
either somebody as an eligible and extra alignment as ineligible,
or you've got you know, some of the big fullbacks
and tight ends, you know, Washington from Pittsburgh, who I
think is you know, if he's not close to three
(16:09):
hundred pounds, I'd like to see the scale, you know.
And then just some of the people are choosing to
try to get bigger with our defense and try to
play that kind of game to avoid some of the
risk factors that you know very well.
Speaker 5 (16:21):
Pa. When you play against Brian.
Speaker 4 (16:23):
Four at Flores and you want to spread him out
with a bunch of skilled people on the field, you know,
you know you're signing up for some potential problems.
Speaker 5 (16:30):
And so people are going the other way.
Speaker 4 (16:31):
They're trying to get bigger, they're trying to play physical.
That's why I love the fact that we had the
type of knockback we had won the line of scrimmage
in the interior of the D line. The edges were
set by Grenard and Turner and Van Ginkel, and then
obviously Cashman and Eric were flying all over the place
making a lot of tackles and many of them for loss.
Speaker 3 (16:50):
Oh you mean Eric Wilson, who has four sacks, one
of your leading sacrists, super important on kick return.
Speaker 5 (16:55):
That's right.
Speaker 3 (16:55):
Oh, that fifty five Cole Redford Michigan, twenty minutes away
from Detroit. Talk to his mom before every game. I
see him. Shannon's her name, I believe, And they had
about twenty five people there.
Speaker 5 (17:05):
They were super excited. That was really cool.
Speaker 3 (17:08):
I don't know who the best player in the Ravens
defense is at this time of the week. Rokwan switz Smith,
I've looked at that. Kyle Hamilton, just the Notre Dame safety.
How does he play like Kyle Hamilton? What do you
think about him?
Speaker 5 (17:19):
Yeah?
Speaker 4 (17:19):
I think you know, they've kind of throughout the season,
you know, he really was playing a lot more of
the safety position.
Speaker 5 (17:28):
Early on in the year.
Speaker 4 (17:29):
They make a trade for a third safety, Gilman from
the Chargers, who is a very good player, and that's
really allowed Kyle Hamilton almost Josh mattelis like to get
down near the box a little bit more and be
a major factor as a blitzer, major factor around the
line of scrimmage. You know, they want to get him
closer to the ball. Derwin James like that we saw
(17:49):
a couple of weeks ago because he's.
Speaker 5 (17:51):
That kind of impact.
Speaker 4 (17:52):
I think he's one of the best defensive players in
the National Football League right now when you really think
about his impact at all levels of the defense, running pass,
affecting the quarterback as a pressure player, but then matching
up with the likes of you know, Puka Nakua or
DeVante Adams when they played the Rams, and you look
at him against the Bears receivers and we know those guys, well,
(18:13):
you just see a guy that's got a total complete
skill set football IQ off the charts, and a physicality
to how he plays as a big, old, long, you know,
strong player in the middle of the defense. Now that
we've got to know where he is at all times,
Rokwan's obviously a very very good player, and I think
they've got some really good corners. They're very big and
physical in the interior. Their D line challenge for sure,
(18:36):
and I think they're doing a really good job figuring
out exactly who they want to be. They've been a
lot better against the run the last two three weeks,
and they can always turn the ball over with the
type of scheme they play if you're not really tight
with your operation and how you're playing.
Speaker 3 (18:49):
And lastly, Lamar Jackson his rookie year, all right, he
played sixteen games his rookie year through for just twelve
hundred yards fifty eight percent on the completions. Later last
year four seventy two yards sixty six and a half.
Where has he grown as a passer over the half.
Speaker 5 (19:09):
Decade, Yeah, it's been.
Speaker 4 (19:10):
I was on the field when he worked out as
a quarterback at the combine.
Speaker 1 (19:13):
Wow.
Speaker 4 (19:13):
I was on the field working out, you know, some
of the other quarterbacks and then watching the workout up close,
and I remember that day vividly and talking to him
after that workout. What you knew about Lamar Jackson has
been proven to be correct, which is this guy is
an ultimate competitor, one of the most gifted quarterbacks you
(19:33):
know in our league right now, both as a runner
clearly and the way.
Speaker 5 (19:37):
He dynamically changes the game.
Speaker 4 (19:39):
But he is making throw after throw from the pocket
in rhythm, great fundamentals, seeing coverage, seeing the field. They
do a really good job of marrying things all together
with a pretty elite run game with him included in that.
That makes it very hard constantly putting defenders in pass
run conflict. And then they've got Flowers and obviously a
(20:02):
whole cast of really, really good skilled players.
Speaker 5 (20:05):
It's going to be a challenge.
Speaker 4 (20:06):
I know, talking to Flow yesterday, you know, everything you
know starts with obviously Lamar Jackson, but then Derrick Henry
is a guy that at any point in time you
give him any kind of space, he's proven to be
able to take at the distance. So we've got to
have our sharpest, most impactful defensive game of the season
with them coming to US Bank Stadium on Sunday.
Speaker 5 (20:25):
Thank you for the time. Appreciate it.
Speaker 3 (20:26):
Appreciate it Man Kevin O'Connell, head coach of the Minnesota Vikings,
and I'm Paul Allen.
Speaker 5 (20:29):
That's X's and O's.
Speaker 2 (20:30):
Thank you for joined us for this week's episode of
X's and O's. Kevin O'Connell. X AS and O's is
presented by Ken Moore and is an official production of
the Minnesota Vikings Audio Network.
It is time for XES and o's with Minnesota Vikings
head coach Kevin O'Connell on the Minnesota Vikings Radio Network
now from the TCO studios at Egan. Here is the
voice of the Vikings, Paul Allen.
Speaker 2 (00:18):
Welcome man x's and o's with Kevin O'Connell, presented by
Ken Moore. And Minnesota needed to go to sports everything
high school sports. That's why the Minnesota starts abune creative
Strib Varsity Sign him now, start Tribune dot com, slash
Strib Varsity, X's and o's. Kevin O'Connell kicks off.
Speaker 3 (00:32):
Now Here comes Kevin O'Connell, head coach of the Minnesota Vikings,
for XES and o's. The Minnesota Vikings hosts the Baltimore
Ravens at US Bank Stadium Sunday at noon. Ravens are
three and five and more on the Ravens coming up
soon because the Lamar Jackson's back. They've won two consecutive
(00:54):
and it's the National Football League, which means National Football
League Trade deadline day today and the head coach of
the Minnesota Vikings joins us. Now, guys working on any
whoppers up there in the old second floor, mister O'Connell, I.
Speaker 4 (01:08):
Would say the whoppers are more on the whiteboard right
now with the coaching staff drawing some plays, more so
than me being involved directly right.
Speaker 5 (01:17):
Now with any of that stuff. But I know there's
a lot of calls going on. Quacy and his staff
do a great job with that. And see where the
day goes all done. Yeah, there you go.
Speaker 3 (01:27):
The locker room after the Alliance win, wild, loud and joyous,
and it reminded me it's like you got four wins,
So locker room after the Bengals game, cool, after the
Browns game, everybody's tired, wants to get home.
Speaker 5 (01:42):
Cool.
Speaker 3 (01:43):
But after the Bears win and after this win kind
of reminded me of each other there and and you know,
with the joyous nature of the locker room after that victory,
you could just tell that those guys worked really really
hard during the week and during the day to win
that game, didn't they.
Speaker 4 (02:01):
Yeah, it was Uh, it really started the monday after
we got back from you know, played on Thursday, gave
the guys the weekend off, and then when they came
in on Monday, you know, I was I'd spent a
lot of time thinking about the direction we needed to
go last week, and I was pretty direct, and I
told them exactly what where I thought we were at
(02:23):
and where we needed to go, and how wildly capable
we were to do the things required to win the
football game last Sunday, And just so proud of the guys,
proud of our leadership.
Speaker 5 (02:34):
It's just one game in this league, you know.
Speaker 4 (02:36):
Obviously the NFC North battles always seemed to mean a
little bit more, especially on the road.
Speaker 5 (02:41):
And we're two and zero on the road this year.
Speaker 4 (02:43):
In the division, right, and we've got we've got to
keep having many of the same principles that we were
able to kind of put in play and really envision
for this team, you know, many many days and months ago.
We got to put it into action every single week.
And this league, the hardest, the true measure of teams
is their ability once they find their rhythm once there
(03:06):
through some of the adversity that we went through early
on in the season injury wise, can you be consistent.
That's the hardest thing is week in and week out,
teams are game.
Speaker 5 (03:15):
Planning, coaching at a high level.
Speaker 4 (03:17):
You're playing against another great quarterback this week, and a
team that has really found themselves again. And when they have,
you know, their team built the way they want around
that quarterback and a defense flying around with a bunch
of talent. This is one of the best teams in football.
So we're gonna have to make sure that we don't
just you know, expect that feeling in that.
Speaker 5 (03:38):
Locker room post game. A lot goes into it.
Speaker 4 (03:40):
Players deserve all the credit and now I'm gonna put
it on them to try to make sure we can repeat,
well repeat.
Speaker 5 (03:47):
Those performances well. Also, I think there's a lot of
things we.
Speaker 4 (03:49):
Can still do better, Pa, you know, as we continue
to grow. And it sounds crazy to say that after
playing eight games, but it does feel like in many
ways a new season for our team, just the feeling of,
you know, wanting to continue to grow through getting guys
back on the field, really finding that formula of what
the twenty twenty five vikings are going to be when
(04:09):
it's all said and done.
Speaker 3 (04:10):
Kevin, I'm really glad you said that about the division,
the NFC North, because into that game, okay, it's you
guys were either perceived underdogs or pointspread underdogs into.
Speaker 5 (04:22):
That game on the okay, right off place to go play.
Speaker 3 (04:24):
However, I'm rarely stunned when a perceived underdog wins a
division game. Yep, because of the familiarity, you know what
I mean, Yeah.
Speaker 5 (04:33):
And you just I mean, you know them well, they
know us well.
Speaker 4 (04:36):
There's a there was some new coordinators on that side,
but obviously Dan's done a heck of a job, you know,
building a staff that can kind of transition from losing
both coordinators and kind of keep guys that were very
much aware of how they've had a lot of their
success on offense and on defense. So but yeah, it's
they always mean a little bit more.
Speaker 5 (04:56):
But it also means a little bit.
Speaker 4 (04:57):
More because in both the Chicago and Detroit wins, we
know we're gonna see these guys again, and we're gonna
see them at us Bank Stadium. But that doesn't mean
we're gonna let one get away from us today and just.
Speaker 5 (05:08):
Try to play good football.
Speaker 4 (05:09):
And it helps to have a team that you know
well and you know some of the big cast of
characters that you've got to basically, you know, try to
win matchups against and see if you can win enough
of the one on ones across the field throughout the game.
Speaker 5 (05:22):
In all three phases that they add up.
Speaker 3 (05:24):
Yeah, division wins are the bomb, and really the underdog
status kind of gets thrown out the window no matter
the records, because they know each other so well, not
all the time, but sometimes. Now to the meat and
potatoes and McCarthy portion of the equation, and from a
meat and potatoes standpoint, and I'm gonna have to read
this because I don't want to mess it up. Is
(05:44):
they get down there? The Porter goes three sixty six
and one. All right, places loud, they're up seven zero. Yep,
you get that kick return which so well timed to
like get people to sit down for a second. Ford
Field has become a place that said this during the
radio broadcast. The fans are always up. I mean they're
just really really into it. The stands are close to
(06:04):
the field, so it can be a really really daunting
home environment. Miles gets that sixty one. But on that
play with that kick return after laporter score Baddie and Felton,
I mean, what wonderful meat and potatoes work they did
to help free him. And then you get Eric Wilson,
all right, the same Eric Wilson who's tied for the
(06:26):
team lead, in sacks messing with a guy late where
Miles price that gave him a chance to get clear.
I was just so impressed by that, the meat and
potatoes aspect of Baddie and Felton, but then leading sacks
guy out there trying to free him for a touchdown.
Speaker 4 (06:41):
Yeah, no, it was a huge play for Miles, who's
a guy that we think every time he touches the
ball's got a chance to do something with it, especially
because of those guys he's had on that unit in
front of him. And really we've had some really really
good execution, specifically in the kick return phase and punt
return phase. But many of those opportunities you've seen that
(07:02):
yellow flag come flying on the field, just as guys
it's a different play. Guys are a lot closer together.
There's a lot bigger bodies out there. The change of
direction with all those bodies clumped together basically five yards apart,
you've got to know when, as we learned on the
touchdown later in the game, you got to go know
when to let go. But you win those one on
(07:22):
ones in those in those blocking battles with guys like Baddie,
you know, felt and then obviously you will, it will
give you a chance to very at the very least
flip the field, at the very least give us a
little shot of life there after they did score early,
and then what I loved about that is the offense
getting the ball in the end zone and then the
defense going out and getting to stop and we go
(07:44):
right back. And for the first time and since I've
been the head coach here, really felt like we had
total control the football game early. Obviously, against a really
good team like that, you can lose it in a heartbeat,
but it just felt like our team's kept on stacking
plays when we needed him to have them happen to
maintain the momentum pay that we had in the game,
(08:04):
and then that allowed us to play things like field
position that still matters in twenty twenty five in the NFL.
I think a lot of people have lost sight of
what it's like to win that battle, Ryan right, you know,
keeping those guys inside the ten. And then obviously us
being able to have short fields coming back for a
variety of different reasons.
Speaker 3 (08:22):
And meet and potatoes than McCarthy more meet and potatoes.
The Jones long one, the one that they took from
a pass to a run. Nice floater by McCarthy. You
hit on that at your press conference yesterday. It was
a really nice touch floater. Hockinson did enough with Branch,
all right, so that was fine. Jordan Addison demolished Arthur Molett,
(08:45):
the cornerback, legally demolished him. And I think Terry and
Arnold wanted to fight Jordan Addison during the play until
he saw Jones whipping down the up the sideline.
Speaker 5 (08:57):
Hey, I got to go get him. Yeah, but you know,
you know what I'm talking about here.
Speaker 3 (09:02):
Yeah, Addison crushes Mallett and then like Terry and Arnold
took umbrage to it right there, and I thought he
was going to go after Jordan.
Speaker 5 (09:09):
Yeah, it was.
Speaker 4 (09:10):
It was a play we we didn't have a lot
of plays up in the game with both Jordan Mason
and Aaron Jones on the field, So when I called
that personnel grouping, everybody knew what play was coming.
Speaker 5 (09:22):
But it was the execution. We got the exact look
we wanted.
Speaker 4 (09:25):
Jordan actually was being covered by Terry on Arnold on
the play, so he gets you know, he trails Jordan
down in there as he's blocking Mallet and when he
makes that block and puts him on the ground. You're right,
Terry On didn't know whether to you know, stick up
for his guy or go try to run down the play.
And I did think that was a big time throw
by JJ. Not an easy one, not for you know,
(09:46):
to get that up and over the defensive end right
there and give Aaron a chance to be out the
gate for what was a huge play in the moment.
Speaker 5 (09:53):
Thought it was pass yards.
Speaker 4 (09:54):
You know, JJ's would have been in the one seventies
if that was past yards.
Speaker 5 (09:59):
But hel the yards for attempt the whole thing. I
watched it. I watched it. Really don't understand it.
Speaker 4 (10:04):
I watched it really close. It is as close as
you can possibly be. So whoever was scoring the play
on the day, I think they were more of an
Aaron Jones or maybe not a JJ McCarthy fan who
knows well.
Speaker 3 (10:18):
Keeping momentum obviously is key. And we have a talk
back each and every Tuesday for Viking's head coach Kevin O'Connell.
Speaker 5 (10:25):
And here's this week's.
Speaker 6 (10:29):
Good Morning Nordo on PA. It's Mike from Tampa. This
is for the head coach. Koc First and foremost, congrats,
on a great win, a great team effort from coaching
on down, firing on all cylinders, a couple of things
for improvements.
Speaker 5 (10:43):
Where we can tighten up.
Speaker 6 (10:44):
I think the biggest question that fans and myself have
is how do you keep the team on a high
off a great win like that at Ford Field with
a strong Baltimore team coming in and keep them focused
so that they keep firing on all cylinders upcoming.
Speaker 4 (10:58):
Yeah, Mike, I think it's a great question, and you
think a lot about those things as many times as
in minutes and hours you plan. Like I mentioned of
having the team back after that long weekend where we
had some time off, you spend a lot of time
thinking about what is the direction that I need to
make sure I present and then actively hold our guys too.
(11:19):
Throughout the week after a win like that, you absolutely
have to give it the same amount of care and concern.
But what I would say is the journey we've been
on this year has been filled with many, many moments
where it'd be easy for these guys to, you know,
just say, you know, maybe it's not our year.
Speaker 5 (11:38):
There's a lot of things going wrong.
Speaker 4 (11:39):
There's a lot of things injury wise where we just
need that guy or this guy and we just don't
have him, maybe in game losing linemen, right.
Speaker 5 (11:46):
Tackle, left, haack, whatever it is.
Speaker 4 (11:49):
We've kind of taken a journey up until this point
that I think has kind of calcified us as a
team to know these guys are really it's a different
kind of it's a different kind vibe in a good
way where hey, we get off to a five and
oh start. Last year, we lose two in a row
and it's hey, let's write this ship and get back
to where we were. We really never felt, you know,
(12:10):
outside of you know, beating Chicago and the opener, and
even then we didn't play a good game in the
first half, specifically on offense, we never have really felt
like we've earned the right to feel like we've arrived.
Speaker 5 (12:21):
And through that time we've had.
Speaker 4 (12:23):
To really look inward and have a little grit and
and a different kind of feel to how we go
about our business and persevering through some adversity directly starting
you know, the season where it hasn't really been like
that always for us. I know we started oh and
three a couple of years ago, but Pa, what I
mean by that is, I think these guys are showing
back up in the building with kind of a workmanlike
(12:46):
approach now of understanding the margin of error is razor thin,
and we need to do everything in our power to
prepare for every every game each week like it is
the only thing that matters, and do it with our
same culture and guys having an absolute you know blast
competing daily and getting better and all those things that
we do around here. But in the end, there is
(13:07):
a level of edge to this team now that I
think Vikings fans you know, hopefully can appreciate because of
the journey we've been on that we have not been
happy about up until this point in the season. But
nine games left and I feel like this team is
now prepared to do a lot of the things required
and have the personality of a football team that can
go do those things.
Speaker 2 (13:27):
Join the Vikings Middle LIGHTE and k FA N for
the Salute to Service Bar Tour November fourth through the seventh,
when Vikings tickets, merch and enjoy a beer. Final The
details on the Viking Street Team Instagram page at Vikings
Street Team. More x's and o's around the corner on
the Minnesota Vikings Audio Network. Football fans meet Pays, a
convenient new online checkout offered by bank and credit unions.
(13:49):
Learn more at pays dot com pa Ze pays dot Com.
Back to X's and O's the Kevin O'Connor.
Speaker 3 (13:54):
Garra saw with O'Neill, it just changes everything, doesn't.
Speaker 4 (13:58):
I mean, there's these guys, it's hard to put into
words just what they mean to our offense and the
combination of both those guys together. I thought Christian had
one of his, you know, one of his best games
he's had this season, and.
Speaker 5 (14:12):
And just the fight.
Speaker 4 (14:13):
I mean, he's he's he's still in a position, pa
where you know, the reps as they stack up and
and and he gets into a game where it is
a mental test for him, you know, every single week,
but he's passing it and and he is continuing. I
love the way he handled himself in the football game.
He was one of the first on the field out
(14:33):
in the huddle, set in the tone for those guys.
And then I thought Brian O'Neill, you know, had a
really tough matchup ended up having Hutchinson on him quite
a bit on that right side, and.
Speaker 5 (14:44):
He fought a heck of a battle against what you know.
As now, I don't know whether he is or not.
Speaker 4 (14:48):
I haven't done the math on it, but feels like
they made him a pretty well compensated pass rusher last week.
But somehow about the block on the early screen against
the zero pressure, Yeah, where he gets out on the
corner and kid just some of the other things he did.
Those guys are so so important to what we do.
And and also you know, Donovan Jackson played a really
(15:10):
great game, having seventy one in there right next to him,
and then Will Fries with bo and just how the
Nick Finett's blocking in the run game and stepping in
for Josh Oliver and next to those tackles.
Speaker 5 (15:20):
They have a lot to do with a lot of
our success.
Speaker 3 (15:22):
All right, Ravens to close here with, By the way,
did Christian Christian exit the game?
Speaker 5 (15:27):
Okay?
Speaker 3 (15:27):
Yes, Darrisaw came out of it. Okay, good the Ravens.
What does the number five fifty two mean to you?
Five fifty two Ravens, I don't know. Uh, it's the
combined weight of Derrick Henry and Patrick Ricard, which means
that's a two man jumbo package runner right at you.
Speaker 1 (15:47):
Right right.
Speaker 5 (15:47):
Yeah, we're gonna see it. We're gonna see it.
Speaker 4 (15:49):
We've seen bigger groupings from people just about in every
game we've played this year. You hear the official announcing
either somebody as an eligible and extra alignment as ineligible,
or you've got you know, some of the big fullbacks
and tight ends, you know, Washington from Pittsburgh, who I
think is you know, if he's not close to three
(16:09):
hundred pounds, I'd like to see the scale, you know.
And then just some of the people are choosing to
try to get bigger with our defense and try to
play that kind of game to avoid some of the
risk factors that you know very well.
Speaker 5 (16:21):
Pa. When you play against Brian.
Speaker 4 (16:23):
Four at Flores and you want to spread him out
with a bunch of skilled people on the field, you know,
you know you're signing up for some potential problems.
Speaker 5 (16:30):
And so people are going the other way.
Speaker 4 (16:31):
They're trying to get bigger, they're trying to play physical.
That's why I love the fact that we had the
type of knockback we had won the line of scrimmage
in the interior of the D line. The edges were
set by Grenard and Turner and Van Ginkel, and then
obviously Cashman and Eric were flying all over the place
making a lot of tackles and many of them for loss.
Speaker 3 (16:50):
Oh you mean Eric Wilson, who has four sacks, one
of your leading sacrists, super important on kick return.
Speaker 5 (16:55):
That's right.
Speaker 3 (16:55):
Oh, that fifty five Cole Redford Michigan, twenty minutes away
from Detroit. Talk to his mom before every game. I
see him. Shannon's her name, I believe, And they had
about twenty five people there.
Speaker 5 (17:05):
They were super excited. That was really cool.
Speaker 3 (17:08):
I don't know who the best player in the Ravens
defense is at this time of the week. Rokwan switz Smith,
I've looked at that. Kyle Hamilton, just the Notre Dame safety.
How does he play like Kyle Hamilton? What do you
think about him?
Speaker 5 (17:19):
Yeah?
Speaker 4 (17:19):
I think you know, they've kind of throughout the season,
you know, he really was playing a lot more of
the safety position.
Speaker 5 (17:28):
Early on in the year.
Speaker 4 (17:29):
They make a trade for a third safety, Gilman from
the Chargers, who is a very good player, and that's
really allowed Kyle Hamilton almost Josh mattelis like to get
down near the box a little bit more and be
a major factor as a blitzer, major factor around the
line of scrimmage. You know, they want to get him
closer to the ball. Derwin James like that we saw
(17:49):
a couple of weeks ago because he's.
Speaker 5 (17:51):
That kind of impact.
Speaker 4 (17:52):
I think he's one of the best defensive players in
the National Football League right now when you really think
about his impact at all levels of the defense, running pass,
affecting the quarterback as a pressure player, but then matching
up with the likes of you know, Puka Nakua or
DeVante Adams when they played the Rams, and you look
at him against the Bears receivers and we know those guys, well,
(18:13):
you just see a guy that's got a total complete
skill set football IQ off the charts, and a physicality
to how he plays as a big, old, long, you know,
strong player in the middle of the defense. Now that
we've got to know where he is at all times,
Rokwan's obviously a very very good player, and I think
they've got some really good corners. They're very big and
physical in the interior. Their D line challenge for sure,
(18:36):
and I think they're doing a really good job figuring
out exactly who they want to be. They've been a
lot better against the run the last two three weeks,
and they can always turn the ball over with the
type of scheme they play if you're not really tight
with your operation and how you're playing.
Speaker 3 (18:49):
And lastly, Lamar Jackson his rookie year, all right, he
played sixteen games his rookie year through for just twelve
hundred yards fifty eight percent on the completions. Later last
year four seventy two yards sixty six and a half.
Where has he grown as a passer over the half.
Speaker 5 (19:09):
Decade, Yeah, it's been.
Speaker 4 (19:10):
I was on the field when he worked out as
a quarterback at the combine.
Speaker 1 (19:13):
Wow.
Speaker 4 (19:13):
I was on the field working out, you know, some
of the other quarterbacks and then watching the workout up close,
and I remember that day vividly and talking to him
after that workout. What you knew about Lamar Jackson has
been proven to be correct, which is this guy is
an ultimate competitor, one of the most gifted quarterbacks you
(19:33):
know in our league right now, both as a runner
clearly and the way.
Speaker 5 (19:37):
He dynamically changes the game.
Speaker 4 (19:39):
But he is making throw after throw from the pocket
in rhythm, great fundamentals, seeing coverage, seeing the field. They
do a really good job of marrying things all together
with a pretty elite run game with him included in that.
That makes it very hard constantly putting defenders in pass
run conflict. And then they've got Flowers and obviously a
(20:02):
whole cast of really, really good skilled players.
Speaker 5 (20:05):
It's going to be a challenge.
Speaker 4 (20:06):
I know, talking to Flow yesterday, you know, everything you
know starts with obviously Lamar Jackson, but then Derrick Henry
is a guy that at any point in time you
give him any kind of space, he's proven to be
able to take at the distance. So we've got to
have our sharpest, most impactful defensive game of the season
with them coming to US Bank Stadium on Sunday.
Speaker 5 (20:25):
Thank you for the time. Appreciate it.
Speaker 3 (20:26):
Appreciate it Man Kevin O'Connell, head coach of the Minnesota Vikings,
and I'm Paul Allen.
Speaker 5 (20:29):
That's X's and O's.
Speaker 2 (20:30):
Thank you for joined us for this week's episode of
X's and O's. Kevin O'Connell. X AS and O's is
presented by Ken Moore and is an official production of
the Minnesota Vikings Audio Network.
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