Through 15 games this season, the Minnesota Vikings are 13-2. The team has won eight straight games and still has a chance at the #1 seed in the NFC playoffs. Minnesota has talented players on offense but the team made a massive change at QB this season. They parted ways with veteran Kirk Cousins and signed Sam Darnold to a one-year deal.
Darnold and the Vikings are thriving in 2024 and a ton of credit is due to head coach Kevin O’Connell. He’s brought out the best in Sam Darnold this season and has him playing the best football of his career. With a 27-24 win vs. Seattle in Week 16, the Vikings secured their second 13-win season in three years. Kevin O’Connell is the first head coach in Vikings history to have multiple 13-win seasons. Expect the 39-year-old head coach to get an extension this offseason.
Kevin O’Connell has brought consistency to the Minnesota Vikings
KOC just locked up coach of the year with that win.
Kevin O’Connell became 1st coach in Vikings history to have multiple 13-win seasons…he’s only been there 3 years.
And he doesn’t have an extension yet??
— Chase Daniel (@ChaseDaniel) December 23, 2024
In the 2008 NFL draft, Kevin O’Connell was a third-round pick by the New England Patriots. O’Connell’s time in the NFL lasted only one season and he thought he had a future in coaching. He got his start coaching in the NFL with the Browns as the QB coach in 2015. Ahead of the 2019 season, O’Connell was hired by the Commanders as their offensive coordinator. Following that season, he was with the Rams in 2020 and 2021 as their offensive coordinator. Finally, O’Connell was hired by the Vikings as their head coach ahead of the 2022 season.
That’s where O’Connell has spent the last three years. During his first year as head coach in 2022, O’Connell and the Vikings finished 13-4 and made the playoffs. Minnesota lost to the Giants but it was still a successful first season for O’Connell. In 2023, the Vikings took a step back, finishing 7-10. However, the team has bounced back in 2024 and has 13 wins with two games to go. The Vikings have a chance to tie their 1998 record of 15 wins in the regular season. Per BetOnline, Kevin O’Connell is the betting favorite to win NFL Coach of the Year at (-250).
