O’Connell treated ground game like a side of Brussels sprouts
Vikings May Already Be Regretting Offseason Handling of Running Back Room
The Vikings running back room could have used one more addition going into this season.
The Minnesota Vikings have been known for a high-octane passing attack under Kevin O’Connell. But when it comes to running the ball, O’Connell has treated the ground game like a side of Brussels sprouts.
The Vikings had their most efficient running game under O’Connell last season at 4.5 yards per carry, but they ranked 27th in the NFL with 410 rushing attempts. That number was boosted after they watered down the offense to help J.J. McCarthy over the final five games of the season and O’Connell has tried to find other ways to give his rushing attack a lift.
The additions of new offensive line coach Keith Carter and new assistant head coach Frank Smith, who served as Mike McDaniel’s offensive coordinator with the Miami Dolphins, should help O’Connell get more out of the running game. But when it comes to the players who will actually be carrying the ball, the Vikings may be wondering if they should have made one more addition heading into next season.
Vikings’ RB room comes with plenty of flaws entering 2026
The Vikings will go into this season with Jordan Mason and Aaron Jones returning. They also added an intriguing prospect in the NFL Draft after taking Demond Claiborne out of Wake Forest in the sixth round. Zavier Scott was also a capable understudy when called upon last season, but it still feels like the Vikings could have used more.
Mason arrived in Minnesota with big expectations after running for a career-high 789 yards and three touchdowns with the San Francisco 49ers in 2024, but his overall numbers didn’t live up to the hype, with 758 yards and six touchdowns on 159 carries. Those numbers came with a 56.0% success rate according to Pro Football Reference, but they also came with limited involvement in the passing game with 14 catches for 51 scoreless yards.
That could be why Mason was on the field for 63.5% of the Vikings’ offensive snaps in the first seven weeks but was only on the field for 29.4% from Weeks 8 through 16. Jones was the main beneficiary of that decline, but he also has his flaws, entering his age-32 season after being limited to 12 games due to hamstring, shoulder, ankle and hip injuries in 2025.
The laundry list of injuries led to the selection of Claiborne in April’s draft. While Jones compared his burst to Detroit Lions star Jahmyr Gibbs during minicamp, he also posted a 29.9 pass-blocking grade on 42 snaps according to Pro Football Focus. Ball security is also an issue with five fumbles on 179 attempts last season, which may have been the reason he fell to the final day of the draft.
Ty Chandler can vouch that it doesn’t matter how fast you are if you can’t block or hold onto the ball in O’Connell’s offense and it gives the Vikings three flawed backs to work with going into next season. This could be why the Vikings were reported to be in on Travis Etienne during the start of free agency and also examined the markets for Kenneth Walker III and Kenneth Gainwell before they signed elsewhere, according to Purple Insider’s Matthew Coller.
Perhaps Mason replicates his performance from last season, Jones stays healthy and Claiborne brings the explosive element to the running game the Vikings have been missing. There’s also a chance it may not matter if O’Connell remains committed to airing it out in short-yardage situations.
But there is something to be said about not grabbing a more qualified runner to man the backfield. Even if the scheme overhaul is a success, it could leave Minnesota wishing they were a little more aggressive to solve the problem.
LIVE WELL ~ LOVE MUCH ~ LAUGH OFTEN
Brussel sprouts, pan sautéed with olive oil and garlic are one of my favorite foods.
The link didn't work for me but I'm assuming this is Alec Lewis. His fact-based reports are useful but his his opinions just feel like useless clickbait, which is what telling people to "worry" about the Vikings run game this year is.
Kevin O'Connell is never going to lean into the run--whether we like that or not it's just not who he wants to be. He did manage to hire some new coaches and they drafted a kid.
We'll see if it's any better, but in year 5 of coach pass-happy i wouldn't spend time worrying about "oh no we might not run very well!" No we probably won't, but if we do just think of it as a happy bonus.
The best thing he could do in the run game is learn to convert some easy 3rd/4th and short situations instead of treating every one of them like a bombs away mad scientist who can't figure it out.
comet52 wrote:
The link didn't work for me but I'm assuming this is Alec Lewis. His fact-based reports are useful but his his opinions just feel like useless clickbait, which is what telling people to "worry" about the Vikings run game this year is.
Kevin O'Connell is never going to lean into the run--whether we like that or not it's just not who he wants to be. He did manage to hire some new coaches and they drafted a kid.
We'll see if it's any better, but in year 5 of coach pass-happy i wouldn't spend time worrying about "oh no we might not run very well!" No we probably won't, but if we do just think of it as a happy bonus.
The best thing he could do in the run game is learn to convert some easy 3rd/4th and short situations instead of treating every one of them like a bombs away mad scientist who can't figure it out.
@comet52 ~ Nope, Chris Schad
BTW ~ I clicked on the link to double check it & it worked for me.
LIVE WELL ~ LOVE MUCH ~ LAUGH OFTEN
I love Claiborne, but last year was the year to get a back. It was the best RB class in about a decade. At pick 102 we had our choice of Bhayshul Tuten, Cam Skattebo, Croskey-Merritt, Kyle Monangai and a dozen others who contributed as rookies. We took Tai Felton. It's too early to call Felton a mistake, but I'd feel better about our RB room this year if we had a young back with a season under his belt. Felton needs to have a good year.
"The further a society drifts from the truth, the more it will hate those who speak it”
It's been interesting for sure. They brought in the new coach(es) with a running focus, and seem to be talking that up a bit... but our RBs are still below average compared to the talent we have at WR and now hopefully, QB.
I'm hoping the team's thought process on this was to go after the top guys (Etienne rumored), and if we don't score on those, just go cheap. Next offseason the RB room will likely get a big time talent infusion.
pattersaur wrote:
Next offseason the RB room will likely get a big time talent infusion.
As of today, neither Jones nor Mason is under contract in 2027.
Hurry-up Vikings, we ain't getting any younger!
supafreak84 wrote:
I hear that Cam Akers guy is available
Lol, I hope it doesnt come down to that again...
Will be VERY interesting to see how Teasley handles both the QB/RB situations next season. Talk about a complete unknown wildcard...
Hurry-up Vikings, we ain't getting any younger!
comet52 wrote:
The link didn't work for me but I'm assuming this is Alec Lewis. His fact-based reports are useful but his his opinions just feel like useless clickbait, which is what telling people to "worry" about the Vikings run game this year is.
Kevin O'Connell is never going to lean into the run--whether we like that or not it's just not who he wants to be. He did manage to hire some new coaches and they drafted a kid.
We'll see if it's any better, but in year 5 of coach pass-happy i wouldn't spend time worrying about "oh no we might not run very well!" No we probably won't, but if we do just think of it as a happy bonus.
The best thing he could do in the run game is learn to convert some easy 3rd/4th and short situations instead of treating every one of them like a bombs away mad scientist who can't figure it out.
Yeah, the woe is us tone gets old.
And the biggest missing component in his opinion, the O-line. We struggled mightily to run without CD in there. And without a solid center and BO missing time on the other side, it is no wonder we struggled.
If KOC get a bit more dedicated to calling runs, our backs will be fine behind a healthy o-line.
MaroonBells wrote:
I love Claiborne, but last year was the year to get a back. It was the best RB class in about a decade. At pick 102 we had our choice of Bhayshul Tuten, Cam Skattebo, Croskey-Merritt, Kyle Monangai and a dozen others who contributed as rookies. We took Tai Felton. It's too early to call Felton a mistake, but I'd feel better about our RB room this year if we had a young back with a season under his belt. Felton needs to have a good year.
Next year the class is supposed to be just as strong.
Kmerry82 wrote:
Next year the class is supposed to be just as strong.
There's RBs every year, just have to pull the trigger. You don't need an outstanding class, per se, you just need to make the right draft selections. Or avoid the bad ones....Toby Gerhart anyone? Michael Bennett?
Michael Bennett had 1,647 yards from scrimmage in 2002, his second season. Then he got some sort of injury in the offseason (I read a stress fracture on a treadmill?) and was never the same. Gerhart was worse because we burned a 3rd trading up for the schmuck so he cost us 2 picks.
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