The Vikings know they need to get more out of the offense
A non-stop flight from London to Minneapolis is nine hours and five minutes. Had the Minnesota Vikings lost to the New Orleans Saints on Sunday, that would have been a long time to think about how they let a game they typically lost in the Mike Zimmer era slip away.
Kevin O'Connell didn't see much of the celebration nor did he see Kirk Cousins put on Christian Darrisaw's chain in an experience he called "empowering," but he did see a team that deserved to celebrate in a spot they rarely have been.
Related: Where we rate the Vikings in our Week 5 power rankings
The Vikings started 3-1 or better just once (2016) during Mike Zimmer's eight-season tenure and have done it just three times (2009, 2012) since 2005. Still, the offense is a work in progress and O'Connell knows there's plenty of work to be done.
"I think every week is critical," O'Connell said. "We've got goals as a team but none more important than just understanding we were able to get another victory last week but we were able to put that behind us."
The Vikings believed that O'Connell could get some of the meat off the bone that was left behind during Gary and Klint Kubiak's stints as offensive coordinator but that hasn't happened so far
In 2020, the Vikings ranked fourth in total yards but 11th in points scored. Last season, the Vikings ranked 12th in yards and 14th in points. Through four games, O'Connell's magic hasn't worked as the Vikings rank 17th in yards and 15th in points.
Even the eye test shows a team that was swimming in the playbook and reaching for flashcards this offseason. With each drop, wrong route and missed opportunity, the Vikings are leaving points on the field, which is hindering their ability to put teams away.
"We've come out feeling like we've got to be sharper," Cousins said of the issues. "We've got to be better. There's plays we're leaving out there. I do feel that we have to tighten the screws down a little bit on some of our execution and that's what we're working towards."
Part of that has been their execution in the red zone. The Vikings rank 25th in the NFL by scoring a touchdown on just over 46 percent of their red zone drives. On Sunday, it meant Cousins checking down to Johnny Mundt on a 3rd-and-1 right before halftime and throwing to a covered Adam Thielen over a wide-open Justin Jefferson late in the third quarter.
Three plays from Sunday's game that resulted in the Vikings kicking field goals.
— Will Ragatz (@WillRagatz) October 4, 2022
The yellow circle is who Kirk Cousins threw the ball to. The red circle is a player coming open for a TD.
They're not all bad reads, but a bit more aggressiveness could make a big difference. pic.twitter.com/iuYHLExrId
"We’ve got to finish better scoring in the red zone," O'Connell told reporters on Monday. "We came from a game where we were 3-for-3 scoring touchdowns to missing some opportunities there to maybe get seven [points] instead of three that could have changed the whole dynamic of that second half.”
The plays spell a familiar refrain for Cousins, who has been prone to take the easy completion as opposed to taking a risk downfield for a bigger gain. While O'Connell praised Cousins's ability to "run the show" during the early weeks of the season, he also acknowledged that there's still work to do in a new system.
“Kirk’s going to continue to improve," O'Connell said. "He’s made some big-time throws. Consistency is a factor for all of us at this point, me included and we’ll continue to look inward and build our offense up however we see fit week in and week out to maximize our chances of scoring points."
There are similar concerns about the Vikings' running game. Brian O'Neill (9th), Garrett Bradbury (11th) and Ed Ingram (15th) all rank within the top-15 of their position groups in Pro Football Focus's run-blocking grades this season, but the Vikings rank 16th in the NFL with 4.4 yards per attempt.
That number also defines Dalvin Cook, whose 4.4 yards per carry is currently the lowest of his career, but there were moments where a shoestring tackle prevented him from breaking a big run against the Saints, which has him feeling optimistic as the season rolls along.
"We're still on the brink of getting the run game to where we need to go," Cook said. "Our passing game, we're still missing a few things in the red zone, just big plays out there that we can get. That's the encouraging thing about it, a lot of plays out there to be made."
Perhaps the most positive development is the attitude in the Vikings' locker room. It might be true that if Dan Campbell doesn't make a bad fourth-down decision and Lutz's field goal goes through, they could be a 1-3 team but they've done what they've needed to do despite not hitting on all cylinders.
"To sit here at 3-1 and know that there’s a lot of plays that maybe we’re going to be able to call back upon to make those plays and score more points...it's much easier to have that dialogue," O'Connell said. "[We know] that we have been able to win some tough-fought victories here [and] there’s a lot out in front of us as well."
Cook had a much more simple goal.
"As long as we keep stacking that win column up, we good."
