Kevin O’Connell Blames Minnesota Vikings O-line After Loss

Nine sacks. Nine. The Minnesota Vikings offensive line tied an NFL Playoff record by allowing nine sacks in their loss to the Rams, Monday night in Glendale, Arizona. Head coach Kevin O’Connell didn’t do those linemen any favors early, however. Nine of the first 11 plays the Vikings ran were pass plays.

The Vikings didn’t sustain a drive until Aaron Jones broke two runs for a total of 20 yards on consecutive plays. Then Sam Darnold was sacked and threw an interception. Darnold was sacked on the first three offensive possessions, losing 29 yards in total.

Sam Darnold takes sacks…so many sacks

When asked after the game where his offense struggled most, O’Connell pointed to the Vikings’ interior offensive line. It struggled to move the Rams on both run and pass plays.

Kevin O’Connell says there is “no question” the Vikings have to solidify the interior of their offensive line this offseason.

— Kevin Seifert (@SeifertESPN) January 14, 2025

Kevin O'Connell: "We've got to find a way to solidify the interior of the pocket. … There could be a 1,000 excuses made, but for me, it's the foundation of the interior of the pocket that we're going to have to take a long look at."

— Alec Lewis (@alec_lewis) January 14, 2025

But Darnold does take a lot of sacks. It’s a thing he does. He holds the ball. But were all these sacks his fault? Many of them were, but some of the blame falls on Kevin O’Connell for putting Darnold in those situations by calling long-developing pass plays.

Not a single sack took less than 2.5 seconds, which is the cutoff for the stat “pass block win rate.” The offensive line “won” more than they lost, but 11 pass block losses is still a lot.

More context: the Rams allowed six pressures to the Vikings’ 24, meaning the Rams offensive linemen owned the blitzing Brian Flores. Meanwhile an injury-riddled Minnesota offensive line struggled to contain LA pass rushers.

Only 2 of Darnold's 6 sacks taken have come in less than 4.4 seconds. None faster than 3.2 seconds per @NextGenStats

— Bill Smith (@BillSmithNFL) January 14, 2025

Oh man, only 11 of those 24 pressures happened within 2.5 seconds of the snap.

My God, Sam.

— Brett Kollmann (@BrettKollmann) January 14, 2025

The combination of ball-holding quarterback, long-developing plays, and poor line play created a perfect storm that sunk the Vikings’ ship. Regardless, the offensive line has been a problem in Minnesota for as long as this writer can remember.

Minnesota Vikings’ offseason opportunities

There’s an opportunity to remedy the situation this offseason. The Vikings have all the money in the world to spend ($73.2 million), and All-Pro right guard Trey Smith is a free agent.

Related: What We Learned About the Minnesota Vikings in Yet Another Demoralizing Playoff Loss

When it comes to the 2025 NFL Draft, both Tyler Booker (Alabama) and Donovan Jackson (Ohio State) are projected to be drafted right around the Vikings’ selection (24th), according to CBS Sports. So there’s hope on the horizon, especially with left tackle Christian Darrisaw returning from a knee injury that ended his season.