Minnesota Vikings head coach Kevin O'Connell has come under scrutiny over the last year for his offenses' look and his lack of quarterback development, even though he's been viewed as a QB whisperer. The noise has gotten quite loud this offseason, and O'Connell has named his third different week-one starter in as many years. Would you be surprised to know that O'Connell ranks near the bottom in one major category among NFL play-callers?
Since arriving in Minnesota in 2022, O'Connell has been the playcaller for his offense. There is one glaring stat to look at regarding new quarterback Kyler Murray that might be cause for concern:
Since 2022, when O'Connell became Vikings head coach, Minnesota has the third-lowest shotgun snap percentage in the NFL
(53%). During Kyler Murray's career in Arizona, the Cardinals were in shotgun 85% of the time, per NFL Next Gen Stats.
Murray will already have a learning curve in this offense, as it is night and day different from what he had in Arizona. Now, you are asking Murray to do something he has not done a lot of during his NFL career: be under center. Minnesota's offense has a high ceiling in 2026, but we should also worry about how low the floor could be.
This article originally appeared on Vikings Wire: Vikings don't utilize shotgun snaps often with Kevin O'Connell
