Reaction to Kevin O'Connell's Mini-Camp Wrap Up Press Conference

[0:05] what's going on jerome's a beautiful what day is it thursday you know that last day of vikings [0:11] mandatory mini camp uh as wrapping up on this beautiful thursday uh guys are headed out of [0:16] town and i'm not sure i watched the whole press conference but i'm not 100 sure if kevin connell [0:24] canceled the last week of uh otas i think he did pretty sure he did he always does who knows anyways [0:32] but uh takeaways from kevin connell presser so first off was the minnesota girls high school flag [0:39] football champions rosemount high school made an early cameo you go go irish it reminds me of my [0:45] favorite sam paddy's day joke irish i was korean also the bill walls coaching fellowship is going on so [0:54] a bunch of uh new up-and-coming coaches were in the building notably two of them was former vikings [1:01] wide receiver trishan jackson and former vikings cornerback bobby mccain me and bobby mccain [1:07] it's good to see that and um so i i love trishan jackson's game i always thought that [1:14] you know the pride of syracuse the pride of michigan state was just like that close to busting out man [1:19] but uh you know i'm glad that both of them gonna be uh transitioning to the next step and get into [1:25] coaching do some great things there also uh oh he did wrapping up off-season program day nailed it [1:31] you know that uh props to showing up during otas you know talk about the players showing up putting [1:36] in good work and basically coaches like it when you know the voluntary portion of otas basically become [1:44] mandatory it's kind of what it is where you know the star players show up they set a good example [1:51] because you're like hey if you're a rookie trying to make the team how do you not show up to voluntary [1:55] otas when justin freaking jefferson's out here grinding so jj said a good example man also most of the [2:02] questions were about the quarterback spot shocker so jj and kyler uh both had really good days again [2:08] today they're practicing inside because it's raining right now uh in the south metro uh defense humming [2:14] around a mid-season forum props of flores this defense man is gonna be biblical like i i understand [2:21] hey hey lost granard fully understand do not care in the slightest this defense especially up front [2:28] whoo let's go let's go man also the you know knows what kyler was talking about uh reps with [2:36] the ones for start because yeah kyler's comments the other day did come off as you know a little [2:41] bit whiny about not getting you know all the first team reps it is what it is but this is a legitimate [2:46] competition and jj mccarthy props he's tom petty and he won't back down and this competition is going to [2:55] bring out the best in both dudes and ultimately it's the best for the minnesota buckings and no [2:59] the loser is not getting traded because injuries happen in the league we're going to need both of [3:04] them right also uh you know the timeline of getting started ready to go for competition [3:11] i and so kevin mcconnell says that he's got a timeline of when he's going to name a starter i don't [3:15] believe him actually uh because he talked about how both guys are splitting reps um carson [3:22] wentz is a vet doesn't need a ton of reps a brosmer you do want him developing but you know he's [3:27] getting the scraps at the end yeah also don't read too much into who gets what on what days [3:33] who's working oh there's always the big one who gets the first rep of you know seven on seven [3:39] eleven on eleven doesn't really matter but in terms of what they're working on a specific day [3:45] you know it could be a different quarterback either way because you know jj may need to work more on [3:50] thing x kyler may need to work more on thing z so it really depends on what they're working on that [3:56] day during training camp uh and also uh growth comes from being uncomfortable and that's essentially [4:03] where the vikings are at right now uh and mccarthy had some comments a couple weeks ago about not being [4:08] thrilled about the competition uh and also obviously kyler this week uh had some comments too that's fine [4:15] let him duke it out uh get get comfortable with being uncomfortable because that's how it's going [4:20] to be uh leading into training camp also you know jj some great growth during the off season [4:27] hopefully some maturity plus layering uh and learning from the players uh versus that defense every day is [4:33] key and that's the thing with mccarthy too is that he is just he just does need reps to really mature [4:40] and grow his game and also every throw doesn't have to be a you know 98 mile an hour marion or [4:47] rivera cut fastball right so that's where kyler does have the advantage where kyler does have the [4:55] experience of layering throws uh adding touch to passes completing two-thirds of his throws in the [5:01] league so that's something that jj needs to strive for right and frankly i mean they're obviously not [5:08] going to be best of friends but i mean that's something that jj should emulate from kyler's game [5:13] also kyler you know over the summer diving back into things impressive throws uh layering some [5:18] throws as well uh improved massively you know calling plays running the show where you're coming [5:24] into a brand new offense cold not the easiest thing to do especially on a new team learning new [5:29] personnel learning new verbiage getting used to a new coaching staff so everything on the fly and you [5:34] you do understand you know kyler's gripe where so if he's going to be the starter and all this new [5:40] situation you want to get him as many reps as possible so i understand that but also at the end [5:46] of the day hey you got to fight for it got to earn that spot right and also o'connell of course no [5:52] concrete date selecting the starter could be early uh could need a preseason game or two uh kevin o'connell [5:58] does see both of them playing in the preseason which i feel like was an error last year from by kevin [6:04] o'connell not playing jj as much as he probably should have in preseason uh well i i understand [6:10] because you don't want to trot him out there behind a second team offensive line and that's [6:14] something that's going to have to be balanced a lot with kyler and jj in preseason as well because [6:21] you should get your first team offensive line some reps but also does brian o'neill need reps does [6:28] need reps we'll see uh jj physical development and fundamentals added throws rhythm and timing so jj [6:35] he's been in the lab man he hasn't just been whining and pissing and moaning like oh there's [6:40] competition here no he's actually been working which is good and he showed showed up and showed [6:44] out during mandatory minicamp he's looked really good and consistent uh kyler continued to grow in [6:49] the system comfortable being uncomfortable that really it's a cliche but that's the name of the [6:54] game right now and also in some non kyler stuff and non jj stuff uh going against the floors defense [7:00] every day is a blessing and also you mentioned how the defense it looks in mid-season form already [7:08] that's it too uh all of the media attention right now is on the quarterback competition rightfully so [7:14] but this defense we're gonna whip somebody's ass that's right baby also kayla banks first round pick [7:22] out of florida uh working on the side field uh some positive medical reviews uh timeline ideally he's [7:28] gonna be good to go for the start of training camp here in six seven weeks uh feedback from [7:34] defensive coaches on uh banks development uh in the playbook so basically still getting those mental [7:40] reps and uh even though he hasn't been able to be on the field uh this is really gonna help his early [7:45] development uh from the get also the offensive line has been phenomenal uh props to new offensive line [7:51] coach keith carter you know play style mentality huge expectations uh yeah brian o'neill and christian [7:57] darrow saw both as team leaders frank smith who frank smith is going to be like the man behind [8:03] the curtain like wizard of os style just adding layers to this offense i i honestly feel like a [8:11] change of leadership in the offensive line was important and i i know that keith carter was the [8:16] assistant last year but there's a major difference between being the assistant being the guy and keith [8:21] carter he's a no bs no nonsense coach uh with high expectations and ideally the [8:30] offensive line they needed to kick in the shorts and i think that they certainly got it so as the [8:35] offensive line goes as goes this offense because whoever ends up winning quarterback position if you [8:40] don't have offensive line as evidenced by last year it really doesn't matter at the end of the day [8:45] because your team is going to be kaput and hopefully that's not going to be the case this year [8:50] so that's it again seems like they're off next week shocker yeah uh you guys are the absolute best [8:59] let us know your thoughts about kevin mcconnell's minicamp presser uh skull production value