Minnesota Vikings Depending On New Leadership, But Cousins Issue Remains In Place

Winning a job interview has a lot to do with understanding what ownership wants to do, and then presenting a plan for making that idea work. It doesn’t mean that those presenting the plan actually believe it can happen.

The Minnesota Vikings hired Kwesi Adofo-Mensah to serve as the team’s steward as it navigates the rough waters of the National Football League. First mate Kevin O’Connell will take the talent Adofo-Mensah gives him and attempt to deliver victory after victory in the upcoming 17-game 2022 season.

Both were able to read the tea leaves during their respective job interviews. Both understood the Vikings were stuck with Kirk Cousins at the quarterback position despite his lack of impact in big-game situations. Nevertheless, both have shown full support for their moneyed quarterback since they were hired for their current positions.

Adofo-Mensah and O’Connell can do several things to improve this team as it prepares for the upcoming season, but the primary issue will remain in place no matter what else is accomplished. As the late Texas governor Ann Richards said about President George H.W. Bush’s economic plan in 1992, “Well, you can put lipstick on a hog and call it Monique, but it’s still a pig.”

Adofo-Mensah has already added OLB Za’Darius Smith from the Green Bay Packers, ILB Jordan Hicks from the Arizona Cardinals and CB Chandon Sullivan from the Packers, and those primary signings appear to be positive developments for a defense that dragged the team down in each of the past two seasons.

New defensive coordinator Ed Donatell will likely employ a 3-4 defense a good percentage of the time to help improve the team, as there is a certain versatility to his coaching style.

Adofo-Mensah has more work to do in the upcoming NFL Draft starting April 28. It seems quite likely that if the Vikings are going to select a top-ranked cornerback with the No. 12 pick like Derek Stingley Jr. of Louisiana State or Trent McDuffie of Washington if they don’t trade up or down with that selection.

Once Adofo-Mensah finishes the draft and adds key undrafted college free agents – this can be an extremely valuable tool – it will fall on O’Connell to meld these players into a team that will be a threat to the Green Bay Packers in the NFC North.

That is a huge ask, considering the problem under center will remain in place. As far as stealing first place from the Packers and threatening the other power teams in the NFC, that’s going far beyond the realistic. But improvement over the 8-9 record the Vikings had in 2021 will allow Adofo-Mensah and O’Connell to go into the 2023 season with an increased power base in their second season together.

O’Connell comes to the team from a successful run on Sean McVay’s coaching staff with the Super Bowl champion Los Angeles Rams. O’Connell is supposedly an advanced thinker when it comes to offensive football, but how much credit does he really deserve? McVay has been running the Los Angeles offense, and while O’Connell did not hurt the team and is clearly a quarterback whisperer, running the Vikings offense will be his first chance to put his signature on an NFL team.

He has some excellent weapons to work with in running back Dalvin Cook and wide receivers Justin Jefferson and Adam Thielen. That trio has been quite productive under former head coach Mike Zimmer, and they will have to be even better under O’Connell.

The Vikings offense certainly needs help with its offensive line depth and at the tight end slot, but the problem for Minnesota is its lack of consistency. The offense would often come up with a key drive early in the first half and then disappear for long stretches. That has to change in 2022.

The real issue is Cousins at the quarterback slot. Apologists for the quarterback can point to the revolving door at the offensive coordinator slot during his four years with the Vikings, but no matter who filled the position, the results were similar. Cousins puts impressive statistical performances on the board on a season-long basis, but his performance in big games against the toughest opponents has been poor.

It doesn’t matter if we are talking about the 2018 season, the 2021 season or the two in the middle. Cousins has struggled to make impact plays when the Vikings need them most. It doesn’t seem likely that the combination of O’Connell and new offensive coordinator Wes Phillips will change that.

Adofo-Mensah and O’Connell can help all the surrounding parts, but the Cousins issue remains intact – no matter how much lipstick is used to pretty the picture.