‘Overhyped for Far Too Long,’ ‘Truly Asinine Take’ — NFL Fans Divided Over Stephen A. Smith’s Criticism of Vikings HC Kevin O’Connell

Is Kevin O’Connell a good head coach? His 49-25 regular-season record since taking over as the Minnesota Vikings’ head honcho suggests he’s been very successful, winning just over 66% of his games. Including his two postseason losses, his overall record stands at 49-27, with a .645 winning percentage.

Yet the individual numbers, particularly those evaluating O’Connell’s offensive output, paint a different picture. Kyler Murray, a former Pro Bowl quarterback, was supposed to help elevate an offense that ranked 26th in scoring last season at 20.2 points per game. Instead, the Vikings have only moved up to 23rd, averaging 20.8 PPG.

Minnesota ranks No. 29 in PFN’s Offense Impact Score after ranking 27th last year. While the Vikings are 6-0, some are starting to question whether O’Connell is truly the QB whisperer his reputation suggests.

Going into Week 8, there’s only one undefeated team left in the NFL, and it’s O’Connell’s Vikings. But that doesn’t mean this team is perfect.

Recently, Stephen A. Smith went on ESPN’s “First Take” and tore the Vikings’ coach apart, saying he’s “lucky” to still have his job in Minnesota.

“I am not going to refrain from bringing this up about Kevin O’Connell,” Smith said. “Let’s be very, very clear. Kevin O’Connell may be a big-time coach in the National Football League because he’s widely respected. Quarterback whisperer and all this other stuff. He’s lucky he’s got a [expletive] job. [Kwesi Adofo-]Mensah, the GM, was fired after last season. What happened?”

Essentially, Smith believes former GM Kwesi Adofo-Mensah took the fall for O’Connell’s shortcomings. In Smith’s view, O’Connell deserved significant blame for Minnesota’s disappointing 9-8 season as well.

“You cost Justin Jefferson and those boys a year of their careers,” Smith added. “So, the GM took the heat. But I’m looking at the head coach too.

“You know what? You had [Sam] Darnold there. You got J.J. McCarthy there, you know, now you got Kyler Murray there, and we’re still saying quarterback, quarterback, quarterback is the issue? So I’m looking at Kevin O’Connell, and I’m saying to myself, ‘Where’s the boy wonder at? Where’s the guy that’s supposed to elevate your level of play from the quarterback spot?’”

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Smith’s criticism was quite pointed, but not everyone agreed with the ESPN analyst. Some fans argued that the Vikings’ undefeated record made his comments about O’Connell difficult to understand.

“Please explain why the coach of the only undefeated team, despite competing in the NFC North, is lucky he’s got a [expletive] job. What in the hell are you talking about?” one user on X asked.

Another commenter said that KOC is “far better at his job than Stephen A.” is.

One fan suggested that if the Vikings were to fire O’Connell, another NFL team would likely hire him almost immediately.

“Kevin O’Connell would be hired by another team in 5 minutes if the Vikings were to let him go. This is a truly asinine take,” they wrote.

Another fan pointed to the Vikings’ 11-game winning streak dating back to last season, noting that O’Connell has been calling the offensive plays throughout the run.

“Isn’t Kevin O’Connell on an 11-game win streak? And the Vikings are the last undefeated team? I swear our fanbase gets brain worms sometimes,” they wrote.

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Yet, for every commenter who disagreed with Smith’s hot take, there was another who felt his criticism of O’Connell was justified.

“Stephen A. is actually right here, wow,” one remarked.

Another fan felt it was about time the Vikings’ head coach took some heat after their lackluster offensive displays, which have been an issue for the past season and a half.

“Finally, one of these people calling out KOC, he’s been overhyped for far too long,” they posted.

Another Vikings fan agreed with Smith’s take, saying, “The media is starting to catch on.”

One commenter suggested that O’Connell may be a “great guy,” but that he also needs to be “held accountable for the offensive woes.”

Overall, O’Connell has been able to do what matters most: lead his team to victory. But that doesn’t mean there’s no room for improvement on offense, either. That’s one area where even O’Connell would likely admit he’d like to see more growth.

This article originally appeared on Pro Football Network.