In the 2008 NFL Draft, the New England Patriots selected Kevin O’Connell with the 94th overall pick to potentially back up Tom Brady.
That Patriots team was coached by Bill Belichick, who gave Kevin O’Connell his first taste of the National Football League. Little did we know O’Connell would be out of the league and become a head coach while Tom is still an NFL quarterback.
Seems somewhat ironic, but here we are. With O’Connell going against his former head coach on Thanksgiving night, you can stuff your face with storylines as you begin your Thanksgiving feast.
With the critically-acclaimed Star Wars series, “Andor” completing its first season on Disney+, “Obi-Won Kenobi” still fresh on our minds, and “ASHOKA” on the horizon, it seems fitting to throw in some Star Wars references when describing the backstory of O’Connell vs. Belichick.
The young Padawan goes against his Jedi Master as the Minnesota Vikings are 8-2 when the Vikings welcome Belichick and the Patriots. Typically, Belichick will probably have a hoodie on at some point as he shows himself like a true Jedi with so much unpredictability heading into this matchup.
O’Connell was on that Patriots team 15 years ago as he attempts to remember what happened on the sidelines in Foxborough. Now O’Connell is climbing up the ranks in the Jedi universe as he now has his own team that he is responsible for.
It’s been a year of many highs and a couple of lows during O’Connell’s first year in Minnesota. We’ve seen how good this team can be with victories over the Buffalo Bills, Miami Dolphins, and Green Bay Packers. We’ve also seen this team fall flat on its face with losses to Philadelphia and Dallas. There will be plenty of tests with missing players from Christian Darrisaw and Cameron Dantzler.
There better be a ton of tight end help on that side of the ball to prevent Cousins from being pressured as often. 63% pressures is simply way too much. From that point of view, Patrick Mahomes had 37% pressures in Super Bowl LV when Tampa Bay annihilated Kansas City upfront.
The Patriots are without center Stephan Andrews for a significant time. That will be an opportunity to rush the passer for the interior defensive line. Mac Jones just needs to take care of the football and sustain drives to keep Jefferson and Cook off the field. If the scoring comes down to a one-possession game, I like Minnesota escaping here like most of us after Thanksgiving Turkey attempting to stay awake.