Sports

RandBall: If you like second-guessing NFL coaches, this was your week

Kevin O’Connell made some unpopular decisions in the Vikings’ loss Sunday. But it was all forgotten by Monday night.

By Michael Rand

The Minnesota Star Tribune

November 11, 2025 at 5:10PM

Philadelphia Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni watches the scoreboard during Monday's 10-7 win over Green Bay. (Matt Ludtke)

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A day after the Vikings’ 27-19 loss to the Ravens, a critical third-and-a-half-yard early in the third quarter was still a topic of discussion.

With the Vikings leading 10-9, possessing the ball at midfield and trying to recapture the momentum they had lost after a poor end-of-half sequence, Vikings head coach Kevin O’Connell dialed up a deep shot to Justin Jefferson.

The single coverage was favorable. The potential outcomes were, too: Maybe he catches a TD. Next would be a long pass interference call. An incompletion would set up a short fourth down that the Vikings would go for and quite possibly make.

But the worst-case scenario happened, leading to plenty of second-guessing.

“Spent a lot of time thinking about that third-and-1 call late into the evening,” O’Connell said Monday. “You know, zero coverage, Justin Jefferson in a one-on-one situation. ... Hundred times you call that play, you don’t think that one out of 99 where he gets tripped up and [it] ends up being an interception going back the other way.”

“Best receiver in football in a one-on-one with a run call you feel good about on fourth-and-one,” O’Connell added. “I would not change that call.”

I think it’s still debatable, but I’ve moved on. O’Connell can thank Eagles coach Nick Sirianni for that.

While O’Connell made a debatable but defensible decision that had a reasonable probability of working out well in a game the Vikings lost, Sirianni made a baffling and indefensible decision that he got away with in a game the Eagles won.

The whole slate of games left me wondering if NFL staffs should have one coach simply in charge of common-sense game-flow decisions, as I talked about on Tuesday’s Daily Delivery podcast.

Let’s break it down at the start of today’s 10 things to know:

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O’Connell’s decision strikes me as something that was second-guessed based on outcome and game flow. I agree that it’s a good risk to take in most scenarios. But sometimes there is a need to make a decision that fits a specific moment more than a general philosophy, and to me, a simple run there would have fit the moment better. Still, it could have worked. It looked bad because it didn’t, not because the decision was egregiously out of line.
Sirianni, on the other hand, chose to go for it on fourth-and-5 from Green Bay’s 35 with 33 seconds left, the Packers out of timeouts and the Eagles clinging to a 10-7 lead. A low-percentage pass to A.J. Brown fell incomplete, giving Green Bay life. The Packers realistically needed to move 20-25 yards to give big-legged kicker Brandon McManus a chance to tie. Had Sirianni simply punted, the move that analytics overwhelmingly favored, the Packers probably would have needed to move 50-plus yards to be in range. Yardage was more important than possession. The Packers got to the edge of field-goal range only because of Philadelphia’s boneheaded move. McManus ended up missing a 64-yard try and the Eagles escaped. Afterward, Sirianni explained his decision in terms of why he didn’t try a field goal. Huh?
Both of those coaches are still gainfully employed and highly successful. Brian Daboll, who made another decision that fans second-guessed Sunday in a 24-20 loss to the Bears, is not.
O’Connell also mentioned this play on Monday, and I’m sure he was just as appalled watching the film as I was watching it live.

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about the writer

Michael Rand

Columnist / Reporter

Michael Rand is the Minnesota Star Tribune's Digital Sports Senior Writer and host/creator of the Daily Delivery podcast. In 25 years covering Minnesota sports at the Minnesota Star Tribune, he has seen just about everything (except, of course, a Vikings Super Bowl).