Vikings coach O’Connell reviews win over Bears and looks ahead to matchup vs. Seahawks
The Vikings can secure the No. 1 seed in the NFC if they win out. That was among topics head coach Kevin O’Connell addressed at his normal day-after-a-game news conference.
Caleb Williams had just trudged off the field after being chased all over the backfield by Minnesota’s Jonathan Greenard during another failed third-down play for Chicago when he plopped down on the bench and rolled his head back in exhaustion.
Having taken a hard, clean hit to the midsection by Jihad Ward right before he released the ball on that incompletion early in the fourth quarter, Williams leaned to his left as if he were looking for a place to lie down in what appeared to be a mix of fatigue, pain and frustration.
The Vikings can have that effect on a young quarterback.
“We were really disciplined, but it just felt explosive, guys flying off the edges,” coach Kevin O’Connell said after the 30-12 victory over the Bears on Monday night. “When that thing is moving, it just felt like it was relentless.”
Though the Vikings only registered two sacks, they had Williams on his heels all night. The first overall pick in the draft used his exceptional athleticism to evade some of the pressure, but he often started scrambling sooner than he needed to and several of his throws were badly off target. Williams had only three completions of 15-plus yards, all in the second half while the Bears trailed by two or more scores.
