Vikings officially name Kevin O’Connell their new head coach

The Minnesota Vikings have made the hiring of Kevin O’Connell as their new head coach official by sharing the news on social media.

The wait is over for Minnesota Vikings fans who were a bit nervous about whether or not Kevin O’Connell would be named the team’s new head coach for the 2022 NFL season after some earlier drama put the hire in doubt.

Thankfully, the team announced on all their social media platforms as well as their official website that the hire is now official and O’Connell has become the tenth head coach in the history of the franchise.

Here is their tweet announcing the hire:

Why should Minnesota Vikings fans be excited about Kevin O’Connell?

Kevin O’Connell is fresh from the Super Bowl where he was the offensive coordinator for the Los Angeles Rams. He brings his championship ring and experience to Minnesota where he will attempt to shape and develop the Vikings into a contender.

At only 36 years old, O’Connell brings a youthful presence to the team as their head coach and has spent time with new general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah as well as current Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins when in previous roles with San Francisco and Washington.

Previously, head coach Mike Zimmer was a defensive-minded individual who had an old-school mentality when it came to football. That changes with O’Connell who is likely to be more creative and modern on both sides of the ball.

Now, the focus on the franchise shifts entirely to building a roster that can compete in the future. Free agency, the 2022 NFL Draft, evaluating players who are currently under contract, and maneuvering to get under the salary cap are all coming up for this new regime of the Minnesota Vikings and a lot of responsibility falls on the shoulders of the team’s new head coach to make this team the best it can be.

Welcome to the Minnesota Vikings, Kevin O’Connell. We hope you can achieve great things with the purple and gold and look forward to seeing how you can bring this historic franchise to a Super Bowl for the first time since 1977. He will be introduced at a press conference on Thursday.