Kevin O’Connell Sounds the Alarm on 1 Vikings Issue

The snap can’t go sailing like that. Kevin O’Connell understands the reality, swerving into the topic yesterday.

He chatted with the Minnesota media on Monday. Along the way, Coach O’Connell explained how the high-and-hot snap from C1 Blake Brandel was a critical moment that could have resulted in a bad outcome. Minnesota’s skipper knows that the snap can’t be a reoccurring issue since the margin is so small for a lot of these wins (or losses).

O’Connell’s comments: “We had the one high snap that was a critical play early on in the game that kind of flipped the field as far as field position goes.”

Note that O’Connell shoehorned the comment into the mix while reflecting on the turnover battle. Playing in such a wet, windy environment left the skipper impressed about “coming out turnover free.” The errant snap was the lonely exception to what he was saying not due to being a turnover but, rather, a play that killed a drive and pushed Minnesota back pretty far.

Kevin O’Connell Notes Bad Snap Issue

In fairness, Mr. Brandel has been playing pretty well.

The veteran is an offensive tackle who has worked to become capable of playing all five positions up front. At first, that meant kicking inside to play guard, something he did in a backup capacity before then securing the LG1 job for all of 2024. What has been a wild ride for the 2020 draftee got even wilder in 2026 with the Vikings turning to Brandel to be the starting center rather than emergency depth.

And, to be sure, the bad snap is forgivable.

The Vikings’ offense was seeing the clock tick down. Seeking to avoid a delay of game penalty, Carson Wentz was conveying urgency to get the ball snapped. Blake Brandel then launched the pigskin sailing over the 6’5″ quarterback’s head. What had been a 3rd and 2 became 4th and 24. Losing 22 yards is a backbreaking, drive-killing moment that Minnesota found a way to overcome.

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The Vikings won the contest by a score of 9-3, showing that the margin was thin. Credit to Wentz for hustling back to secure the football so that the special teams could then punt the ball away.

Blake Brandel likely has never snapped in such tough conditions. The mixture of the terrible weather alongside the urgency of needing to get the ball out due the clock ticking down is where experience (or a lack thereof) really factors into the mix. Again, give him some grace even if there needs to be urgency to ensure it doesn’t become a problem yet again.

On Sunday, Kevin O’Connell’s Vikings will be going down to Tampa Bay for a battle with the 0-2 Buccaneers. Look for Baker Mayfield’s crew to be desperate.

The Vikings will be rallying around Kyler Murray as the QB1 yet again due to clearing the concussion protocol. At the risk of being overly obvious, Murray isn’t the tallest, brawniest passer. Consider, as well, that Mr. Murray tends to prefer operating out of shotgun.

Brandel’s task is to ensure that the ball gets put directly into Murray’s mitts on an every-down basis. O’Connell knows it’s an issue that can’t continue; Brandel does, as well. We’ll see if Minnesota can make it happen.

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