During his first year as Vikings coach, Kevin O’Connell defended a trick play call at the goal line during a December loss to the Lions. It ended in a strip-sack on former running back Dalvin Cook. Afterward, O’Connell said they’d practiced the play a lot and he trusted all players to perform in that moment.
It sounds like the Vikings might be practicing trick plays more this week after stumbling on two more during Sunday’s 42-21 win over the Atlanta Falcons. Because O’Connell’s offense otherwise rolled to victory with touchdowns on six of nine possessions (excluding kneel-downs).
The Vikings have the NFL’s most explosive passing attack by the numbers. Between the 20-yard lines, they’re lighting up the scoreboard with every big throw by quarterback Sam Darnold. But when they get into the red zone, where they eventually converted all four drives into touchdowns against Atlanta, the temptation to pull a fast one with a trick play has rarely led to a good outcome.
The Vikings have succeeded on only two of seven trick plays this season, as far as I can tell. Two failed on Sunday when receiver Jordan Addison was tackled for a 5-yard loss and a direct snap to running back Aaron Jones was whistled dead because of an illegal motion by Darnold.
“We got more [practice] reps than we’d like to admit sometimes when it doesn’t work out like you want,” offensive coordinator Wes Phillips said Tuesday, “but that’s kind of the nature of some of those. You kind of fire off a bullet. You feel like you had a good look. They made a good play, credit to them. We still feel like there are some things we can do better to make those things go.”
The Vikings, like most offenses, turn to trick plays in the “strike zone,” or within striking distance of the end zone, which is typically inside the opposing 35-yard line. That’s where O’Connell has called six of seven trick plays this year, but not the most recent success: a Justin Jefferson pass across the field to Jones, who ran for a 22-yard gain to convert a long third down in the Nov. 3 win against the Colts.
But when they get closer to the goal line, coaches are looking for any way to finish the drive. The Vikings offense has fared well in the red zone this season, ranking 11th with a 57% touchdown rate, but they also rely heavily on Darnold in lieu of a consistent power run game.
“Sometimes it’s flow of the game when to get some of these calls off,” Phillips said. “Situation in the game … some of them across the league show up in that strike zone or fringe area, whatever you want to call it where you’re able to potentially throw the ball in or score from one of those plays where you don’t necessarily have to go through red-zone offense in the tighter and more condensed defenses you face that can be challenging getting inside the five or 10.”