Vikings' J.J. McCarthy Had Sweet Reaction to Kevin O'Connell Winning Coach of the Year

Big "That's my coach!" energy from this one.

Minnesota Vikings quarterback J.J. McCarthy and head coach Kevin O'Connell on Aug 10, 2024. / Jeffrey Becker-Imagn Images

Minnesota Vikings head coach Kevin O'Connell won Coach of the Year at Thursday's NFL Honors, and no one was more pumped for him than his quarterback J.J. McCarthy.

While the coach was on stage accepting his award, McCarthy, presumably watching along elsewhere, shared a gif of O'Connell on X (formerly Twitter) and captioned it with three "face holding back tears" emojis.

🥹🥹🥹 pic.twitter.com/RKnNtydkz4

— J.J. McCarthy (@jjmccarthy09) February 7, 2025

O'Connell beat out Dan Campbell, Sean Payton, Dan Quinn and Andy Reid for the award. It was presented to him by Deion Sanders and Bill Belichick, the latter of whom drafted O'Connell in 2008.

McCarthy, who suffered a meniscus tear in the preseason and was sidelined for the remainder of the year, had previously called for O'Connell to win COTY. "What’s the requirements for this Coach of The Year thing again? Asking for a friend," he posted on X on Dec. 22.

That the 22-year-old first-round draft pick starts in the fall is not yet a done deal. In his absence, league veteran Sam Darnold stepped up to the plate and knocked it out of the park, at least until a disappointing end to the team's season. Still, his performance was as unexpected as it was thrilling, earning him a nod in the Comeback Player of the Year category at Thursday's honors. Darnold's overall success no doubt bolstered O'Connell's case for the coaching prize.

We'll see if KOC can replicate some of the Vikings magic of 2024 come September, but if Thursday night is any indication, sounds like the league—and his players—believe that he will.

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