3 Vikings Coaching Decisions I'd Make If I Were Kevin O'Connell vs. the Saints in Week 5

It's Week 5 of the 2026 NFL season, and it brings plenty of potential changes for the Vikings to make in their quest to move to 5-0 ahead of their bye. The Vikings will take their talents down to New Orleans for a matchup with the Saints on Sunday, but they have a few things to take care of first.

After a rash of injuries and several roster moves over the last week, here's how I would handle the game plan if I were in head coach Kevin O'Connell's shoes in the Big Easy this weekend.

1. Start Joe Huber at left guard

It's certainly not flashy, but starting the undrafted free agent from 2025 is probably the best path forward for the Vikings—at least for now. Joe Huber came in for the injured Donovan Jackson last week against Miami and should get the start at left guard this week against New Orleans after a decent performance.

After playing 71 snaps, O'Connell wasn't shy to praise his young lineman in the win.

"Joe’s a good young player that we’ve been really excited about since we first brought him on as an undrafted free agent last year,” said O’Connell. “He’s been able to be versatile to have a game-day role at three spots when called upon. It happened to be left guard yesterday. I thought he had some really good snaps."

Trading for a quality offensive lineman midseason is nearly impossible, and any free agent guard who has even looked at a football in the last year was scooped up by the Packers last week. Luckily, the Vikings have a bye after facing the Saints and can fully evaluate the position then. But if Huber again plays solidly this week, it would be tough to take him out of the lineup in favor of an outside hire.

2. Use shotgun (even more)

Much was made about Kyler Murray's odd fit with Minnesota before he even took a snap. Before joining the Vikings, Murray spent 85% of his time in shotgun with the Cardinals, a stark contrast to O'Connell's much tamer 53% rate since becoming the head man in Minnesota (h/t NFL Next Gen Stats and ESPN).

It shouldn't come as too much of a surprise, then, that Murray's best game so far was when O'Connell opted to operate out of shotgun 54 times in the win over Miami—his most since taking over in 2022.

Kyler Murray looks to pass the ball. — Using the shotgun more often will help the Vikings unlock Kyler Murray's full offensive potential. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The Vikings initially hoped to blend O'Connell's under-center preferences with Murray's comfort working out of the gun in some sort of a happy medium. It may already be time, though, that O'Connell just admits his new quarterback is clearly better with what he knows.

With the offense struggling, opportunities for growth and experimentation are dwindling, and O'Connell should probably put aside his ego and recognize that his preferred offense isn't what's best for the team right now.

3. Let's see what OBJ has left

The Vikings turned heads when they added Odell Beckham Jr. to the practice squad this week.

After getting released by the Giants without registering a catch, the Vikings were quick to make the call to reunite Beckham with his former offensive coordinator from their L.A. Rams days. O'Connell has basically already admitted that Beckham could be elevated for Sunday's game, saying the wideout has familiarity with the scheme.

So, yeah, sure, let's see what the old guy's got left.

Expectations should be low, but it's not like the bottom of the wide receiver depth chart is producing much either. Jauan Jennings, Tai Felton and Myles Price have combined for just three catches through four games, so the bar isn't especially high to clear. If Beckham can get some meaningful production from the WR4 spot, this odd, fun, weird signing will look good in the eyes of many.

If not, well, it drew a few more eyes to the team for a couple of weeks.

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