Vikings Eve of Week 1 Mailbag: Run Game Worries, Jauan Jennings, Devon Achane Trade?

It’s finally football time, folks. Here are four questions sent along by Minnesota Vikings fans as the purple get set to kick off on Sunday.

@RuchiWaaN Even for QBs who have succeeded in KOC system, at the point where things got important, the team’s inability to have some sort of decent run game or the line inability to hold up as much as needed for his explosive plays to develop—all of it was on full display. Is this gonna change?

We won’t know for sure until we see it in action, but what we can say for sure is that O’Connell has invested a great deal in trying to be a good run team.

They hired former Dolphins offensive coordinator Frank Smith to overhaul the scheme and from what we saw during training camp there were a lot of differences in creating an outside zone identity.

They hired a new offensive line coach in Keith Carter, whose roots are in the outside zone system, and he’s implemented a different style for the offensive linemen. They drafted fullback Max Bredeson, drafted running back Demond Claiborne and brought back Aaron Jones.

I think Vikings fans’ obsession with O’Connell’s struggles to run effectively/consistently are founded, yet we also have to remember that the Vikings did run the ball well in the second half of last season and they were averaging around five yards per carry when Dalvin Cook was healthy in the early part of 2022 and when they had Christian Darrisaw at 100% in 2024. They are in a better place at RB and OL going into this year.

Where O’Connell has to have the feel for the run game is when it’s working. There were times in the last couple of years where it was going alright or well and he would still revert back to throwing. That was fine with Sam Darnold, not fine with Wentz/McCarthy (or Dobbs, Hall, Mullens etc.).

It needs to be something they can rely upon consistently. But we shouldn’t forget that nearly every team that reaches the Super Bowl is top 10 in passing EPA. It wouldn’t be fair to freak out every time O’Connell passes on second-and-3.

@AndrewKent3960 How will Jennings presence cut into Addison target shares?

Where I can see Jauan Jennings being most effective is when the Vikings need to get a key completion. He might not end up with 100 targets, but I suspect that they are going to be quality targets. Whether that’s getting a drive started with an 8-yard completion or breaking a bunch of tackles to convert a third down when it looked like they were going to have to punt.

He can be a security blanket for Kyler Murray as a possession receiver. Whenever things start to feel erratic, get back on track by throwing to Jennings.

I’m not sure how much that will take away from Jordan Addison because they are going to play different roles. I could see Jennings getting something like 45-50 catches and Addison around 60-70 though with more explosive plays. As much as Jalen Naior was a good player, I like Jennings’ skill set for this QB.

@HollandJohnD The Packers’ offensive line looks depleted. Which Vikings defender do you predict will be most productive attacking that offensive line on Sunday?

The most obvious mismatch is Dallas Turner vs. Jordan Morgan. We’ve seen the progress from Turner over the last two years and his training camp this summer was outstanding, especially in joint practices. Morgan, meanwhile, played 51 snaps at left tackle last year and did not perform at a particularly high level.

They’ll need to give some extra help to Morgan if he’s going to handle Turner’s quickness. I’d also say that Jalen Redmond, a top run-stopping DT, against Aaron Banks, who struggled in his first season as a Packer and was limited in practice this week.

@JPTheodoro01 …. I doubt the dolphins would ever accept the trade, but would you be willing to trade a 2027 3rd and a 2028 4th to get Devon Achane? I think it’s a win now move but he’s not that old and he’s very effective

Check back with me at the trade deadline. They obviously want to keep Achane for the future but if the Dolphins are winless at the trade deadline and they look years away from being competitive, it’s possible that they could pry him away. It’s kinda what happened with Christian McCaffrey landed with the 49ers.

The running back position will be one we’re watching closely. If Jordan Mason and Aaron Jones are thriving, then they will stick with that duo into the latter half of the season. If one of them gets hurt and the team is winning, then they’ll be in the market.

We should probably see how the first game plays out before trading for guys though.

Get Vikings On SI straight to your inbox: sign up for our free newsletter here.

Add us as a preferred source on Google