The Minnesota Vikings struggled in their loss to the Atlanta Falcons. While Rookie quarterback J.J. McCarthy had an impressive Week 1, the same can’t be said about Week 2. The worst part is that he was sacked six times. The offense clearly had issues. Understandably, Coach Kevin O’Connell wasn’t impressed with how things turned out for the team. During the press conference, he didn’t hide his feelings as he addressed the issues with the team.

“Our team will handle the adversity that is now at our feet. We’ve got to go back to work and improve immediately. There are some things just overall, you know, we’ve got to stop doing many, many things, sometimes very noticeable, sometimes things throughout plays that, you know, the negative plays are stacking up against us,” the coach said.

He explained that the team isn’t making steady progress. For every step forward, they seem to fall two steps back, especially on offense. The coach praised the Vikings’ defense. As for the opponents, he appreciated how the Falcons were aggressive in their game. To his relief, the QB shared the same sentiment and made the same promise, which is to be better in the next game.

It would be safe to say that all the eyes were on McCarthy as to whether he would be able to carry the same energy this week. But the QB didn’t let the loss discourage him. “We got to do a better job as an offense just operating playing you know one play at a time and everyone executing their job all 11 of us but yeah this is unfortunate but I know we have a great you know character culture locker room that we’re going to respond from this and we’re going to learn and get better and bounce back next week,” McCarthy said during the presser. Despite the criticism, McCarthy isn’t losing hope. The offense’s struggles right from the beginning were an eye-opener for the team. The team just had 10 first downs and 198 yards, lowest since November 2022.

Worse than the offense struggles were the injuries. Notable players like Harrison Smith, Andrew Van Ginkel, Christian Darrisaw, and Jeff Okudah didn’t suit up for the game. Things only got worse as the game went on, as they lost four more players. After Ryan Kelly, Justin Skule went down quickly due to head injuries, and both were sidelined due to the concussion protocol. Moreover, Aaron Jones (hamstring injury) and Gabe Murphy ( knee injury ) also left the game early.

Apart from these unfortunate incidents, the Vikings also had one of their former players on the other end. After getting cut from the Vikings, Parker Romo joined the Falcons just before Week 2 and had an impressive game. He made five field goals for the team. If the Falcons’ primary kicker isn’t able to show his potential, there is a chance that he will secure a permanent spot with the Falcons. Before this, he played four games for the Vikings last season.

As for now, the team’s focus is on their QB and the offense.

Kevin O’Connell defended J.J. McCarthy after the Week 2 game

McCarthy struggled under constant pressure, as the Vikings went scoreless in the second half. The QB had 11-of-21 for 158 yards and two interceptions. He faced relentless pressure, hurried on more than a third of his dropbacks. Still, coaches noted that he often held the ball too long, leading the league in average time before throwing in Week 2. It was a stark contrast from the explosive fourth quarter against Chicago the week before.

He threw two interceptions and lost a fumble, with three total mishandled snaps. His off-target rate of nearly 29% was among the league’s worst in Week 2. Through two starts, he has just 301 passing yards, two touchdowns, and three interceptions. Despite his 50 rushing yards, his inconsistency has stalled drives and contributed to Minnesota’s struggles.

However, the head coach defended his quarterback. He acknowledged that as the QB continues to make big plays, there will also be mistakes and stressed that there has to be a collective effort to elevate the game.

“He’s going to make some unbelievable throws. … And then, other times, he’s going to have an attempt and just miss something a little long, and we will go back and try to fix it. Sometimes, the fundamentals are going to be right, the technique is going to be right, but he’s learning on the fly right now,” the coach shared.

While the entire team is upset over the loss, the coach and the QB have ensured to put in their best efforts. Whether the Vikings will be able to keep up or not remains to be seen.