Tough doesn’t even begin to describe it. On paper, it was a straightforward 37-10 loss for the Minnesota Vikings. But there’s no hiding that the reality on the gridiron was a painful picture of a dysfunctional unit. In the post-game press conference, head coach Kevin O’Connell didn’t try to hide it either. He stood at the podium and faced it head-on.

“Nothing much to say,” he admitted after the Los Angeles Chargers loss. “We got outplayed. We got out-coached. There are no excuses. That is not, in any way, shape, or form, our standard of what we want to put on the field.

“We’ve got an opportunity in front of us where we need to own this. This is not a ‘bury the tape’ kind of time for our organization. This is a ‘watch it, view it, own it’. Every coach, every player. And it starts with me. I did not have our team prepared to play.”

Notably, the Chargers were able to intercept Wentz once, and sacked him five times. Both the offense and the defense were gasping at straws, as Justin Herbert kept dominating in and out of the pocket, ultimately completing for 227 yards and three touchdowns. Wentz, on the other hand, went 15-of-27 yards for one touchdown amid a shoulder injury.

Truth be told, they have fought through worse. They already won three games this year while missing key offensive linemen. They even managed a win over Cleveland in Week 5 with four linemen out. So yes, it’s frustrating, but every team battles adversity.

Despite the loss, O’Connell stood by his players, expressing full confidence in their preparation and effort. “I believe in our players wholeheartedly. I believe in every opportunity we have, we go out there and put our best foot forward, both on the practice field and every opportunity we have as a team,” said O’Connell.

The good news for the Vikings is that the season isn’t over. There are still 10 games left, and the Vikings now have a mini bye to figure out how they are going to go forward. However, not everyone handled the loss the same way as Kevin O’Connell.

Carson Wentz’s helmet incident catches everyone’s attention

After the loss, Carson Wentz’s frustration boiled over. He slammed his helmet on the sideline, and that moment went viral fast. Cameras caught it, fans replayed it, and social media turned it into the night’s biggest clip. And not everyone liked it.

Analyst Kirk Herbstreit weighed in, saying, “When you’re the captain of the ship, you’re the quarterback, you gotta try to hold some of that emotion in. And I know he’s frustrated, and he’s hurt, but it’s Week 7. There’s a long way to go…”

Still, the emotion made sense.

It wasn’t just about the numbers; it was about survival. The Vikings’ protection struggled all night, and Wentz kept getting hit. Yet he refused to quit. Despite a painful left shoulder, he played. That alone showed grit, even if the result didn’t.

Wentz admitted he played through significant pain to stay on the field for his team. “Yeah, not proud of that. Apologize to the equipment guys for that one. But yeah, I was in a good amount of pain.” The shoulder issue, first suffered in Week 5 against the Cleveland Browns, flared up again after repeated hits from an aggressive Chargers front.

So now the focus shifts to recovery. The fans will be watching closely to see how fast Wentz can bounce back and help turn things around next week.