Minnesota Vikings head coach Kevin O\u2019Connell received a ton of credit for winning 14 games and helping Sam Darnold revive his career last season.<\/p>\n
The reigning AP NFL Coach of the Year<\/a> would be the first to admit, though, that the 2024 Vikings had a star-studded group of offensive coaches on the rise.<\/p>\n O\u2019Connell\u2019s brain trust included longtime offensive coordinator Wes Phillips, quarterbacks coach Josh McCown, and assistant offensive coordinator Grant Udinski. That group helped groom and develop a stacked quarterback depth chart that at one point included Darnold, then-rookie J.J. McCarthy, Daniel Jones, and Nick Mullens.<\/p>\n Minnesota\u2019s staff, especially those working closely with the quarterbacks, was a hot commodity during the NFL’s 2025 hiring cycle. Both McCown and Udinski had opportunities to leave for offensive coordinator roles; McCown actually interviewed with the New York Jets for their vacant head coach opening in January<\/a>.<\/p>\n The Vikings ultimately lost Udinski, who was poached by Liam Coen and the Jacksonville Jaguars as their new offensive coordinator<\/a>.<\/p>\n Udinski is still a young pup in the league \u2014 just 29 years old \u2014 but as the Vikings enter their bye week, it\u2019s fair to question how much they\u2019re missing O\u2019Connell\u2019s prot\u00e9g\u00e9, who has hit the ground running in Duval County.<\/p>\n Gamble on former Minnesota Vikings assistant Grant Udinski is paying off early for the Jacksonville Jaguars in 2025<\/p>\n The Jaguars quietly have a chance to accomplish something their franchise hasn\u2019t sniffed in over 25 years \u2014 a 5-1 start to the season.<\/p>\n That Udinski and company will first have to beat old field Darnold and the Seattle Seahawks this week makes it a little too perfect.<\/p>\n Udinski isn\u2019t calling the plays for Jacksonville \u2014 similar to O\u2019Connell, Coen handles that job from the sideline on game days \u2014 but it\u2019s been hard not to notice the young coach\u2019s impact over the first month-plus of the season.<\/p>\n The Jaguars have climbed from the dregs of the league to respectability on offense; they enter Week 6 ranked 16th overall in yards per play and 10th in scoring.<\/p>\n Another feather in Udinski\u2019s cap? Quarterback Trevor Lawrence has shown signs of turning the corner in recent wins over the Houston Texans, San Francisco 49ers, and Kansas City Chiefs.<\/p>\n Udinski\u2019s exact role with the Vikings was unclear, but we do know he was a right-hand man of O\u2019Connell and served as a mentor<\/a> to McCarthy during his lost rookie season due to injury.<\/p>\n