Jay Gruden reminds NFL fans who initially hired Sean McVay, Kevin O’Connell

On Monday night, there is a unique coaching match between Sean McVay of the Los Angeles Rams and Kevin O’Connell of the Minnesota Vikings. It resulted in a former NFL coach Jay Gruden giving his thoughts on the match.

“So Sean McVay vs. Kevin O’Connell tonight,” Gruden published on X, formerly Twitter. “I hired them both. I bet they don’t mention me once. lol!!!!” Gruden said.

McVay features a high-powered offense with quarterback Matthew Stafford having weapons in receivers Cooper Kupp and Puka Natsu, as well as running back Kieren Williams. On the other hand, O’Connell boasts an offense that exceeds expectations with quarterback Sam Darnold. Star receivers Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison, as well as running back Aaron Jones helped lead the offense.

Jay Gruden’s History with Sean McVay, Kevin O’Connell

Jay Gruden’s time with Sean McVay and Kevin O’Connell goes back to their days together on the Washington coaching staff.

Gruden was the team’s head coach from 2014 to 2019, finishing 35-49-1. He won the NFC East division title once as Washington made the playoffs in 2015-16, falling to the Green Bay Packers in the NFC Wild Card round. They were unable to make the postseason by the end of his stay, having a mediocre season as he was eventually fired when Washington started 0-5 in the 2019-20 campaign.

Despite the ups and downs of his first NFL coaching job, Gruden showed his eye for coaching talent when he hired McVay and O’Connell.

McVay was already on Washington’s staff as an offensive assistant and tight ends coach. But when Gruden took the reins, he was promoted to offensive coordinator until he accepted the Rams’ head coaching position for the 2017 season and hasn’t looked back.

As for O’Connell, he served in multiple positions during his three-year tenure with Gruden from 2017 to 2019. He initially served as quarterbacks coach and running game coordinator until he was promoted to offensive coordinator prior to the 2019 season. the Rams’ offense until he took the helm as Minnesota’s head coach in 2022.

Since their time with Gruden, McVay and O’Connell have been successful as head coaches. McVay became the youngest head coach in NFL history to win a Super Bowl when the Rams beat the Cincinnati Bengals. As for O’Connell, who helped McVay to that Super Bowl run, he appears to be on the rise among the league’s top coaches as he has led the Vikings to 34-17 after three full seasons.