Kevin O'Connell praises rising starafter breakout performance, and taking the next step will be crucial to the Vikings' success

"The NFL is not just about your go-to move every time it's about having that go-to move as a rusher, whether it's speed to bull, whether it's long arm, whether it's a club and rip. Whatever it is, you got to figure out what your fastball is," O'Connell continued. "And much like when a relief pitcher in Major League Baseball wants to transition to become a starter, you can't just throw two pitches. You need to have the fastball, and then you need to have your counters off of that. When you're playing Lane Johnson, or you're playing some of these high-end tackles, like they're they're going to, they're repping all week to rep your counter moves, because they're that confident in stopping the initial rush."

That is one of the biggest things with Turner. Can he develop that secondary and counter move? It still hasn't come yet, but he's still learning and has all the athleticism to thrive.

"You've got to be able to pair it together with limited thinking and playing fast and explosive, because that's what Dallas Turner is," O'Connell continued. "It's just putting it all together from a standpoint of a rush plan, the discipline of maybe some game plans, like a Lamar Jackson game plan, or even Caleb Williams last week, where you cannot just rush, just with your hair on fire and leave open exit strategies for these quarterbacks, because they are so harmful to to getting them off the field on third down, trying to limit the chunk plays when you're not only having to defend the initial play, but then the off schedule play, which is in many cases even more dangerous."

Playing edge rusher in the NFL isn't just about pinning your ears back and going after the quarterback; you need to be smart and stay disciplined in your rush lanes. That's been what the Vikings have had to do over the last few weeks, and Turner has found a way to excel in doing so. Now, can he take the next step? Well, Sunday was a good indication that it's already begun.

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This story was originally reported by A to Z Sports on Nov 19, 2025, where it first appeared in the NFL section. Add A to Z Sports as a Preferred Source by clicking here.