Vikings HC Kevin O'Connell's creativity shined on Sunday vs. Giants when it mattered the most

When it comes to calling plays in the National Football League, inspiration can come from anywhere. It's also normal to see plays come from many aspects of the game. Kansas City Chiefs head coach Andy Reid called plays he saw from the wing-t offense in the Super Bowl and Minnesota Vikings head coach Kevin O'Connell did some of the game.

Now, O'Connell didn't call a play from one of the earliest offenses in football history, but he did find a way to borrow from the college game in one of his more creative play calls.

How Kevin O'Connell used creativity on Jalen Nailor's touchdown

The most impressive play call from O'Connell came on the touchdown pass to wide receiver Jalen Nailor, which was only the second of his young career.

This play concept is a staple in college football and worked for a number of reasons. Let's break it down.

First off, Justin Jefferson is in the backfield. This isn't necessary for the play itself but it does create an interesting matchup problem for the Giants. He goes into orbit motion, which is elongated to look like he's in orbit of the line of scrimmage. That raises the eyebrow of the defense.

Now, Jefferson's motion is still going when the ball is snapped, which leads the defense into thinking that the ball is going his way. That is pivotal in making play work.

The receivers Nailor (slot) and Jordan Addison (wide) do what's called a switch release, meaning they cross each other and switch places. In doing so, it creates more potential confusion with the defense. While doing his release, Nailor fakes a block to sell the screen.

What comes next is equally important. The Giants ran cover-2 for a significant amount of the game and this conceptually is why this play worked so well. Addison runs a post which occupies the deep safety, opening up the boundary where Nailor caught the ball. The fake block, has the defender responsible for Nailor stall and that gives him enough separation for an easy touchdown.

College offenses use orbit or jet motion to help create space all the time and the college game itself is very influential on how the NFL works. This was a big piece in the Vikings win and something that could continue to seep into O'Connell's play-calling. On the seam route to Josh Oliver earlier in the game, fullback C.J. Ham used a version of jet motion to go into a four verticals concept, making things easier to hit up the middle.

O'Connell is one of the best in the game with creativity and it was on full display this past Sunday.

Related: Vikings GM Kwesi Adofo-Mensah's Moneyball approach to the OL pays dividends in Week 1 win vs. Giants