For such a big fella, Vikings rookie Brian O'Neill sure spends a lot of time focusing on and practicing the smallest details of playing right tackle in the NFL.
"It can be something as [little] as the difference in two inches where your hands are placed on the backside of a zone play," O'Neill said. "It can be how your second step hits the ground and at what angle you're going to come out of your stance. … What are the fine details of [blocking] in terms of footwork, pad level, angles, hat placement?"
His awakening to the infinitesimal details of line play at the game's highest level was drilled into him by the Vikings' coaches and is being fine-tuned by new friend and teammate Mike Remmers, the current right guard and former Vikings right tackle.