For five weeks, Kevin O’Connell’s postgame press conferences were all smiles after Vikings victories, although he warned the team still had things to improve on. Late Thursday night, he stood in front of reporters and cameras after losing for the second time in five days, bemoaning self-inflicted wounds and preaching a need to get better, while using the platform to express how much faith he still has in his group.

“We just have to find a way as a team, across the board, to play better,” O’Connell said after the Vikings’ 30-20 loss to the Rams at SoFi Stadium. “Not making any excuses about the short week, about penalties or anything like that. We’ll get back to work. We’re a 5-2 football team with a lot of football in front of us. We need We need to improve, we need to get back to doing some of the things that helped us get to this point at 5-2 before these last two games I have a lot of trust and confidence in my coaching staff and a lot of confidence that we have the right guys in that locker room, both talent and our football team makeup.”

Not much went right for the Vikings in their first primetime game of the season. The offense went down the field for touchdowns on its first two possessions of the game, but then dried up with just six points after the first quarter. The run game was ineffective, the Vikings settled for two short field goals in the red zone, and Sam Darnold was sacked three times in key spots (although the last clearly shouldn’t have counted).

Less than a week after O’Connell lamented the Vikings’ “self-inflicted” offense, they had two false starts, two illegal formation penalties deflected and a critical drop by Jalen Nailor in the red zone.

“Field goals aren’t enough, especially in a game like that against an offense like that,” he said. “We’ve got to continue to find ways to just consistently get all 11 guys on offense to do their jobs. That’s outside the huddle, that’s how we formulate the plays, that’s how we break the huddle with a total control of systems.

“In a game like this, don’t want things that we do to make us not be able to catch the momentum, just with our execution, because when the execution whistle happens, we’re pretty good. We just have to do a little bit more, do a few more clean play calling, clean execution, lining up, knowing what to do and doing it.”

5 things that stood out in the Vikings’ loss to the Rams on Thursday Night Football

A knee injury to left star Christian Darrisaw is also a big concern. He will have an MRI on Friday, and O’Connell said the Vikings are “crossing their fingers that we get some positive news.”

The bigger problem in this loss was the Vikings’ defense, which was burned for four touchdowns and nearly 400 yards again. The Rams followed the Lions’ scheme of running the ball effectively and finding open receivers in the intermediate windows across the middle of the field.

Brian Flores’ defense, which had been so dominant in the team’s 5-0 start, offered minimal resistance. The pass rush was non-existent and the corner play was shaky, which is a dangerous combination. The defensive tackles were not impactful. The absence of No. 1 linebacker Blake Cashman continues to be felt, as Ivan Pace Jr. looked overmatched in a role against the Rams offense. Six of the Vikings’ nine accepted penalties were on defense, including three that negated defensive stops on third down.

That side of the ball has some soul-searching to do over the Vikings’ mini-bye.

“When you play against that quarterback, those receivers get healthy and come out and make plays for him, I think it just depends on if we can get enough rushes and coverages working together to maybe not give a quarterback like that a few extra clicks,” O’Connell said. “We have to step up and try to get off the field.”

The Vikings have been punched in the mouth a couple of times during this difficult stretch, falling from 5-0 to 5-2 in five days. It’s been a bit of a rude awakening for a team that was cruising before its bye week. But O’Connell’s closing message was that a couple of tough results won’t define this team, which still has 10 regular season games to answer. He still believes this is a special group.

“We, as a football team, have had a lot of success this year and it’s been a tough four days for us,” O’Connell said. “It’s not going to define us. It’s not going to be the story of this season because we hold the pen. And what are we going to do with it? Are we going to work? Am I going to be the same consistent guy that just pushes this team to and with more, requires the discipline to be our difference going forward I know I have the right coach given (the) tough loss on Sunday and then come right back, and your season looks a little different.

“The stories and all these things mean absolutely nothing because they never did,” he said. “It’s about work. It’s about this team coming together, this coaching staff and the players are the most tight-knit group I’ve ever been around. I love our team. I love everything about being the head coach of this team every gånd day I have to make sure I push us to reach our true potential as a team this year because I think it’s a special thing and I think that more than ever.