2 January 2024
Each time the Vikings have walked off the field over the past month, they have done so without any idea as to who was going to start at quarterback the following week.
Was it going to be the journeyman Josh Dobbs? Was it going to be the gunslinger Nick Mullens? Was it going to be the rookie Jaren Hall?
This is the life of being forced to rely on a backup. There usually aren’t many good options.
That’s been painstakingly obvious over the past month and a half, as the Vikings have benched Dobbs in favor of Mullens, and benched Mullens in favor of Hall. Naturally, the trend continued on New Year’s Eve, as the Vikings benched Hall in favor of Mullens on their way to an embarrassing 33-10 loss at the hands of the Green Bay Packers.
Asked who the Vikings would start at quarterback against the Detroit Lions, head coach Kevin O’Connell even left the door open for benching Mullens in favor of Dobbs. Why not? Might as well bring things full circle in what could very well be the final game of this season.
“We’re going to take a look at it,” O’Connell said. “I think all options are on the table.”
Here’s a counterpoint: Who’s cares who the Vikings start at quarterback? It doesn’t matter.
Not if O’Connell is unwilling to adapt the offense to help whoever it is under center. There’s a reason Dobbs looked like a complete shell of himself before getting benched. There’s a reason Mullens morphed into a turnover machine before getting benched. There’s a reason Hall looked absolutely overwhelmed before getting benched.
They were all being asked to do way too much.
As a former quarterback himself, O’Connell should be able to recognize the strengths and weaknesses of Dobbs, Mullens, and Hall. Instead, O’Connell has seemingly ignored context in the name of moving forward with the offense that he wants to run.
The results spoke for themselves as the Vikings got baptized by the Packers in prime time.
“I wasn’t good enough for us tonight,” O’Connell told his players postgame. “It starts and ends with me.”
Indeed. Though he didn’t specifically reference his play calling, that would’ve been a good place to start. The whole system he has implemented is built on pushing the ball downfield with passing plays that often take a long time to develop. The product is undeniable when it succeeds and unwatchable when it fails.
Now that’s not necessarily an indictment on O’Connell as an offensive mastermind. He has proven what he can do when he has the right guy under center and deserves the benefit of the doubt given all the injuries the Vikings have battled through this season. It’s important to remember that the operation was extremely explosive when the reliable Kirk Cousins was the throwing the ball.
The problem is Dobbs, Mullens, and Hall aren’t in the same stratosphere Cousins. That should’ve been apparent to O’Connell from the onset, and he should’ve adjusted accordingly. It’s not against the law to throw a slant to superstar Justin Jefferson to get the ball in his hands.
Truthfully, for the Vikings, this season effectively ended a couple of months ago the moment Cousins crumbled to the natural grass of Lambeau Field. That’s when O’Connell started to cycle through Dobbs, Mullens and Hall, searching for answers that did not exist.
Fittingly, the quarterback carousel will continue until the very end, with the Vikings still working through some of the logistics.
“I have made a decision on who’s going to start at quarterback for us this week,” O’Connell said. “I have not had a chance yet with the players being off today to go through our face-to-face communication to let those players know, so I’m not going to announce that today.”
No mater who it is the Vikings are going to face an uphill climb with him under center. Let’s just get this season over with and move on to next season already.
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