Dec 26, 2021; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Minnesota Vikings quarterback Kellen Mond (11) warms up before the game against the Los Angeles Rams at U.S. Bank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeffrey Becker-USA TODAY Sports.
The Kellen Mond era with the Minnesota Vikings lasted 16 months.
Drafted on April 30th, 2021, the Vikings waived the second-year passer on August 30th, 2022.
Mond was drafted in the 3rd Round of the 2021 NFL Draft as a possible contingency plan to life after Kirk Cousins. Unless he clears waivers, lands on the practice squad, and conducts a career metamorphosis, the plan won’t come to fruition.
In the spring and summer, Mond battled veteran passer Sean Mannion for the Vikings QB2 job. Neither player performed well. Although, in Minnesota’s first preseason game versus the Las Vegas Raiders, Mond played wonderfully in the second half. But he could not build on the momentum the following weekend against the San Francisco 49ers.
Accordingly, the Vikings immediately traded with those same Raiders for quarterback Nick Mullens, who will presumably snag the job Mond and Mannion coveted.
Described by some as a “rogue” pick by former general manager Rick Spielman, Mond never found his footing as a rookie. The coaching staff before Kevin O’Connell didn’t particularly care for the Texas A&M alumnus, so Mond never seriously encountered a QB2 audition. He had chances in the summer of 2021, but Mike Zimmer and friends preferred Mannion’s so-called leadership.
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Mond will likely be scooped by another NFL team and stashed as a project. Opinion of the young signal-caller is all over the board. Some believe he merely needs polish; others find him too robotic and raw.
His release hits amid the Vikings 53-man roster trimdown. Minnesota, like all other teams, will shave the depth chart to 53 men, leaving 864 NFLers unemployed in a single day.
Mond turned 23 in June.
Dustin Baker is a political scientist who graduated from the University of Minnesota in 2007. Subscribe to his daily YouTube Channel, VikesNow. He hosts a podcast with Bryant McKinnie, which airs every Wednesday with Raun Sawh and Sally from Minneapolis. His Viking fandom dates back to 1996. Listed guilty pleasures: Peanut Butter Ice Cream, ‘The Sopranos,’ and The Doors (the band).