Some Pundits Claim Josh Dobbs Is Milking Newcomer Status
Dustin Baker
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Since joining the Minnesota Vikings two weeks ago, newcomer quarterback Josh Dobbs ranks eighth in the NFL per EPA+CPOE, an impressive opening salvo with a new team by any player’s standards.
But some believe Dobbs is milking his new card for effect.
Some Pundits Claim Josh Dobbs Is Milking Newcomer Status
In a mind-blogging segment on ESPN’s Around the Horn, NFL expert and writer Bill Barnwell led the charge, claiming Dobbs is using his new-guy status to protect himself from unknown, well, something.
The Vikings sent a 6th-Round draft pick to the Arizona Cardinals for Dobbs and a 7th-Rounder on Halloween, two days after quarterback Kirk Cousins was lost for the season to a torn Achilles. Instantly, Dobbs provided a new and mobile spark to Minnesota’s offense, guiding the purple team to victories over the Atlanta Falcons and New Orleans Saints.
Yet, the Around the Horn crew was visibly fatigued by his newcomer commentaries.
“I’m just saying, he played this same exact card with the Cardinals nine weeks ago. He was like, ‘Yeah, I don’t know anybody’s name.’ Like, I know I’m bad with remembering people’s names. I feel like this is just his way of protecting himself,” Barnwell opined.
Dobbs was traded to the Cardinals by the Cleveland Browns two and a half weeks before the start of the regular season and scrambled to learn the playbook then, too.
It is unclear why Dobbs would embellish his greenhorn status with his new team. The panel seemed to hint it was a way to lower expectations. Barnwell continued, “It covers up some sort of social responsibility to know people’s names […] This feels like the perfect out for Josh Dobbs.”
Dobbs has tallied 5 touchdowns and 2 turnovers during his Vikings opening salvo and added oomph to the franchise’s otherwise paltry rushing attack. And he’s helped produce two wins without the team’s best player, Justin Jefferson, who is on the shelf with a hamstring injury.
“His story is a little curious,” Barnwell concluded.
Too, on the same show, ESPN’s Courtney Cronin, who previously covered the Vikings for a few seasons, questioned Dobbs’ musings about the locker room’s location. Dobbs claimed he had to find the locker room upon arriving in Eagan, increasing the unfamiliarity narrative.
“The thing is, though, when you get off the elevator there, it’s right across from the elevator,” Cronin told the Around the Horn guests about the location of the Vikings locker room.
Here’s the full video:
Conspiracy theories about gathering bizarre sympathy be damned, the Vikings take on the Denver Broncos this weekend on Sunday Night Football. Denver is favored by 2.5 points.
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 Sal Spice. His Vikings obsession dates back to 1996. Listed guilty pleasures: Peanut Butter Ice Cream, ‘The Sopranos,’ Basset Hounds, and The Doors (the band).
All statistics provided by Pro Football Reference / Stathead; all contractual information provided by OverTheCap.com.
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