Vikings QB Evidently on the Roster Bubble
A casual observer of the 2023 Minnesota Vikings team might tend to think the franchise will keep more than two quarterbacks on the 2024 roster because injuries at the position ravaged operations.
Vikings QB Evidently on the Roster Bubble
But that opinion is not universally held, and although the purple team has four quarterbacks on the roster at the moment (excluding rookie J.J. McCarthy, who is on injured reserve), some believe second-year passer Jaren Hall will be dropped next when the roster dwindles from 91 players to 53.
Vikings-centric roster predictions are hot and heavy this week, as the cutdown deadline looms on August 27th. And according to a couple of voices, Hall’s job may not be safe.
“While Jaren Hall played much better against Cleveland than Las Vegas in preseason action and he seems to be appreciated in the Vikings’ QB room, it doesn’t seem likely that another team would pick him up if he’s cut,” Purple Daily‘s Matthew Coller wrote this week.
Coller’s predictions featured two quarterbacks making the cut: Sam Darnold and Nick Mullens.
Meanwhile, The Athletic‘s Alec Lewis opined on Wednesday, “The decision comes down to this: Do the Vikings value a third-string QB option steeped in the system more than they value a back-end roster option with upside at another premium position? The answer might be no, especially with the emphasis coach Kevin O’Connell and general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah have placed on roster depth.”
For context, these are Minnesota’s quarterbacks at the moment:
- Sam Darnold
- J.J. McCarthy (IR)
- Nick Mullens
- Jaren Hall
- Matt Corral
It’s worth noting that McCarthy, the prized rookie, cannot return in 2024 after tearing his meniscus in the team’s first preseason game. He’s out for all of 2024.
In 2023, the Vikings’ season was undone by quarterback injuries, mainly to Kirk Cousins, who tore his Achilles. He healed and joined the Atlanta Falcons via free agency in March. Additionally, Mullens and Hall missed time last year as well, prompting general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah to trade for Joshua Dobbs last October. It was a true quarterback carousel.
Armed with very recent memory of Vikings’ quarterback injuries, the aforementioned voices still maintain that two quarterbacks may do the trick.
If Hall is waived, he’ll almost certainly hit the practice squad thereafter. It may be a safer bet to assume Hall or his teammate Corral make the roster outright at QB3. Just two quarterbacks in a season already beset by McCarthy’s injury feels like dangerous business.
Hall dimed two touchdown passes last Saturday at the Cleveland Browns last weekend and should see ample playing time this Saturday at Philadelphia in Minnesota’s final preseason game.
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Dustin Baker is a political scientist who graduated from the University of Minnesota in 2007. Subscribe to his daily YouTube Channel, VikesNow. The show features guests, analysis, and opinion on all things related to the purple team, with 4-7 episodes per week. His Vikings obsession dates back to 1996. Listed guilty pleasures: Peanut Butter Ice Cream, ‘The Sopranos,’ Basset Hounds, and The Doors (the band). He follows the NBA as closely as the NFL.
All statistics provided by Pro Football Reference / Stathead; all contractual information provided by OverTheCap.com.
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