Because Minnesota Vikings QB1 Sam Darnold performed poorly in Week 18 at the Detroit Lions, onlookers have wondered for eight days who might replace Darnold in the lineup if he struggled in the postseason.
Oddly, All Eyes Turn to Vikings Backup QB.
Of course, purple fans hope the speculation is moot. Darnold showing up and balling out on Monday Night Football at the Los Angeles Rams (in Arizona) is the ideal scenario and probably the most likely, considering his season-long sample.
Yet, if Darnold devolved into futility, Minnesota would have two options to salvage the circumstance: Daniel Jones and Nick Mullens.
Foremost, Jones, who led the New York Giants at QB1 for 5.5 seasons, is preparing as if he’s the QB2, according to Star Tribune. That’s a bit odd as Mullens has served as the Vikings’ QB2 for the entire regular season, with no hiccups or challenges.
A few days after Minnesota lost to the Lions, O’Connell struck a neutral tone about his would-be QB2 in the postseason. “It’s such a fluid thing here the rest of the way. We’re gonna do whatever we think gives us the best chance to win,” head coach Kevin O’Connell said Thursday when asked if Jones would be the QB2 in the postseason.
Fast forward to last weekend, and O’Connell did nothing to solve the mystery. “We wanted to make sure as we hopefully move forward over the next month that we’re gonna do the things that give us the best chance to win. That very easily could be something that may look different here and there, but obviously not something that, for the benefit of our players and our quarterbacks, I need to be discussing here at this podium,” O’Connell mentioned Saturday.
The riddle could be solved Monday, a few hours before the Rams’ game against the Vikings, when the club denotes inactive players. That’s typically when an emergency quarterback is announced, and the QB3 would fill that role.
It’s just that no one knows if Jones or Mullens will be penciled in.
Jones has started 69 games in his career since joining the Giants as a 1st-Round pick in 2019. The San Francisco 49ers onboarded Mullens two years earlier as an undrafted free agent in 2017, and he’s started 20 games.
Perhaps Darnold will just perform at his typical upper-echelon clip, rendering “Jones or Mullens” a useless question. Yet, just hours before kickoff, Vikings fans don’t know the contingency plan, which is a little strange, at least per the usual process.
Minnesota is favored to beat Los Angeles by 2.5 points. The teams haven’t met in the playoffs since 1999.
The winner will play the Lions at Ford Field on Sunday.
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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.