Vikings QB Picture Turns into a Whodunit
Which quarterback plays for the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday afternoon at the Seattle Seahawks is a true mystery. J.J. McCarthy has progressed much quicker through the NFL’s concussion protocol than most expected, while Max Brosmer is fully ready to go.
The Vikings’ quarterback picture has turned into a full-on whodunit, raising new questions about who will take control of the offense next.
It’s a whodunit for the purple team during Thanksgiving week.
Vikings Have a ‘J.J. McCarthy or Max Brosmer’ QB Mystery
Sounds about right based on how the 2025 regular season has progressed.
Brosmer Takes First-Team Reps on Wednesday
NFL teams with quarterback instability or injuries typically set the tone of Wednesday with one player taking first-team reps.
This week, that man is Brosmer, an undrafted rookie from the University of Minnesota. If Brosmer gets the nod at Seattle, it will be his first career start.
Star Tribune‘s Ben Goessling tweeted Wednesday, “Kevin O’Connell said J.J. McCarthy will be able to participate in individual drills today, as he’s been cleared for limited practice today. Max Brosmer will take all the first-team reps and John Wolford will take scout team snaps, as the #Vikings go day by day with McCarthy.”
McCarthy Limited, Not Inactive
Regarding McCarthy, well, the momentum for his health in Week 13 felt low on Monday.
But by Wednesday, the youngster is already back at practice.
O’Connell on McCarthy Wednesday: “J.J. has cleared enough of the protocol to at least participate in a limited capacity today. That’s kind of part of the next step of it. This is not talking about a hand or an ankle or anything like that — we’re talking about his head.”
“And it’s obviously something as a former player and just kind of thinking about it in that context, we want to make sure we defer to the medical team. But then, also, what we feel is best. And we’re still not in a place to declare anything yet. Just kind of listening to where it’s at right now and where it could get to. But we’re obviously going to be smart, both for what’s best for our team and what’s best, most importantly, for J.J. And as the week goes on, we’ll be able to update you guys on what he’s able to do.”
The Case for Brosmer
Brosmer has been inches from the QB1 job for most of the regular season. The Vikings’ quarterback play has floundered, for the most part, all season, and Brosmer kind of lived on an island as the big what-if. What if Brosmer can turn his career into a Brock Purdy-style arc? That’s what Vikings fans have asked for about three months.
The time has arrived for an early verdict.
Getting first-team reps is no joke, and based on that fact alone, it might be strange for McCarthy to rally and reclaim his QB1 job in the next three days.
McCarthy has also performed miserably about 95% of the time; there’s a world where Brosmer gives Minnesota the best chance to end the current three-game losing streak this Sunday. McCarthy wasn’t benched for performance this week, but McCarthy has played like a quarterback who deserves to be benched for performance.
The Case for McCarthy
Let’s face it: for better or worse, McCarthy is the Vikings’ QB1. Minnesota brushes aside Sam Darnold, Daniel Jones, and Aaron Rodgers during the offseason to get here. The coaching staff believes in McCarthy.
Although he suffered the concussion at Green Bay, he’s evidently cleared hurdles faster than most to return to action. The man has started six games, and if the Vikings want to know if McCarthy is a viable QB1 option for 2026, well, he must keep playing. Maybe he’ll eventually encounter his big moment where it all clicks.
McCarthy will not improve on the bench, and if he, in theory, logs a full practice on Thursday or Friday, his development is of the utmost importance.
Brevan Bane on Brosmer
Our Brevan Bane provided Brosmer thoughts this week, “To preface this all, it’s not a guarantee that Brosmer is the starter on Sunday in Seattle. McCarthy could very well clear concussion protocol by the time the game rolls around.”
“However, our own Janik Eckardt pointed out that players do usually miss at least one game when entering the protocol. If I were a gambling man (I am), then I’d feel safe placing a bet that Max Brosmer will get the nod in Week 13. This is bad news for J.J. McCarthy. I am not going to sit here and say that Brosmer is going to light the world on fire, but the issue for McCarthy is that it’s very hard to play worse than he has.”
Sportsbooks believe the Seahawks will spank the Vikings by a dozen or so points.
“It’s hard to imagine that the Vikings would just hand Max Brosmer the starting job after one average game of NFL QB, but one average game of NFL QB would be better than what McCarthy has provided in his career so far,” Bane continued.
“Brosmer has technically already played this year, appearing in garbage time against the Cincinnati Bengals and Los Angeles Chargers. In those appearances, Brosmer threw for a combined five completions on eight attempts for 42 yards with no scores or interceptions.”
Sunday could be Brosmer’s 8 Mile moment.
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