The backup quarterback remains a mystery
Coming into this game, it looked as though second-year quarterback Kellen Mond may have closed the gap on Sean Mannion to be the No. 2 quarterback on the team’s depth chart behind obvious starter Kirk Cousins.
Any progress Mond made in Week 1 of the preseason definitely was lost against the 49ers. The young passer connected on a few early passes before a tough interception seemed to rattle him for the rest of the game. He closed out the game with another bad-looking interception,
Mannion didn’t throw an interception but didn’t look like a viable option to be the Vikings’ backup for the regular season either. Expectations should be higher for a veteran quarterback with his level of experience, but he’s just not there.
The big question is what to do from here. The current pool of free agents isn’t appealing, so the Vikings need to be watching the transactions and trade block for anyone who could make this team more secure at the quarterback position in case something happens to the current starter.