There’s been plenty of noise surrounding Minnesota Vikings quarterback Sam Howell and his shaky standing as J.J. McCarthy’s backup throughout training camp this summer.
While Howell quieted some of that chatter with a clean performance in Minnesota’s preseason opener against the Texans, Saturday’s dud against the New England Patriots at U.S. Bank Stadium is sure to leave Vikings fans with some recurring fears since the start of the new league year.
Howell had a rough outing against a large grouping of Patriots starters. In three drives, he finished with more scramble yards (14) than passing yards (13) and tossed an ugly interception deep in his own territory. His final snap was a six-yard scramble on third and long, another empty rep in a performance that left the team with more questions than answers at one of the most important spots on the depth chart.
Brett Rypien took over for Howell and played the full second quarter, and rookie Max Brosmer got the entire second half. In an ideal world, those two players would be battling for Minnesota’s No. 3 quarterback job, but the Vikings find themselves in a brutal situation just three weeks out from the season opener — unsettled at the most important position in sports.
Head coach Kevin O’Connell calls the Minnesota Vikings’ backup QB battle an 'open competition'
O’Connell made it clear in his postgame comments that Howell was removed from the game due to a predetermined plan, and not for any performance-based reasons. But in the same breath, he seemed to talk up Brosmer a bit while confirming that Howell has not yet locked down the No. 2 QB job:
“Look, I’m well aware sometimes the circumstances aren’t perfect. They’re not throwing the ball to Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison and T.J. (Hockenson). They’re not playing behind our first offensive line. So you take that into account. But you’re looking for just the traits out of those three guys, and I think Sam had a really good week of practice. I think Brett Rypien had a good week stepping in there, and Max made some good throws as well. So there’s a reason we’re playing all three of them. As far as what that means in the overall competition, I think I would just say that it’s still open and we’re trying to figure out what that room is going to look like for the season. But I do like all the players a lot.”
The major criticism of Howell from team reporters this summer has been his decision-making. As Alec Lewis of The Athletic has put it, he’s been a tick too slow with the rhythm and timing of O'Connell's offense.
O’Connell seemed to say the opposite about Brosmer, whose performance wasn’t all that much better Saturday but included multiple flash plays:
“He plays with very fast eyes and very rarely puts the ball in harm’s way when he’s doing it,” O’Connell said of Brosmer, “which is a unique trait.”
The bottom line here is that the Vikings are playing with fire at QB2. McCarthy proved this week during joint practices with the Patriots that he’s ready to hit the ground running this season, but the Vikings, with one of the best top-to-bottom rosters in the NFL, will need a QB on the roster who can keep the ship afloat if McCarthy misses time with an injury this season.
Right now, none of the backup QBs on the roster are inspiring much confidence, and with the regular season fast approaching, Minnesota’s unsettled nature at the position is less than ideal.