Possible Vikings Starting QB in 2024 No. 2
Jake Browning
2023 Team: Cincinnati Bengals
2023 Stats:
- 7 starts
- 70.4 completions percentage (led NFL)
- 1,936 passing yards (215.1 per game)
- 12 touchdown passes
- 7 interceptions
- 98.4 passer rating
- 127 rushing yards (4.7 per carry)
- 3 rushing touchdowns
Almost five years after he was signed by the Vikings in 2019 as an undrafted free agent out of the University of Washington, Jake Browning finally got his chance to show the rest of the NFL that he could hang as a starter.
Browning has been learning behind Joe Burrow since he joined the Bengals right before the 2021 regular season, and during the 2023 campaign, it seemed like all of that time behind Cincinnati’s No. 1 quarterback paid off.
During his time on the field this past season, the former Minnesota signal-caller completed over 68 percent of his passes in five of his seven starts, he threw for at least 275 yards four times (including during a Week 15 win over the Vikings), and he tossed multiple touchdown passes three times.
At the same time, he also experienced plenty of struggles during the 2023 campaign, as he threw at least one interception in five of his seven starts, and he was sacked an average of three times in these seven matchups.
Browning could be someone Minnesota would be interested in if they wanted to bring in a cheap starting option to go along with a young quarterback prospect that they might select in one of the first two rounds of this year’s NFL Draft.
Of course, Browning would also have to be okay with returning to the Vikings, and based on some of the comments he made after leading the Bengals to a win over his old team this past season, there’s a chance that he wants nothing to do with Minnesota ever again.