The biggest test of the still-new partnership between Vikings G.M. Nolan Teasley and Vikings coach Kevin O’Connell has arrived.
What will they do about a team with a Super Bowl-caliber defense and an offense that could barely function in the MAC?
The window remains open until 4:00 p.m. ET on Tuesday. The Vikings were in this spot three years ago, when Kirk Cousins tore an Achilles tendon two days before the deadline.
That time, the Vikings didn’t have many options; they ended up with Josh Dobbs. This time, there are two former Vikings on other teams who know the Minnesota offense: Colts quarterback Daniel Jones and Raiders quarterback Kirk Cousins.
If the calls haven’t already been made, they should be. Immediately. What will it take to salvage a season that is disintegrating before everyone’s eyes, despite the 6-2 record?
It wouldn’t be easy to plug and play a new quarterback, but there’s history with Jones and Cousins. It would be easier to get them up to speed than if they brought in someone who would be learning everything from scratch.
If, in the end, the Colts want too much for Jones and the Raiders want too much for Cousins (neither is untouchable; the question is the amount of the compensation), the only other starter potentially available would be Geno Smith.
Some have suggested a play for Justin Herbert. At this point, however, it’s impossible to know whether his implosion is about his surroundings or about Herbert.
Then there’s Jimmy Garoppolo, who remains a free agent — and who has been largely forgotten.
Whatever the Vikings do, staying the course with Kyler Murray and Carson Wentz is a middle finger to the fan base. And Max Brosmer, by all appearances, isn’t good enough to make a difference.
The fans know it. The boos were frequent, loud, and warranted on Monday night.
So what will Teasley and O’Connell do?
And, perhaps more importantly, when will the narrative change about O’Connell being a quarterback whisperer? He didn’t want 2024 first-rounder J.J. McCarthy, who had fallen to third on the depth chart before he was given away for a fifth-round draft pick. O’Connell preferred Murray, who has been underwhelming. Wentz landed at No. 2 on the depth chart, and when the lights got bright Wentz winced..
It’s a pivotal moment for Teasley, O’Connell, and the entire franchise. They can continue to act like everything is fine, that 6-2 is a good record, whatever.
Anyone who’s paying attention knows the truth. The Vikings, after starting 6-0, are sinking like a smooth stone in a septic tank. Failure to act amounts to dysfunction.
And, yes, dysfunctional teams do dysfunctional things. Some around the league have suggested in recent years that the Vikings are low-key dysfunctional.
Right or wrong, they’re definitely the worst 6-2 team we’ve ever seen — and the only question at this point is whether they’ll figure out how to win another game.
