I've been watching the Vikes since I was a kid in the mid-90s. The Atlanta game was one of the worst overall Vikings performances I can remember. The Bengals game was one of the most complete. If we have the roster now to make a run, it is such a rare opportunity you don't waste it. Not for the fans, and not for the players. JJ is very, very young. He may be the QB who was promised, he may not be, but he needs to earn his spot on the roster just like everyone else. If he's not ready, he's not ready.
If this was meant to be a transition year (ie an average roster) so that as long as the rookie shows something you come away thinking the team is a year or 2 away from competing.. Let the rookie have his trial by fire (I mean rookie as in first year starter for the language police)
But when you have a stacked roster... You have to win now. That is your mandate.
If you’re worried about which week is easy enough for him to play, he probably isn’t ready to play. Would’ve been nice if they could’ve landed Daniel jones, which seems crazy to say. Definitely doable to come back from Europe 4-1 even with extremely mediocre play from Wentz.
Agreed on the first part, it's the NFL, ask the Packers about easy matchups. Jones didn't want to stay in a place where he was keeping the chair warm, which makes sense--this wasn't Cousins leaving for $100 MM in actual cash.
With the benefit of retrospective knowledge, it would have been much better to have Wentz in camp from day 1. But, nobody expected Howell to bomb as badly as he did, either.
I would say they screwed up by not having someone better than Wentz in camp from day 1. They certainly tried with Jones and looked at other options, but at the end of the day you ended up with a borderline all in salary cap/roster and a QB who clearly wasn’t ready to play even replacement level football.
In terms of backups outside of Jones that were actually available, probably not much else out there. You could trade for a guy but that isn’t easy to pull off if the guy is actually any good. I’m fine with them saying we don’t want to do any of that and would rather see what the kid has than go to Darnold or Rodgers who would expect to start. I just don’t think it made a ton of sense to sign guys like Allen and Kelly and be as old as they are if that’s what you’re going to do at QB. Loved McCarthy coming out and appreciate them at least taking a swing, but feels like they clearly rushed the timeline at this point.
Kelly was cheap enough, and provides enough value (when healthy) for a young QB, that I'm fine with that signing in a vacuum.
But otherwise, yes. There was another path where a cheaper RG gets signed (Scherff is still out there, Becton was 2 years/$20, $11 guaranteed), Jones walks, and the defence isn't touched. The offensive infrastructure would still be such that it maximizes a young QB's opportunity, while overall expectations are much lower for 2025.
One of the consequences of KAM's approach is that it's '25, '26 and then a harsh reset. That makes it much harder to let a young QB develop/flounder, but it's also difficult to see how JJMC would improve without facing actual opposing defences.
Yeah, Kelly’s contract isn’t bad. I just would’ve gotten younger across the board to fit with when McCarthy can reasonably be expected to be good. We all like Mason, but it was a good draft for DTs, RBs and safeties. They passed on all of those for older guys.
If Wentz plays well, keep playing him
I've been watching the Vikes since I was a kid in the mid-90s. The Atlanta game was one of the worst overall Vikings performances I can remember. The Bengals game was one of the most complete. If we have the roster now to make a run, it is such a rare opportunity you don't waste it. Not for the fans, and not for the players. JJ is very, very young. He may be the QB who was promised, he may not be, but he needs to earn his spot on the roster just like everyone else. If he's not ready, he's not ready.
Context is everything.
If this was meant to be a transition year (ie an average roster) so that as long as the rookie shows something you come away thinking the team is a year or 2 away from competing.. Let the rookie have his trial by fire (I mean rookie as in first year starter for the language police)
But when you have a stacked roster... You have to win now. That is your mandate.
If you’re worried about which week is easy enough for him to play, he probably isn’t ready to play. Would’ve been nice if they could’ve landed Daniel jones, which seems crazy to say. Definitely doable to come back from Europe 4-1 even with extremely mediocre play from Wentz.
Agreed on the first part, it's the NFL, ask the Packers about easy matchups. Jones didn't want to stay in a place where he was keeping the chair warm, which makes sense--this wasn't Cousins leaving for $100 MM in actual cash.
With the benefit of retrospective knowledge, it would have been much better to have Wentz in camp from day 1. But, nobody expected Howell to bomb as badly as he did, either.
I would say they screwed up by not having someone better than Wentz in camp from day 1. They certainly tried with Jones and looked at other options, but at the end of the day you ended up with a borderline all in salary cap/roster and a QB who clearly wasn’t ready to play even replacement level football.
Who is that person, though? Cooper Rush? If one prefers him to Wentz, fair enough, but they're similarly valued league-wide.
In terms of backups outside of Jones that were actually available, probably not much else out there. You could trade for a guy but that isn’t easy to pull off if the guy is actually any good. I’m fine with them saying we don’t want to do any of that and would rather see what the kid has than go to Darnold or Rodgers who would expect to start. I just don’t think it made a ton of sense to sign guys like Allen and Kelly and be as old as they are if that’s what you’re going to do at QB. Loved McCarthy coming out and appreciate them at least taking a swing, but feels like they clearly rushed the timeline at this point.
Kelly was cheap enough, and provides enough value (when healthy) for a young QB, that I'm fine with that signing in a vacuum.
But otherwise, yes. There was another path where a cheaper RG gets signed (Scherff is still out there, Becton was 2 years/$20, $11 guaranteed), Jones walks, and the defence isn't touched. The offensive infrastructure would still be such that it maximizes a young QB's opportunity, while overall expectations are much lower for 2025.
One of the consequences of KAM's approach is that it's '25, '26 and then a harsh reset. That makes it much harder to let a young QB develop/flounder, but it's also difficult to see how JJMC would improve without facing actual opposing defences.
Yeah, Kelly’s contract isn’t bad. I just would’ve gotten younger across the board to fit with when McCarthy can reasonably be expected to be good. We all like Mason, but it was a good draft for DTs, RBs and safeties. They passed on all of those for older guys.
Agreed; he’s either ready or he’s not.