The Minnesota Vikings are coming off their bye week, trying to get healthy after a first quarter season full of injuries, and sacks. The offensive line has been banged up which has lead to quarterbacks swapping in and out and its leading to a good question to be asked heading into their Week 7 matchup at home against the Philadelphia Eagles. Who will start at quarterback?
J.J. McCarthy was pegged as the future of the franchise and was picked to be the guy Week 1, but after a Week 2 drubbing from the Atlanta Falcons, McCarthy hasn’t played since, dealing with an ankle injury, that has finally made him available to play in Week 7.
Through the two weeks McCarthy played, we seen both good and bad. McCarthy led the Vikings to a comeback win over the Chicago Bears in Week 1, but then was dominated by the Falcons Week 2. A typical developmental phase of a young quarterback as he is seeing his first real snaps in the NFL.
After the injury, in comes Carson Wentz. The North Dakota native and former Viking fan, who made the dream come true by making short use of the Cincinnati Bengals in his debut. But… the Vikings problems other than an injured quarterback started to take over. With a short offensive line, and injured defense, the Vikings were manhandled by the Pittsburgh Steelers in Dublin, but almost made a comeback that came up short due to the offensive line not being able to protect Wentz.
The Vikings entered their bye week on a high note however, achieving the comeback this time, and defeating the Cleveland Browns in London and holding a record of 3-2. Wentz as the starter has pulled together a 2-1 record, in relief of McCarthy since the injury, and has been able to operate the offense at a normal pace, move the ball down the field, and score points, as opposed to what we seen in 1 and 3/4’s games with McCarthy.
Kevin O’Connell will have to answer the question of who is going to be his signal caller this Sunday. Either returning to his Week 1 starter, McCarthy, who is going to have his moments of being a young quarterback, by taking sacks and maybe a couple turnovers, or turning back to Wentz who has the hot hand right now, and has been the leader of the Vikes for the last couple of weeks.
One thing to note in this decision is who is going to handle the defense of the Eagles better? The Eagles have lost two straight games, and will be looking to get back on their winning ways, and may have a little extra motivation to get after the Vikings and their offense this week. Based on experience Wentz would be the selection here, Wentz has played tough defenses before, and knows how and when to get the ball out in high pressure situation and downs. McCarthy, as we saw against the Falcon defense, failed to handle pressure consistently and failed to get the ball out quickly which led to turnovers and sacks. Against the Philly defense, O’Connell will have to choose whether he wants a quarterback who can handle the pressure and give the Vikings a better chance to win, or the quarterback who was billed to be the future of the franchise and has to go through his growing pains to one day become the quarterback the team hopes he can be.
Wentz or McCarthy? The Answer Lingers…
Photo Credit: The NFL, the Minnesota Vikings, the NFL Players Association
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