Joshua Dobbs officially benched, Nick Mullens to start

It’s a sad day, as the Passtronaut run has ended for the time being. The Minnesota Vikings just announced that Joshua Dobbs will be hitting the bench in favour of Nick Mullens moving forward after another abysmal outing by the quarterback. While this might be disappointing news, it’s not verry surprising given his recent play.

Dobbs was sent over to Minnesota from the Arizona Cardinals and had to learn the plays in just a few days before getting thrust into the action early. He came out firing and put together a beautiful comeback win over the Atlanta Falcons, then dominated a New Orleans Saints defense for a second straight win. Then things turned. He took on the Denver Broncos and played them close but couldn’t get it done at the end of the day. It was a 21-20 loss, but one that nobody really put on his shoulders given that he threw for 221 yards.

The next two games were absolutely on his shoulders, as the team lost two more games with him under centre. The first of the two came against the Chicago Bears, one that they lost 12-10. In the loss, Dobbs completed 22 of his 32 attempts for 185 yards, a touchdown, and four interceptions. It was clear that he had no rhythm through the air, and Chicago caught on quickly. He would have had more interceptions if it weren’t for dropped balls by the defense as well. Then comes the final straw, last weekend. The Vikings took on the Las Vegas Raiders and won by a score of 3-0. Yes, that’s the official final score. However, Dobbs wasn’t on the field for the final game-winning field goal drive, as he had been benched for Mullens by then. In the time he was on the field, Dobbs had completed 10 of his 23 passes for 63 total yards while taking five sacks. It wasn’t a good performance, and Mullens immediately stepped up to complete nine of his 13 throws for 83 yards without a sack taken. 

Head coach Kevin O’Connell said after this game that Mullens will continue to start moving forward, and it just feels like the correct move. Dobbs was getting to that point where opposing teams had ample film on him with the Vikings, and adjustments were being made to slow him down. He did great against Atlanta and New Orleans and was perfectly fine against the Broncos as well. It was the losses to Chicago and Las Vegas that really took his stock down in the eyes of the coaching staff. If you’re a Vikings fan out there, Mullens could provide a spark where it’s needed. He’s a six-year veteran with snaps in the preseason with this team, as well as 16 NFL starts with the San Francisco 49ers and another one with the Cleveland Browns. He knows what it takes to win in this league and is hopeful of getting Justin Jefferson on the field for the full game after he suffered a chest injury early last week.