Vikings reunion with J.J. McCarthy replacement might be more likely than you think

The Minnesota Vikings quarterback plan for the 2024 NFL regular season is still in place, sort of. Sam Darnold was always going to start come Week 1, despite the emergence of rookie JJ McCarthy in training camp. Kwesi Adofo-Mensah signed Darnold as a bright quarterback, with McCarthy likely starting in 2025.

Then, McCarthy went down with a season-ending knee injury in the Vikings first preseason game. The Vikings rookie showed flashes in that same win over the Las Vegas Raiders. The Michigan product will not play this year, and is forced to watch from the sidelines. While Minnesota can start Darnold, as was their plan all along, the rest of the depth chart is stretched.

Vikings depth chart is lacking without JJ McCarthy

Behind Darnold is Nick Mullens and Jaren Hall, both of whom have flaws. Mullens is proven, but inconsistent at best. Hall is a late-round draft pick and unproven. Adofo-Mensah signed Matt Corral as en emergency option, but it's unclear if he'll even make the active roster.

When asked about the current state of the Vikings depth chart, head coach Kevin O'Connell didn't sound confident without McCarthy in the picture.

“I think guys are pretty confident in Sam Darnold,” O’Connell told reporters. “I do. When Nick Mullens got his opportunities last year, we were very explosive as an offense. His ability to run the show and really highlight a lot of different aspects of our offense with his understanding is something. That’s why Nick’s here. He’s a guy we really respect and respect his prep and his experience.”

Pretty confident? Surely O'Connell can be a better hype man for Darnold than that.

Vikings do have other options if they're not satisfied at quarterback

If the Vikings aren't satisfied with their current quarterback crop, there are plenty of options available to them. First, roster cuts are upon us, and there will be some capable backups available thanks to teams with a far better quarterback situation than the Vikings have at their disposal.

The other choice, of course, would be to trade for a backup, specifically one with some familiarity for O'Connell's system. Josh Dobbs comes to mind, especially if the 49ers want to take advantage of his productive preseason play. FanSided's Zach Pressnell crafted a trade package for Dobbs on Tuesday night, and it was fairly affordable for Minnesota.

Dobbs isn't a starter in the NFL for a reason, but he performed well when called upon with little notice in 2023 for O'Connell, even earning the nickname The Passtronaut. Ironically enough, the 49ers may be willing to ditch Dobbs for many of the reasons the Vikings would trade for him in the first place.

Per Matt Barrows of The Athletic, Brandon Allen has been pencilled into the QB2 spot the last few years, and could earn that role again thanks to familiarity:

"(Allen's) gotten far more work than he did last year and he’s usually been the de facto No. 2 quarterback in practice. The 49ers would be comfortable with him in that role this season. The question is whether they think Dobbs has more upside. In NFL parlance, Allen has the higher floor, Dobbs the higher ceiling," Barrows wrote.

Dobbs has a higher ceiling, as Barrows wrote, and most prognosticators around the NFL agree. That leads to a higher trade value, and the 49ers have the luxury of a sound QB2 already on the roster in Allen.

The Vikings ought to make that phone call.