Getty David Blough before the preseason game against the Pittsburgh Steelers.
The Minnesota Vikings let Kellen Mond and Sean Mannion walk, and with both backups finding new homes in the NFL, Minnesota made a move to cement their quarterback room ahead of Week 1.
“Former #Lions QB David Blough, who was waived hours after the 53-man cutdown, plans to sign with the #Vikings practice squad, per source,” NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero reported on September 1.
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Blough originally made the Detroit Lions‘ 53-man roster but was released to make room for quarterback Nate Sudfeld. Blough, undrafted out of Purdue in 2019, is 0-5 in his professional career, throwing for four touchdowns and six interceptions.
Mannion signed with the Seattle Seahawks on August 31, while Mond was claimed by the Cleveland Browns the same day.
Meanwhile, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported that the Lions did want to bring Blough back on their practice squad, but he instead opted for a fresh start in Minnesota.
Vikings Made an Offer to Sign Mannion to Practice Squad
In a September 1 press conference, Vikings coach Kevin O’Connell made it clear that while the team gave Mannion and Mond every opportunity to win the QB2 job, neither won the role.
Instead, Minnesota traded for Las Vegas Raiders backup Nick Mullens, who despite not playing a single preseason game for the Vikings made the 53-man roster.
The Vikings made an offer to sign Mannion to the practice squad, KSTP’s Darren Wolfson revealed, however, the seventh-year quarterback opted to revisit his time in Seattle after spending the 2021 preseason with the Seahawks.
SKOR North’s Judd Zulgad added Kirk Cousins campaigned for the team to keep Mannion on the 53-man roster but went against the quarterback’s wishes.
Mond was not considered for the practice squad, although Kevin O’Connell was candid about potentially putting too much pressure on the second-year quarterback.
“I thought Kellen improved tremendously from the time we got him in the spring all the way through,” O’Connell said. “He’s got a heck of a football journey ahead of him. I’m a big fan of how hard he works. I’m a big fan of the human being and I think he’s got all the things you look for in an NFL quarterback. It’s just at the time for us, you know you can put a lot of pressure on a player if he’s not ready and, in my personal opinion, I still think Kellen’s got tremendous upside but to ask him to be that No. 2 quarterback, being a snap away on a team we feel very strongly about competing on, I didn’t think that was fair to Kellen.”
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Blough Was a Fan Favorite on Hard Knocks
Blough was a featured star on this season of HBO’s “Hard Knocks: Training Camp With the Detroit Lions.” Viewers got to know the Purdue product and his wife, U.S. Olympic track star Melissa Gonzalez. Blough, making an honest assessment of his abilities as an athlete, quipped that he’d make a lot more money if he were as fast as his wife.
Episode 2 of the show spotlighted Blough’s costly fourth-quarter fumble in the Lions’ preseason-opening 27-23 loss to the Atlanta Falcons on August 12, which likely played a factor in him not retaining his job in the end.
“Blough’s late-game fumble really ate at him,” wrote Tim Twentyman of DetroitLions.com on August 16. “I suspect that will be fuel for him in this week’s preseason game in Indianapolis.”
The Lions beat the Indianapolis Colts the next week 27-26, Blough completed 16 of 22 passes for 76 yards, a touchdown and an interception.