Getty Head coach Kevin O'Connell of the Minnesota Vikings.
While veteran quarterback Joe Flacco has resurrected the Cleveland Browns season and clinched his team a playoff berth this week, the Minnesota Vikings are left pondering what could have been.
According to KSTP’s Darren Wolfson, Flacco reached out to the Vikings after Kirk Cousins went down with a season-ending Achilles injury on October 29, expressing his interest in joining the team, but the Vikings were not interested.
“He wanted to be here,” Wolfson said of Flacco in an X (formerly Twitter) post on December 28. “Vikings received that message before October 29 turned into October 30. They weren’t interested.”
@HangBilly He wanted to be here, Vikings received that message before Oct. 29 turned into Oct. 30. They weren’t interested.
The Vikings (7-8) are on the brink of playoff elimination and have exhausted all options at quarterback, benching Josh Dobbs and Nick Mullens and turning to fifth-round rookie Jaren Hall.
While the Vikings traded for Dobbs at the October 31 deadline, Flacco, who will be 39 next month, remained a free agent and would not have cost any draft capital to acquire.
He remained a free agent for three more weeks after the trade deadline, eventually signing to the Browns practice squad for $1.8 million on November 20. Flacco has since gone 4-1 as a starter, leading Cleveland to its first playoff appearance since 2020.
Flacco, the 2013 Super Bowl MVP and winner of Super Bowl XLVII with the Baltimore Ravens, has thrown for 323 yards per game for 13 touchdowns and a 90.2 passer rating.
Joe Flacco’s Fit With Vikings
Getty ImagesJoe Flacco is 4-1 as the starting quarterback of the Cleveland Browns.
It’s unclear how Flacco would have fit in the Vikings scheme.
While O’Connell’s system requires fast processing and accuracy as a signal caller, the Vikings showed they were willing to enter a firefight with Mullens under center.
The offense’s struggles running the ball in a Week 16 loss to the Detroit Lions translated to deep throws from Mullens, who channeled his inner Brett Favre to the tune of 411 passing yards.
That was partially by design and also a product of Mullens’ recklessness as a passer.
“Mullens pushed the ball downfield all game. His average attempt traveled 14.6 yards downfield, most by a Vikings QB since Brett Favre in 2010, per @ESPNStatsInfo,” ESPN’s Kevin Seifert posted. “He threw 18 passes of 15+ air yards, more than any QB in the past 2 seasons.”
While Mullens did move the offense, the problem was his arm talent did not match his confidence in hitting the open receiver, leading to four interceptions and being benched.
Whether Flacco, who would be in a similar situation as Dobbs, could have learned the offense on the fly is unlikely — but if anyone could, a 16-year NFL veteran would be a good bet.
Flacco’s also shown he still has some of the arm talent of his younger years left — begging the question of what the Vikings’ loss to Detroit might have looked like if a quarterback who had a stronger arm delivered a strike to Justin Jefferson on their final drive.
Vikings All-In on Jaren Hall
GettyJaren Hall #16 of the Minnesota Vikings.
While the past can’t be changed, the Vikings are opting to take the middle road in their quarterback room by starting Hall this week against the Green Bay Packers.
Mullens was productive and highly volatile, while Dobbs could barely move the offense once he settled into the scheme.
The Vikings hope to strike a middle ground with Hall, who has been in the offense long enough to understand its nuances, but will hopefully make wiser decisions with the ball.
The offense might take a step backward, but if Hall can lead more sustainable drives and not strand the defense on the field, the Vikings can have some confidence in winning a more low-scoring affair.