Carson Wentz already has one milestone waiting for him Sunday. His start for the Minnesota Vikings against the Chicago Bears will be the 100th of his NFL career.
Two more could follow before he leaves Soldier Field.
Wentz enters Week 2 with 23,759 career passing yards and 162 touchdown passes. That puts him 153 yards away from passing Archie Manning on the NFL’s all-time passing-yardage list and one touchdown away from passing Trent Green on the career passing-touchdown list.
For a quarterback who has spent the latter part of his career bouncing between teams and backup jobs, it is a fairly notable piece of territory.
Carson Wentz Needs 153 Yards to Pass Archie Manning
Manning finished his career with 23,911 passing yards. Wentz enters Sunday directly behind him with 23,759, placing Manning 92nd and Wentz 93rd on Pro Football Reference’s career list.
A 153-yard performance against Chicago would push Wentz to 23,912 and move him ahead.
That is hardly an unreasonable threshold considering what Chicago allowed in its opener.
Carolina Panthers quarterback Bryce Young completed 23 of 37 passes for 361 yards and three touchdowns against the Bears in Week 1. Carolina finished with 353 net passing yards despite losing 59-37.
Wentz didn’t need anything close to that volume against Green Bay.
After Kyler Murray exited with a concussion, Wentz completed 12 of 19 attempts for 133 yards and three touchdowns as Minnesota erased a second-half deficit and won 39-22. He finished with a 123.5 passer rating.
Now he gets the full game.
1 Touchdown Would Move Wentz Ahead of Trent Green
The touchdown milestone is even closer.
Wentz and Green are tied with 162 career touchdown passes, meaning Wentz’s next scoring throw would move him ahead of the former Kansas City Chiefs quarterback.
There is room for another jump if Wentz gets rolling.
Jim Plunkett and Daryle Lamonica are tied at 164 touchdown passes. Two Wentz touchdowns against Chicago would pull him even with both quarterbacks; three would move him past them as well.
He just threw three against Green Bay.
That performance earned Wentz his first start of the season after Minnesota ruled Murray out against Chicago while he continues through concussion protocol. Vikings coach Kevin O’Connell also confirmed that Sunday will be Wentz’s 100th career start.
Wentz called the timing fitting. He grew up cheering for the Vikings and now reaches start No. 100 wearing their uniform.
“Very blessed for that,” Wentz told reporters. “Hopefully we can get in the win column on that, too.”
Wentz Has More Than History at Stake Against Bears
The career lists are the clean historical hook. The more immediate consequence sits inside Minnesota’s quarterback room.
Wentz was supposed to be the insurance policy. Instead, he threw three touchdowns in relief in Week 1 and now gets another opportunity to run Kevin O’Connell’s offense from the opening snap.
He also enters Sunday 4-0 in his career against Chicago, according to the Vikings.
A fifth win matters considerably more to Minnesota than moving a few slots on two statistical lists.
Still, the numbers tell their own story.
One hundred career starts. Another 153 yards for Manning. One touchdown for Green.
Wentz has traveled through six NFL organizations to get here. A productive afternoon at Soldier Field would put a couple of familiar names behind him on the way.
Vikings Starter Carson Wentz Can Leap 2 Notable QBs on NFL’s All-Time Lists