Getty Minnesota Vikings head coach Kevin O'Connell.
With the arrival of Sam Darnold and J.J. McCarthy, Minnesota Vikings quarterback Jaren Hall has been overlooked — and even after a breakout performance against the Cleveland Browns in the Vikings’ second preseason game, he may not make the initial 53-man roster come final cuts on August 27.
Purple Insider’s Matthew Coller predicted the Vikings to keep only two quarterbacks — Nick Mullens and Darnold — and waive Hall. He would be a candidate to be re-signed to the practice squad, but there is no guarantee that another team wouldn’t pick him up off waivers.
“While Jaren Hall played much better against Cleveland than Las Vegas in preseason action and he seems to be appreciated in the Vikings’ QB room, it doesn’t seem likely that another team would pick him up if he’s cut,” Coller wrote in his August 20 roster prediction.
The Athletic’s Alec Lewis also sees a difficult decision ahead on Hall in his cutdown day preview.
Darnold and Mullens are locks for the top two quarterback spots, but the Vikings must weigh the worth of using a depth spot on the roster on Hall.
Meanwhile, McCarthy was placed on injured reserve (IR) after his meniscus surgery. He will not count against the 53-man roster.
.@jarenhall3 tosses it to @JeshaunJones06 for the score!
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Vikings QB Jaren Hall Admits It Wasn’t Another Day at the Office in Cleveland
GettyJaren Hall #16 of the Minnesota Vikings.
A 2023 fifth-round pick, Hall finished with a perfect passer rating in the Vikings’ 27-12 win over the Browns on August 17, completing 4 of 5 pass attempts for 87 yards and 2 touchdowns.
“I don’t know about another day in the office, man. Days like this you just cherish forever,” Hall said, per Pro Football Talk. “It’s a game I’ll always remember – preseason or not. Just to play and execute the simple plays that are being called. I trust in the coaches’ call. It just feels good. It’s fun to enjoy with your teammates like that.”
Hall was among a three-quarterback carousel last season when Kirk Cousins was lost for the season due to an Achilles injury. With Mullens on IR, he got the first start in Cousins’ stead in Week 9 against the Atlanta Falcons. Hall suffered a concussion on his first drive, thrusting Joshua Dobbs into the game.
Hall was pulled as the starter in a Week 16 loss to the Green Bay Packers. He did not throw a touchdown in the regular season last year — making Saturday’s perfect passer rating in Cleveland special for the 26-year-old.
“Very few people do it,” Hall said. “It’s a preseason game, you take it with a grain of salt and do your best, but that doesn’t take away anything. There are great players out there. But when you keep it simple and you just execute, which is what we did in that last group and it just comes together.”
Vikings Must Weigh Risk With Waiving Jaren Hall
GettyJaren Hall #16 of the Minnesota Vikings.
When the Vikings were still on the fence with Cousins, Kevin O’Connell identified Hall as a developmental prospect. He was the first quarterback the Vikings head coach drafted.
Whether O’Connell, a former quarterback himself, is willing to risk losing Hall will have significant sway in the Vikings’ roster decisions.
The Vikings staff values his maturity and drive. For more than a year now, he typically has been the last player out on the field after practice working with assistant quarterbacks coach Grant Udinski.
The decision comes down to this: Do the Vikings value a third-string QB option steeped in the system more than they value a back-end roster option with upside at another premium position? The answer might be no, especially with the emphasis coach Kevin O’Connell and general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah have placed on roster depth.
Over the past three years, only three quarterbacks around the NFL have been claimed off waivers on cutdown day. But could another team pounce on Hall? It’s possible. He is mobile, generally accurate and studied in an advanced system that is respected throughout the league. There is risk to cutting him, but the Vikings might be willing to absorb it.
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Vikings Predicted to Cut Young QB After Breakout Performance