Getty Quarterback Josh Dobbs of the Minnesota Vikings.
What Josh Dobbs accomplished for the Minnesota Vikings in his first career start with the team is unheard of in the modern NFL and the stuff of legends.
Dobbs led the Vikings on a game-winning drive against the Atlanta Falcons on Sunday, November 5, just five days after joining the team. The career journeyman probably wouldn’t have even seen the field were it not for a concussion rookie QB Jaren Hall sustained during the first quarter of his first career start.
“Incredible stories from the Vikings’ locker room today,” ESPN’s Kevin Seifert wrote on X following the game. “Josh Dobbs didn’t take a single rep with the offense in practice. No snaps from [center] Garrett Bradbury. Had never thrown passes to anyone and didn’t know most of their full names.”
Feeling the need to introduce himself after his whirlwind integration into the huddle, Dobbs sent a message directly to Minnesota fans following the comeback win.
#Vikings fans, say hello to our new friend Josh
“What’s up SKOL Nation?! Want to introduce myself. I’m Josh Dobbs,” he said. “Great job today on Sunday in Atlanta. Cheers to the next one. I’ll see you guys back in Minnesota. Let’s get it.”
Kevin O’Connell Calls Josh Dobbs’ Performance Among Most Impressive He’s Ever Seen
GettyQuarterback Josh Dobbs of the Minnesota Vikings.
Dobbs spoke specifically to the Vikings’ final drive during his postgame press conference, in which Minnesota marched 75 yards in 11 plays to score a touchdown with 22 seconds remaining.
“Stepping up to the circumstances that we were given,” Dobbs said. “It was a team effort, a team mindset, a team mentality that, ‘We have the ball. We don’t care about the circumstance. We’re gonna go down and put this thing in the end zone and get a win and get back to Minnesota.”
Alec Lewis of The Athletic added some context around just how astounding Dobbs’ performance actually was based on information provided by the quarterback and Vikings head coach Kevin O’Connell.
“Unbelievable. Josh Dobbs said that Vikings HC Kevin O’Connell was essentially translating calls and mapping out plays mid-huddle, as the play clock was ticking down,” Lewis posted on X. “KOC called Dobbs’ ability to handle it all one of the most impressive things he’d seen in his career.”
O’Connell added to those comments while speaking with reporters Sunday.
Couldn’t have said it better 💜
“To go do what he just did today, in his hometown,” O’Connell said, “he should be very, very proud of what he just did in a very competitive game in the National Football League.”
Vikings Most Recent Stop in Josh Dobbs’ NFL Coming Out Party
GettyQuarterback Josh Dobbs of the Minnesota Vikings.
That Dobbs is quick to pick up an offense isn’t surprising. The 28-year-old QB graduated from the University of Tennessee with a perfect 4.0 grade point average and a degree in aerospace engineering. He is literally a rocket scientist who has interned with NASA.
Given his mind, physical gifts and the opportunities that have finally started coming his way, the moment Dobbs conjured on Sunday with the Vikings felt inevitable to those who have been paying attention to his career.
He was a member of the Cleveland Browns for much of 2022, backing up Jacoby Brissett who started in place of the suspended Deshaun Watson. Once Watson returned, Brissett slipped back into the No. 2 role and Cleveland waived Dobbs.
Shortly after, he landed on the Detroit Lions practice squad. Dobbs found himself waived again two weeks later and caught on with the Tennessee Titans. It was in Nashville that Dobbs got his first NFL start — more than five years after the Pittsburgh Steelers selected him in the fourth round of the 2017 NFL Draft. Dobbs went 0-2 as the starter but displayed toughness and talent amid what was a postseason push for the Titans.
Dobbs returned to Cleveland in the spring as a backup, but the Browns traded him to the Arizona Cardinals for a Day 3 pick on the eve of the regular season. He started eight games in Arizona, earning a record of 1-7 but keeping one of the league’s worst rosters competitive on almost a weekly basis.
Vikings May Face QB Controversy Between Josh Dobbs, Jaren Hall
GettyMinnesota Vikings rookie quarterback Jaren Hall.
The Vikings sent the Cardinals a sixth-round pick in exchange for Dobbs and a seventh-rounder ahead of the league’s trade deadline last Tuesday. Now, just five days later, Minnesota may have a QB controversy on its hands, as it is difficult to see the Vikings benching Dobbs for Hall after the former’s heroics on Sunday.
Hall started the game against Atlanta well, completing 5-of-6 passes for 78 yards and rushing the ball twice for 11 yards before the concussion knocked him out for the afternoon. However, Hall has minimal experience NFL experience and the type of injury prone to recurrence and/or lingering symptoms.
Dobbs is something of an overnight hero in Minnesota and will probably remain the starter for the foreseeable future, though the situation is one worth monitoring closely ahead of the Vikings’ showdown with the New Orleans Saints in Minneapolis on November 12.
Over the duration of his career, Dobbs has completed 61.8% of his passes for 2,025 yards, 10 touchdowns and 8 interceptions, per Pro Football Reference.