If Monday night was truly a test for Minnesota Vikings quarterback Carson Wentz, he failed along with the rest of his offense.
The Vikings turned in an abysmal offensive performance Monday against the Buffalo Bills, posting 178 yards. Wentz completed only 8 of 25 passes for 81 yards.
Immediately, after the game calls for the Vikings to shop for a new quarterback reached a fever pitch. In fact, that became such a focal point in the media late Monday night, star wide receiver Justin Jefferson received questions on the topic.
“Not sure,” Jefferson said on whether the Vikings should acquire a new signal-caller, via VikingzFanPage. “That’s on Nolan; that’s on KO (Kevin O’Connell). That’s their job.
“My job is to continue getting open, be the leader of this team. Come next week, hopefully things change.”
Jefferson led the Vikings with 58 receiving yards versus Buffalo. Jefferson was the only Minnesota player with more than 35 yards from scrimmage.
Justin Jefferson Comments on Potential Vikings QB Trade
Jefferson did the right thing not completely throwing Wentz and Kyler Murray under the bus with his answer on the NFL trade deadline. But it’s rather obvious the star receiver is frustration.
No one should blame him either. While Wentz tried to get Jefferson the ball, they connected on only three of 11 targets versus the Bills.
Before the final drive of the fourth quarter when the game was essentially already finished, the Vikings had one drive longer than 25 yards.
“The offense didn’t get it done,” Jefferson said. “Defense did a phenomenal job once again, getting it done against a very good offense. We’ve got to figure it out on offense.”
That’s putting it plainly but also rather accurately. The Vikings defense remained first in points allowed and second in total yards yielded after Monday. They are top five in many other important statistical categories, including pass defense, third-down defense, sacks and takeaways.
Behind that unit, the Vikings are 6-2. But they’ve lost two straight with the offense scoring just 21 points in the two games combined.
Minnesota’s offense is 27th in points scored and 31st in yards this season.
“We’ve got to figure it out,” added Jefferson. “That’s something we don’t have the answer to at the moment. We’ve just got to figure it out.”
Vikings Making Calls for Quarterbacks: Report
On the morning of the NFL trade deadline, ESPN’s Adam Schefter had an answer on whether the Vikings would try to add an upgrade behind center.
“Developing: The Vikings have begun making calls around the league about trading for a quarterback ahead of today’s 4 pm ET deadline,” wrote Schefter on X.
Pundits linked the Vikings to Daniel Jones over the weekend. However, NFL insider Tom Pelissero reported the Colts told Jones they weren’t going to trade him at the deadline.
Schefter didn’t specify which teams the Vikings might be calling. Perhaps they will try to bring back Kirk Cousins from the Las Vegas Raiders or pursue a deal for San Francisco 49ers backup Mac Jones.
Those two appear to be the most-likely candidates that could offer a potential upgrade over Wentz and Murray.
Vikings’ Justin Jefferson Fires Message on Possible QB Move Before Trade Deadline