The Minnesota Vikings are starting Nick Mullens at quarterback for Saturday’s game against the Cincinnati Bengals, but there’s a chance that Jaren Hall could see the field if the journeyman struggles, according to ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler.
“The Vikings are in ride-the-hot-hand mode at quarterback,” Fowler wrote in ESPN’s Week 15 preview. “Joshua Dobbs caught fire after landing in Minnesota at the trade deadline but has cooled down, paving the way for Nick Mullens. But it wouldn’t shock me to see Jaren Hall reenter the lineup at some point.”
Fowler’s comments refer to the quarterback carousel the Vikings have been on since Kirk Cousins tore his Achilles in an Oct. 29 win over the Green Bay Packers.
The Vikings started Hall, a fifth-round draft pick out of BYU in last April’s draft, in the Nov. 5 game against the Atlanta Falcons but Dobbs took over when Hall suffered a concussion on the opening drive.
Dobbs led the Vikings to back-to-back wins over the Falcons and New Orleans Saints but threw five interceptions in back-to-back losses to the Denver Broncos and Chicago Bears before being benched during last week’s win over the Las Vegas Raiders.
Now the Vikings turn to Mullens, whose last extended sample size as a starter came in 2020 with the San Francisco 49ers. The stint went poorly as Mullens posted a 5.8 turnover-worthy play rate and a 7.0 percent turnover-worthy play rate when pressured according to Pro Football Focus.
The last part is key considering the Vikings will be without Brian O’Neill for Saturday’s game in Cincinnati and the Bengals rank ninth in the NFL with 21 forced turnovers this season.
This could pave the way for Hall to get another crack at quarterback as he was promoted to the No. 2 quarterback spot this week.
“The Vikings want to bring Hall along slowly, but they like his upside and poise,” Fowler wrote. “…If Mullens cools down, Hall will be ready.”
