Carson Wentz has not been the same quarterback since he sustained an injury in the 2017 season in the NFL. In 2017 Wentz went 11-2 as the starter for the team that drafted him in 2016, the Philadelphia Eagles. Wentz was a first round pick 2nd overall from North Dakota State and was supposed to have been the franchise quarterback for the Eagles for the next decade. In week 14 of that 2017 season, Wentz tore his ACL & LCL in his left knee which ended his season versus the Rams. Veteran QB Nick Foles came in like a closer in baseball and guided the Eagles the rest of the way that included winning the NFC Championship and beating the Patriots in the Superbowl. Wentz would last three more seasons in Philadelphia after his second season in 2017. In 2020, Wentz’s last year, the writing was on the wall when the team selected another quarterback, Jalen Hurts, in the draft in the second round. Five years in Philadelphia and ever since then he has bounced around the league. Now he gets the call once again as Wentz will get the starting job for the Vikings because of the injury to JJ McCarthy. Can Wentz use this opportunity and capitalize on it to be once again a starting QB in the NFL?

The Vikings drafted JJ McCathy in the first round of the 2024 NFL draft 10th overall from University of Michigan. McCarthy in his first ever pre-season in the NFL, suffered a season ending injury. The starting job went to veteran Sam Darnold who once was a number one draft pick by the Jets back in the 2018 draft. Darnold was a bust for the Jets. After leaving the Big Apple, Darnold was bouncing around the league until he got his opportunity with the Vikings. Last season Darnold had a career year behind center for the Vikings. He started all 17 games for the Vikings. His record as a starter was 14-3. The Vikings were a wild card team that almost could have had the number 1 seed in week 17 in a game versus the Lions which they suffered a loss in that one. Darnold completed 66.2% of his passes last year. He threw 35 touchdown passes to only 12 interceptions. In 2023 Darnold started one game with the 49ers. In 2021 & ’22 he played in Carolina. He had a winning record in ’22 as starter as he went 4-2. He was not throwing a ton of TD passes across the field. In his last season with the Jets, he went 2-10 during the pandemic of 2020. His year with the Vikings paid dividends for his football career as he has inked a big contract with the Seattle Seahawks, which he is 1-1 as the starter there this season in two games. As a starter he still was three games under the .500 mark with 36-39 record in his career. If you take away last year’s record of 14-3, the word BUST best describes his career. Darnold has a career 100 touchdown passes to 70 interceptions. If you take away last year’s 35 touchdown passes he threw, the back of his football card would say he should be a third string quarterback just looking at the numbers

The Minnesota Vikings during the 1990’s were always great at inserting veteran quarterbacks into their system. Some of these guys were on their last legs and playing for the Vikings brought back their glory days from their original teams. In 1993 Jim McMahon, had been known for helping the Chicago Bears win their only Superbowl in 1985. McMahon played for the Vikings late in his career for one season and started 12 games. He most likely was filling in for the injured starter. He went 8-4 as a starter as he completed 60.4% of his passes that season. He threw 9 touchdown passes to only 8 interceptions. The punky QB had that gunslinger mentality. As a starter he found ways to win games as it was not very pretty at times but he got the job done.

Jeff George had all the talent in the world to be a Hall of Fame quarterback. He was a bust for the Indianapolis Colts who drafted him number 1 overall in the 1990 NFL draft. Then 9 seasons later from being drafted, George suited up with his 4th franchise by the time 1999 came around. In ten starts he went 8-2 as a starter for the Vikings. He threw 23 touchdown passes compared to 12 interceptions. One of his best years in the NFL. George did not have many good years even though he had the tools for the job.

Randall Cunningham, long time Eagles quarterback, was reborn again in Minnesota. Cunningham actually retired for 1 season before signing with the Vikings. In his second season with the Vikings in 1998, he took over the starting gig and started 14 games. He went 13-1 in 1998 and threw 34 touchdown passes to only ten interceptions. Those 34 touchdown passes was a career high for Cunningham. His best before that was 30 touchdown passes he threw back in 1990 when he was still wearing a Eagles uniform. The Vikings had different offensive systems and different head coaches from back then to present day. The Vikings always had a system where you can insert here, like a quarterback was a light bulb. It was an easy fix.

JJ McCarthy suffered a high ankle sprain last week and will only be out 2-4 weeks. The Vikings are 1-1 with McCarthy behind center so far this season. For Carson Wentz who has been sitting on the couch most of last year, it was a late signing for the Chiefs. He did get one start for the Chiefs last year when they rested all their starters in the last game of the year. In 2023 Wentz was a Ram, he made 1 start in LA and won that game. In 2022 he played for the Washington Football team and he started 7 games and went 2-5 as the starter. In 2021 the Eagles traded Wentz to the Colts. Wentz went 9-8 as the starter. He had a solid year throwing 27 touchdown passes to only 7 interceptions. In the final game of regular season, the Colts needed to beat a bad Jaguars team to make it into the post-season. Wentz had his worst game of the season in that one. He was sacked six times. He threw an interception and lost a critical fumble. The Steelers won their final game and the Colts did not make it to the playoffs. That single game ended Wentz’s career with the Colts.

The Vikings have one of the best receivers in the game of football, Justin Jefferson. The Vikings brought back one of their best slot receivers in veteran Adam Thielan in trade with the Panthers. On the other side of Jefferson, they have Jordan Addison who is a very talented wide receiver. They have one of the best tight ends in the league with TJ Hockenson. They lost one of their veteran running backs, Aaron Jones Sr., to an injury. However Jordan Mason is a solid back. This offense has plenty of weapons and any quarterback that runs it does not have to do all the heavy lifting. The Vikings have a solid defense to help their quarterback when they make mistakes, so they can stop the bleeding. This is not the worst offense Wentz has had in his career. It may be one of the best offenses Wentz has had in his career. Can the Vikings get the version of Wentz from 2017? Wentz has played in 98 NFL games and started 94 games. He does have a winning record as a starter. His record is 47-46-1. He lifetime stats he has thrown for 22,410 passing yards. He has 153 touchdown passes to 67 interceptions. He has completed 62.7% of his passes. The Vikings hope he can steer the ship a few games & maybe go .500 until they get JJ McCarthy healthy. What if Wentz does what Sam Darnold did last season and light up the competition? They may want to keep him behind center as the starter a little longer. Kevin O’Connell is a real good coach and is the offensive mastermind for the Vikings. He has another talent and that is a QB Whisperer. I can see O’Connell getting the best out of a 32 year old veteran who has seen much action in the last two seasons. This opportunity could help Wentz become a starter next season, probably for another team. It could also lead to a contract extension to stay in Minnesota. If he rights the ship right now and mentors McCarthy when he returns from his injury, this could be a nice quarterback room beyond this season. If Wentz lays an egg on this opportunity, he will be looking for work next season from his couch at home waiting for injuries to occur. The Viking way has worked to perfection. You watch as they will insert Wentz into his center like a light bulb. Then watch him suddenly have new life, lead the Vikings to a few victories, and perhaps beyond depending on McCarthy’s time table when he returns exactly.