J.J. McCarthy landed in the NFL’s concussion protocol last week, months after Sam Darnold left Minnesota for Seattle.
The fallout from both of those situations will have a direct impact on Sunday’s matchup between the Darnold-less Vikings and Darnold-led Seahawks.
On back-to-back fourth quarter plays last week in Green Bay, McCarthy twice had his head slam into the ground — the first when he was tackled by Packers linebacker Isaiah McDuffie, and then on the next play when he was chased and tackled by Green Bay defensive end Kingsley Enagbare.
McCarthy self reported his symptoms on the flight back to Minnesota from Green Bay, and then found himself in concussion protocol, where he now remains, sources told ESPN.
Max Brosmer, who starred last season at the University of Minnesota.
And just like that, the Vikings find themselves in just the type of challenging situation they were hoping to avoid this past offseason, when two of their quarterbacks — Darnold and Daniel Jones — were about to become free agents.
The Vikings made a passing attempt to re-sign Darnold, but they were not as aggressive as the Seahawks or Steelers. The Seahawks offered Darnold more money, and more years, than Minnesota. Seattle’s offer was evidence that it wanted and valued Darnold more than Minnesota, and the Seahawks landed their new starting quarterback just days after trading former starting quarterback Geno Smith to the Raiders.
Darnold — the son of a plumber and a teacher — has flourished in Seattle.
McCarthy, on the other hand, has battled through another injury-plagued season — first suffering a high-ankle sprain in Week 2 that prevented him from playing until recently, and now the concussion that will knock him out of at least Sunday’s game.
Joshua Dobbs, who played at the University of Tennessee and made his first start for the Titans in 2022.
Brosmer also attended the same high school as Seahawks head coach Mike Macdonald — Centennial High School in Roswell, Georgia.
So the Vikings lost Darnold but got Brosmer — and now will have the chance to see both quarterbacks square off Sunday in Seattle.
