The Minnesota Vikings are anticipated to start quarterback Nick Mullens against the Detroit Lions this week, per a report from ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler.
Since starting quarterback Kirk Cousins tore his Achilles, ending his season after just eight games, the Vikings have been attempting to sort out their quarterback situation. Having been a member of the squad since the start of the 2022 season, Mullens was the initial backup quarterback; however, at the time of Cousins’ injury, Mullens was sidelined due to a back injury.
Jaren Hall, the Vikings’ third-string quarterback, played one game before getting hurt. After that, Josh Dobbs was put in charge for the next four starts until the now-healthy Mullens benched him during the team’s 3-0 victory over the Raiders two weeks prior.
In a 27-24 overtime loss to the Cincinnati Bengals on Saturday, Mullens made his first start of the season for the Vikings (and his first start since 2021). Mullens threw for 303 yards and two touchdowns on an amazing 26 of his 33 completions. But he also had two crucial interceptions, one in scoring position and the other not. Because Mullens is a more conventional pocket passer, Cincinnati sacked him three times.
The NFC North championship is up for grabs when the Lions take on the Vikings. For the first time since 1993, Detroit can secure a division title with only one more victory (or one fewer defeat for the Vikings) in the last three games. Thus, Detroit will be popping champagne in the locker room if they can defeat a Vikings backup quarterback this week.
