The Vikings had a clear plan. They wanted spend less on QB, which is why they let both Sam Darnold and Daniel Jones walk to new teams, so they could use that QB money elsewhere.

So, they dubbed redshirt rookie J.J. McCarthy their starter, then turned around and signed (DT) Javon Hargrave, (DT) Jonathan Allen, (C) Ryan Kelly and (RG) Will Fries. Unfortunately, that plan has not paid off through seven games. As a result, the MN Vikings have a losing record (3-4) going into week 9.

Dan Orlovsky nails Minnesota Vikings as biggest failure

And one former quarterback turned football analyst, Dan Orlovsky (ESPN), who has consistently been a proponent of Kevin O’Connell and his Vikings, is downright disgusted with what he has seen so far.

On Friday, Orlovsky called Minnesota “the most disappointing roster in football right now”, and that was only the start of his rant…

"I think this is the most disappointing roster in football right now."@danorlovsky7 weighs in on the Vikings after their loss to the Chargers on Thursday 👀 pic.twitter.com/1jRkdTwCPP

— NFL on ESPN (@ESPNNFL) October 24, 2025

“I think this is the most disappointing roster in football right now. This is an organization that, this offseason spent the second most free agent money in the NFL. This was a roster that was built in many of our eyes to be quarterback independent. This offensive line cannot protect on a consistent basis at all. The interior offensive line is very poor. This run defense has been ran all over this season. All over this year. It happened again last night [Thursday]. The Chargers game I was just like here tight ends run game, stop it.

I’m shocked, because I honestly thought that this team was built to say if you just had average quarterback play, you’re an NFC Championship contender…This roster is unbelievably disappointing right now.”

Dan Orlovsky – ESPN

As Orlovsky points out, quarterback is hardly the Minnesota Vikings’ biggest problem. Whether it was JJ McCarthy or Carson Wentz taking snaps under center, it would have been difficult for any QB to find success with how bad the offensive line has been.

Kevin O’Connell’s advance, high powered offense has looked more like a technological relic that can’t find a compatible charger. And all those expensive improvements up front have fixed nothing. The 2025 MN Vikings have gotten gashed on the ground and through the air.

MN Vikings need to get healthy

Week 9 may bring the return of J.J. McCarthy. But expecting the 22-year-old kid to turn this ship around is probably too much, given how both he and Carson Wentz have been protected thus far.

Thankfully, the offensive line should get healthier over the next week. Ryan Kelly is presumably coming back, possibly even after the bye. If he was calling it quits due to head injuries, we probably would have found out by now.

According to Darren Wolfson (SKOR North), he has been around the team and in the locker room. Both Christian Darrisaw and Brian O’Neill are expected back next weekend too.

On defense, it remains to be seen when Andrew Van Ginkel will be back. Until then, Jonathan Greenard and Dallas Turner need to play better, specifically Turner, a first round pick who has yet to flash much 1st round ceiling.

But that is all in the past now, because exactly one week from today, he’ll be under center in Chicago, on Monday Night Football, against the NFL North rival Bears, where he’ll get thrown into the national media fire immediately.

Expectations for Minnesota’s upcoming season vary wildly, mostly depending on how the pundit views JJ McCarthy’s 2025 outlook, following a lost rookie season. Minnesota has a playoff caliber roster ready to win its first postseason contest in Kevin O’Connell’s tenure. But do they have the QB to do it?

Former NFL quarterback Dan Orlovsky knows a thing or two about evaluating the QB position. He played seven (rather unsuccessful) NFL seasons at quarterback, and he’s been analyzing the game for ESPN since retirement.

Dan Orlovsky has lofty expectations for J.J. McCarthy

Orlovsky, a proven JJ McCarthy stan, is also pals with local insider Darren “Doogie” Wolfson (KSTP). Dan has taken every opportunity that has come his way to prop up the future of JJ McCarthy (and Max Brosmer too). If you thought he’d slow down that hype train with Wolfson, you thought wrong.

Initially Wolfson questioned whether McCarthy could live up to the production Bo Nix generated for the Denver Broncos last season. Orlovsky, however, laughed that suggestion off as a low bar for JJ to clear, under QB whispering Vikings head coach, Kevin O’Connell.

Caught up the other day with former #NFL QB and ESPN analyst @danorlovsky7. He's a big J.J. McCarthy fan. Snippet of our conversation and link to all of it is below. #Vikings https://t.co/9du8tXUzFr pic.twitter.com/jZGTvtwOsH

— Darren Wolfson (@DWolfsonKSTP) September 1, 2025

“Yeah, I would have higher expectations, candidly. No offense to Bo [Nix], but if we just took the offenses and went, ‘who’s got better players?’ You know, Minnesota. They have Justin [Jefferson]; Hockenson, big time player.

I think that yes, you want that lateral comparison that this is the style of football played. I’ve said this, I get asked it often on TV, is it fair?

J.J. was a ridiculously highly recruited kid coming out of high school. He went to Michigan. He won the National Championship and was the 12th pick in the draft. It’s totally ok for us to have unrealistically high expectations of how he is going to play on this team.”

Dan Orlovsky – Interview with Darren Wolfson (KSTP)

Related: QB Expert Would Take JJ McCarthy Over Everyone

When discounting McCarthy as a running back merchant, people continue to overlook and discredit the part that Orlovsky hammers the table for. Sure, he didn’t run the Air Raid offense at Michigan.

But the Wolverines did run a very pro-style offense, and one that the Vikings are trying to mimic with their new-look offensive line and backfield. Oh, and JJ also lead the Wolverines to a National Championship, in part thanks to a national best 72.3% completion rate.

Minnesota Vikings franchise QB has the talent, but also… the weapons

That accuracy led to 22 touchdowns and just four interceptions. Across 40 collegiate games during his three seasons at Michigan, McCarthy owned a 49/11 TD/INT rate. And he did all that with far less weapons than he has at his disposal in Minnesota.

Kevin O’Connell isn’t the type of play-caller who likes to kill clock, but the Minnesota Vikings enter 2025 with the best offensive line they’ve had in probably a decade or more. They may also have the best running back they’ve presented since rookie Adrian Peterson stepped into an RB room that just saw Chester Taylor gain 1200 yards the season prior.

“If he was the quarterback of a significantly depleted roster, different conversation. This was a team that was in the 1-seed all the way up into the final weeks of the season last year. J.J. has a track record, it’s not like it came out of nowhere. I really believe he should have, production wise, numbers wise, very much so rival what Sam [Darnold] did last year.”

Dan Orlovsky – Interview with Darren Wolfson (KSTP)

Related: Everyone’s Favorite New Viking Makes NFL Futures List

Sam Darnold was a third overall pick that flamed out in the NFL and O’Connell got 4,319 yards and 35 touchdowns out of him. McCarthy has had a full year to learn the expectations of his head coach, comes in with the same or better pedigree, and has better talent around him.

If you’re going to doubt him at this point, that’s a personal choice. Maybe McCarthy will show he’s raw and needs more time to develop. The amount of prominent figures clamoring for you to notice the new Vikings signal caller though has become deafening.

Sometimes, teams with the perfect infrastructure, coaching staff and veteran presence in the locker room can be a better fit for floundering talents trying to find their way in the cutthroat NFL oceans.

This current iteration of the Vikings fits the latter criteria, especially when we are talking quarterbacks. Minnesota head coach Kevin O’Connell has been lauded for his ability to raise up struggling quarterbacks and set them down in the best possible position to succeed.

Kevin O’Connell’s been flexing his QB coaching muscles

We’ve already seen plenty of evidence of his QB whispering talent, since he signed on with the MN Vikings prior to the 2022 season. They’ve all come with a wide variety skill-sets and experience, too.

In the past two years alone, enrolling in KOC’s QB School got Kirk Cousins paid in Atlanta, then helping both Sam Darnold (Seattle) and Daniel Jones (Indianapolis) regain their status as NFL starters.

Who knows what Jones could have gained from an entire training camp, regular and postseason in KOC’s QB School, but his decision to graduate early seems to have worked out for him with the Colts, where he was recently named the starter over former No. 4 overall pick, Anthony Richardson.

Now the Vikings are working with a new group of quarterbacks, with the development of 2024 first-round pick J.J. McCarthy obviously being the top priority. Meanwhile, O’Connell has already worked wonders on former Minnesota Gophers QB Max Brosmer, who has used training camp to make himself uncuttable, unless the Vikings want to lose him on the waiver wire.

Minnesota Vikings should be calling on Anthony Richardson?

But after Daniel Jones won the aforementioned QB battle in Indy, there are some who think KOC’s QB eye may be wandering beyond McCarthy, Brosmer and his own quarterback room.

One of those pundits is former NFL QB turned football analyst, Dan Orlovsky (ESPN). Wednesday morning, the former Lions QB (via X) presented three teams he believes the should be calling the Colts with mid-round trade offers for their now backup, Anthony Richardson.

Teams that should offer the Colts a mid-round pick for Anthony Richardson today…

Eagles
Rams
Vikings@PaulHembo 🤝

— Dan Orlovsky (@danorlovsky7) August 20, 2025

Related: MN Vikings WR Trade Rumors Just Got Serious

try to find out, by offering what he suggests could be a mid-round draft pick in exchange for Colts QB Anthony Richardson. If a day two pick is all that it takes the Vikings to reel a top 4 pick from 2023, it may be worth it. Hell, they’re in line to get an additional 3rd and 4th rounder next year anyway, after losing Darnold and Jones in free agency.

Remember, Richardson is still the cannon-armed top QB prospect, and on of the only legitimate running QB threats in the league. Whether it’s running past defensive backs or bulldozing through linebackers with his 6-foot-4, 244-pound frame, AR is a problem when he takes off.

Unfortunately, Richardson also comes with a lot of flaws, which is why he may be the best possible next candidate for O’Connell’s QB rehab program.

In 15 games during the first two seasons of his career, Richardson’s struggles with accuracy is very real. He completed just 59.5% of his passes, as a rookie, and somehow got worse (47.7%) in his second season.

MN Vikings head coach loved Anthony Richardson out of college

Yet, KOC is and/or was a big fan of Richardson coming out of college. Reports have suggested the Vikings tried giving up the farm to trade up for Richardson in 2023. There’s even visual and audio proof of coach O’Connell offering the young QB prospect some words of encouragement after the Vikings played the Colts last season.

Kevin O'Connell’s words of encouragement for Anthony Richardson:

pic.twitter.com/1c1EQbWurE

— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) November 7, 2024

Related: 6 WRs Minnesota Vikings Should Trade for Before Week 1

While the idea of trading for Richardson is certainly tantalizing, it’s likely not a move the Vikings would make right now. They’re all in on moving forward with McCarthy as the franchise QB. Perhaps it’s a move they’d reconsider in the offseason, but not now.

Besides, paying to trade for another young option who boasts future starting potential wouldn’t send the right message to the locker room, and the Vikings could likely re-allocate those assets elsewhere, like acquiring a veteran receiver who can help generate more wins in 2025.

While Darnold isn’t a long-term franchise solution, many NFL observers were impressed with the former No. 3 overall pick. Now on his fourth NFL team, the 27-year-old is finally in a position to succeed, and one analyst thinks that’s exactly what the former first-round pick is poised to do.

Related: Former NFL QB Mesmerized by Sam Darnold’s Feet

How good is Sam Darnold? Good enough to get Vikings to the playoffs

After Sam Darnold had a near-flawless debut, completing 79.2% of his passes for 208 yards, two touchdowns, and an interception, many are wondering just how good this quarterback really is. According to Pro Football Focus, Darnold was the second-best quarterback in Week 1, earning an elite 88.1 grade. Only the Vikings’ Week 2 opponent, Brock Purdy, did better at 89.6.

But it’s not just Vikings fans and advanced analytics websites that are high on Darnold. Former NFL quarterbacks turned NFL analysts are too.

Recently, it was Dan Orlovsky, who’s been quite vocal about his Darnold man-crush this season. The former Lions QB has “very high” expectations for the Vikings. He doesn’t just think Darnold is doing a good job, he thinks the Vikings can be a playoff team with their new quarterback.

.@danorlovsky7 has "very high" hopes for the Vikings with Sam Darnold at QB1 👀

"I absolutely think that Sam Darnold is good enough to have the Vikings as a playoff football team." pic.twitter.com/dnqBcFlkvh

— First Take (@FirstTake) September 12, 2024

If the Vikings can find a way to move to 2-0 with an upset win over the 49ers on Sunday, their odds of reaching the playoffs will skyrocket. Prior to Minnesota’s Week 1 win, The Athletic’s projections gave the Vikings just a 17% chance to reach the postseason.

After the win? The Vikings’ chances jumped up to 39%. Now, imagine how high they’ll go if Kevin O’Connell can get a win over last season’s NFC Super Bowl representative. Seriously, if Darnold can beat the 49ers, then the sky is the limit.

Related: See where Sam Darnold ranks in the 2024 NFL QB Rankings after Week 1