Vikings QB Max Brosmer shows why Minnesota prioritized him as a UDFA in his excellent preseason debut

Good quarterbacks are hard to find for a variety of reasons, and it’s something that the Minnesota Vikings know all too well. They have been searching for their first franchise quarterback since Daunte Culpepper, and the only other one in the 65 years of the franchise is Fran Tarkenton. The hope is that J.J. McCarthy […]

Tyler Forness — NFL & College Football News Writer
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Good quarterbacks are hard to find for a variety of reasons, and it’s something that the Minnesota Vikings know all too well.

They have been searching for their first franchise quarterback since Daunte Culpepper, and the only other one in the 65 years of the franchise is Fran Tarkenton. The hope is that J.J. McCarthy will become the franchise guy for 10-15 years, and all signs are that he can be. Having talent behind him can be difficult to come by with the lack of quality quarterbacks. Luckily for the Vikings, they might have found a long-term backup to McCarthy.

Max Brosmer shines in preseason debut

Finding a backup quarterback that you can rely on is challenging. What the Vikings have in Max Brosmer is someone who can be a long-term backup option while also being worthy of development.

Coming into the NFL draft process, Brosmer was one of the few players who fit exactly what coach Kevin O’Connell likes at the position: an accurate passer over the middle who can throw with anticipation. There are other traits that he prioritizes, but when you look at the core basics of what O’Connell’s offense asks of its quarterbacks, Brosmer has the right tools.

Brosmer’s preseason debut was relatively short. He played in 19 snaps, with three of those being kneel downs. He threw the ball well and showcased why he is worth keeping around for development purposes. Two plays really emphasized it.

Throwing over the middle with anticipation is crucial. O’Connell loves to run in-breaking routes, especially the dagger concept. Making those throws with consistency is critical to maximizing what this offense can do. Brosmer does that here, seeing Myles Price have the proper leverage and rifles the ball perfectly. This is what Sam Darnold and Kirk Cousins have done during the last three seasons.

He used a similar process in throwing his touchdown pass, which was also to Price.

Look at the progression that Brosmer goes through. He goes from left to right and finds Price on the back line of the end zone on fourth down for the score. It was a similar play to one the Minnesota Golden Gophers ran against UCLA last season.

“That was the fourth that was a board guy, similar to what concept we had [against] UCLA last year on a two minute drive to win it, and that was kind of similar to where we hit on the backside of progression. Myles got to really good spot, cooked his db up and was wide open back of the end zone.”

Max Brosmer

With Brett Rypien struggling in the first game, there could be a path forward for the Vikings to keep Brosmer. One preseason game won’t change everything. However, it appears to be a major building block for Brosmer to stick around on the roster.

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