Vikings QB3 David Blough is a Good Addition
K. Joudry
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After learning that Kellen Mond was heading to Cleveland and Sean Mannion to Seattle, the Vikings suddenly found themselves with a need at QB3.
David Blough was competing for a spot with the Lions, but he failed to make their final roster. Minnesota responded by bringing the 27-year-old to the Land of 10,000 Lakes. The former Purdue QB now finds himself in a purple uniform, backing up both Kirk Cousins and Nick Mullens.
In a perfect world, the Vikings never have to turn to their QB3. Very few teams can find lasting success when the game’s most important position is being played by the backup’s backup. Nevertheless, it’s a good thing that Kwesi Adofo-Mensah was able to sign someone with some experience. In his three seasons, Blough has been able to start 5 games (all in 2019). Per PFR, he accumulated some modest statistics in that time. He completed 54% of his passes for 984 yards, 4 TDs, and 6 INTs. He had a modest 64.0 passer rating.
The folks over at Vikings.com provide some more information on Blough:
Blough spent the past three seasons in Detroit but did not make the Lions final 53-man roster when cuts occurred this week.
Blough initially was signed by the Browns as an undrafted free agent in 2019 but was traded to the Lions.
In November 2019 after injuries to Matthew Stafford and backup quarterback Jeff Driskel, Blough was named the Lions starting quarterback; he made his first NFL start against the Bears on Thanksgiving Day. The following week, he started against Minnesota at U.S. Bank Stadium.
Shortly thereafter, the team’s site provides a full summary of his career statistics: “Blough appeared in seven total games for the Lions, five of which were starts. In those seven outings, he completed 100 of 184 passes for 1,033 yards with four touchdowns and seven interceptions.”
Obviously, the numbers are far from elite, but that doesn’t mean this was a bad signing.
Basically any quarterback who is a QB3 has had some struggles, and that’s true for Blough and the Vikings. If the numbers were considerably stronger, Blough wouldn’t have been in the mix for the Vikings to sign him. Don’t be discouraged by previous struggles, though. The key from this point is to help ensure he can become the best quarterback possible for the Minnesota Vikings.
The majority of his statistics occurred when he filled-in for the Lions back in 2019. At the time, he was a rookie playing for a Detroit team that was really struggling. The 2022 Vikings ought to be considerably better than the 2019 Lions, making life much easier for whichever purple QB is playing.
Cousins has been remarkably durable throughout his career. Indeed, one of his greatest strengths is that he’s almost always available. If, however, something strange happens and he needs to miss time, the Vikings will then pivot toward Mullens and Blough. In that scenario, the team would have the benefit of having two QBs with a combined 22 NFL starts (compared to only 3 combined for Mannion and Mond).
Blough is unlikely to become an All-Pro player, someone who puts forth dominant performances on a regular basis. He doesn’t need to, though. His job is to raise the team’s floor at QB, giving Minnesota the depth it needs as it stares down a long 17-game schedule.
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