The Film Fanatics are Tossing Praise Toward Jaren Hall, Minnesota’s Promising QB3
On YouTube, The QB School boasts more than 200,000 subscribers and a total view count that’s surpassed 19,000,000. Clearly, J.T. O’Sullivan has something figured out.
The channel’s description boasts about his background playing in so many NFL offenses, so the recent opinion on Jaren Hall should be of some interest to Vikings fans. Take a look at the word on O’Sullivan: “The QB School is unique because it provides in-depth analysis directly from the former NFL QB that played for more NFL offenses than any other QB in NFL history—11 organizations.”
Indeed, the long-time professional QB took some time to offer an analysis of Hall’s game against the Arizona Cardinals.
In a losing effort, Hall showed plenty of promise and upside. Yes, there were mistakes, but that’s part of a 5th-round rookie’s progression. The short-term goal for Hall is simply to get acclimated to life in the NFL as he learns behind Kirk Cousins and Nick Mullens in 2023. Hall’s job is to show promise and upside, improvement and refinement; the word from O’Sullivan offers some good insight on the matter.
The Film Analysis of Jaren Hall
By the end of the Cardinals game, Hall had gone 16/27 for 178 yards, 1 TD, and 1 INT. He finished his day with a 75.8 QB rating. So, not a performance that should cause anyone to be throwing a parade but certainly plenty of positives when things get assessed with the help of the eye in the sky.
Let’s begin on a positive note.
O’Sullivan draws attention to the rookie’s ability to progress through his reads while shifting around in the pocket to give the play a bit of extra time. Take a look:
Nice stuff from the former BYU QB, especially when we remember that he still hasn’t been to an NFL regular season yet.
Hall has a long way to go in his progression, something he readily acknowledged following the Titans game when reflecting on Kevin O’Connell’s feedback: “There’s growing pains as a rookie in your first couple games, but it’s all about getting better every week. So look at the film last week and look at the film this week, comparing the two the hope is just that you got better.”
Hall is already showing some really good improvement since his opening effort against the Seahawks. An upward trajectory, to be sure.
O’Sullivan brings his analysis around to an “outstanding” deep ball from the rookie. Former Vikings QB Kyle Sloter also offered some thoughts on the play, praising Hall for the “steps forward:”
Like basically anyone else who watches the play, I’m impressed by Hall’s poise and accuracy. Sloter and O’Sullivan — a pair of analysts with far more expertise than yours truly — come away with similar optimism after watching that play.
The assessment isn’t all positive, though. Take a look at the analysis of Hall’s interception:
Furthermore, there’s some thoughts on a “practice squady miss” on a deep ball. Take the concerns in stride. They’re critical details, of course, and yet not reason to be downtrodden or dejected. Hall is a rookie QB picked in the later rounds, so mistakes are bound to arrive.
Those interested in learning a touch more about where Hall struggled can do so at a bit before the 11-minute mark of The QB School video.
The most important thing for Hall still rests in committing himself to simple excellence.
Mastering all of the seemingly basic components of being an NFL QB — getting in and out of the huddle, nailing a clean exchange with the center every time, knowing when to throw the football away, always putting the football in the right spot on handoffs, and various other small details — are things Hall can be working on on a near daily basis within the Vikings offense.
From there, he’ll continue trying to replicate some of the tremendous throws from the Cardinals game while minimizing the poor mistakes.
Interested readers can check out the full analysis at The QB School on YouTube. And, of course, look for Hall to be on the sidelines once the season gets going. The new rule about emergency QB3s means Hall will get the chance to be available on game day if something occurs to Kirk Cousins and Nick Mullens.
