Josh Dobbs Speaks Out on His Decision to Leave Minnesota
Josh Frey
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Josh Dobbs became known as the “Passtronaut” in Minnesota after he wowed fans for a couple weeks in Kevin O’Connell’s offense following Kirk Cousins’ Achilles tear.
Just a few days after being acquired via trade from the Arizona Cardinals, Dobbs was thrust into Minnesota’s Week 9 game against the Atlanta Falcons, and he led the Vikings to a comeback victory on the road. A week later, he put together a dominant performance inside U.S. Bank Stadium against the New Orleans Saints.
Of course, the fairytale run would not last for Dobbs or the Vikings as he was eventually benched, and Minnesota finished the season 7-10 on the outside of the playoff picture. Now, Dobbs is headed to the San Francisco 49ers for the 2024 season and is projected to serve as the backup to Brock Purdy for the reigning NFC champions.
Josh Dobbs Gives His Reasoning for a Change of Scenery
Following the signing, Dobbs has gone public with his reasoning for leaving the Vikings for San Francisco. The man wants to get into the playoffs.
“It’s exactly what I want to be around. At this stage of my career, I just want an opportunity to get to the dance in whatever aspect, whatever role that takes, just to taste it. And so to join a team that’s done it, my mentality is whatever I can do to help, get back there, and then go from there,” Dobbs told NBC Sports this week.
It’s a very sound decision from Dobbs’ perspective. The quarterback has been holding various roles at the NFL level for the past seven seasons, but he’s only been a part of two playoff teams. The first occasion came in 2017 with the Pittsburgh Steelers when they lost in the Divisional Round (their first playoff game) to the Jacksonville Jaguars.
After spending the 2019 season with the 6-10 Jacksonville Jaguars, Dobbs was back in Pittsburgh for another playoff run with the Steelers in 2020, but ultimately, they lost in the Wild Card round to the Cleveland Browns. Unfortunately, Dobbs got hurt during training camp of the 2021 season and missed the entire year.
Since then, Dobbs has continued hopping around the league holding stints with the Tennessee Titans, Cleveland Browns, Arizona Cardinals, and most recently of course, the Vikings. It isn’t much of a surprise that the QB would want to get back into a winning environment, and the 49ers offer him a chance to do exactly that.
Furthermore, he certainly would serve as San Francisco’s QB2 at this point in time seeing as Purdy, himself, and Brandon Allen are the quarterbacks on the roster. That type of certainty is not in place in Minnesota after the Vikings signed Sam Darnold, could draft a quarterback this spring, and also still have both Jaren Hall and Nick Mullens on the roster.
San Francisco certainly is in a position to compete immediately, so Dobbs should get his wish for a deep playoff run in 2024.
Editor’s Note: Information from Pro Football Reference helped with this article.
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Josh Frey is a Class of 2020 graduate of The College of Idaho and managing editor of PurplePTSD.com. When he’s not writing about the NFL, Josh enjoys running, gaming, or rooting for the Milwaukee Brewers and Bucks. Check out his Twitter account: @Freyed_Chicken.