Brosmer relevant as QB3 or QB2?

Former Gophers QB Max Brosmer has stood out for the Vikings. Can he claim a roster spot?
Max Brosmer has played the most preseason snaps of any Vikings quarterback so far, and the door remains open for a roster spot.

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With 1:46 on the clock and the Vikings trailing the Patriots by eight points Saturday at U.S. Bank Stadium, rookie quarterback Max Brosmer, whose mindset-bearing wristband reads “Be where your feet are” and “One play at a time,” led the Vikings onto the field with 69 yards between them and the end zone.

“If a two-minute drive doesn’t let you play one play at a time, I’m not sure what does,” Brosmer said after the game. “You gotta just dink and dunk it all the way down the field.”

He did just that, mixing in longer throws, including a 25-yard completion to Jeshaun Jones that converted a fourth-and-17, en route to the Patriots’ 8-yard line.

Brosmer brought the Vikings to the brink of tying the game, but he couldn’t quite close it out in a 20-12 preseason loss to New England. A false start, incompletion and then an interception in the end zone ended the game.

But Brosmer, the 24-year-old former Gopher, has turned heads throughout training camp and now in both preseason games. He passed for 47 yards and a touchdown on 5-of-8 passing on just 19 snaps played in the fourth quarter against the Texans on Aug. 9.

He built on that Saturday, finishing two quarters of play 15-of-27 for 156 yards and that one interception. He was sacked four times for a total 33 yards lost, and faced obstacles in the form of a handful of procedural penalties against the Vikings.

Brosmer also added highlight-worthy throws and decisions to his résumé.

Vikings coach Kevin O’Connell said the fourth-down conversion is an example of why Brosmer has seen the number of reps he has this preseason, even as the current fourth-string QB.

Tim Jones, who led the Vikings with five receptions for 68 yards Saturday, has been a frequent target for Brosmer in practices. They flashed that chemistry on seven connections, including a 22-yarder that helped move the final drive along.

“Every time he’s thrown to me, it’s been ... near perfect,” Jones said with a smile.

A year later, O’Connell saw Brosmer again, this time throwing as a Pro Day participant himself, and the Vikings signed him to an undrafted free agent deal in April.

O’Connell has lauded Brosmer from the start as “as smart as any young player. ... His ownership of the information kind of right on par.”

But Brosmer said Wednesday that when he first started working with O’Connell, it was like the coach was speaking “a foreign language.”

“Number one, it’s a new league. You’re playing in the NFL as opposed to college, and it’s completely new structures of defense,” Brosmer said. “But it’s also just how he talks about ball, how he thinks about it.”

That’s where the three other quarterbacks in the room, particularly Brett Rypien (also undrafted out of college in 2019), have come in handy. Brosmer said he peppers Rypien with questions, so much so the older QB probably wants to lock him up and throw away the key.

According to O’Connell, Brosmer and McCarthy are often the first and last people in the building, joking that quarterback coaches Josh McCown and Jordan Traylor must not be getting a lot of sleep thanks to the pair.

“Max is the man. Just super detail-oriented, works his butt off,” McCarthy said July 30. “I can’t say enough good things about that guy.”

Brosmer’s performance Saturday wasn’t perfect by any stretch. He still showed the growing pains of first-year pro. His second drive in particular was a struggle, and on some of the best chances the Vikings had to find the end zone — midway through the fourth quarter after Myles Price’s 81-yard kick return — Brosmer threw incomplete twice.

But the Vikings will have a decision to make about Brosmer in the next two weeks: Leave the rookie with local ties and potential off the 53-man roster and risk another team claiming him off waivers before he can be signed to the practice squad, or keep three quarterbacks on the active roster. It’s still not likely Brosmer would jump to No. 2.

There is a door open, though. Howell, the current No. 2, closed three drives Saturday 1-of-5 for 13 yards with an interception. The Vikings never played Rypien in the regular season last year, using him only as emergency third QB.

Brosmer said Saturday he doesn’t think about having something to prove to coaches or anyone. If bringing his best every single day doesn’t do the job, it’s not meant to be.

“There’s so much you can’t control,” Brosmer said. “If you just focus on yourself and control what you can control, you can rest on the outcome. You can be OK with the outcome.”

Brosmer’s demeanor postgame reflected that. He spoke with the same poise he did after sealing a win last week against the Texans.

“Whether that’s me playing in the NFL or not, I’ll be OK because of the work that I’ve put in,” he added. “If it’s good enough, it’s good enough.”