Josh Dobbs Stars For Minnesota Vikings With Arm, Legs, Mind And Salary

According to Forbes, nine of the highest-paid NFL players this season are quarterbacks, starting with Lamar Jackson at $81.5 million. Which means to prosper as one of the league’s 32 franchises, it’s always about that position.

Which means the Atlanta Falcons are in trouble.

The Minnesota Vikings?

Not so much.

Well, at least not when the Vikings are facing a team with a worse quarterback situation than their own, you know, like the Falcons of Desmond Ridder, then of Taylor Heinicke, and then of Who Knows Who the rest of the season?

Consider, too, when you study numbers provided by Spotrac.com, there often is a correlation to an NFL quarterback’s yearly salary and whether smiles or frowns are on the way for his team during a season or even a game.

Let’s start with the streaking Vikings at 5-4 courtesy of a four-game winning streak despite quarterback roulette.

Two weeks ago, after the Vikings lost four-time Pro Bowler Kirk Cousins ($10 million) for the season to an Achilles tendon tear, they went with rookie starter Jaren Hall ($750,000). Then Hall suffered a concussion early during his first NFL start Sunday in Atlanta at Mercedes-Benz Stadium against the Falcons.

Hall was replaced by Josh Dobbs ($1.5 million, as in a higher salary than Hall), but get this: While Hall had spent much of the year with the Vikings through rookie camp, training camp and the opening two months of the season, Dobbs pulled on his fifth NFL jersey in 19 months Tuesday after he went from the Arizona Cardinals to the Vikings in a trade.

By the time a woozy Hall left for the Minnesota locker room for good before the start of the second quarter after he got smacked at the goaline on a running play, Dobbs hadn’t finished introducing himself on the sideline to most of his new teammates, and it gets crazier.

Vikings head coach Kevin O’Connell spent so much time between each offensive snap on the quarterback’s headset trying to get Dobbs up to speed on the Minnesota playbook that O’Connell said he grew hoarse.

“I know he’s very, very smart, but I can tell you that what he was able to do in really five days time was as impressive of what I’ve seen a quarterback do,” O’Connell told me and other reporters of his third-string quarterback who majored in aerospace engingeering at the University of Tennessee.

Dobbs finished with a perfect 4.0 grade-point average.

Still, having the ability to build a rocket ship doesn’t translate into a quarterback overcoming stuff like this: Before Dobbs entered Sunday’s game, he hadn’t taken a single snap with the Vikings offense in practice.

So, when Dobbs finally placed his hands behind Vikings center Garrett Bradbury against the Falcons, it was the first time he had ever done so. He also made his first throw to a Vikings receiver.

Dobbs told me and other reporters that his approach was “learn as you go, hair on fire, hold onto your seat” as he performed his Minnesota Miracle wrapped around the incredible.

He rushed for a game-high 66 yards and a touchdown while throwing for 158 yards and two touchdowns, including a 6-yard strike in the end zone with 22 seconds. That ended a 75-yard scoring drive inside the final two minutes for the Vikings, and among the highlights was Dobbs’ 22-yard scramble for a first down on fourth-and-seven.

Heinicke couldn’t match any of that.

In case you’re wondering, the money pattern continues.

Heinicke ($1.32 million) is slated to make less than Dobbs this season after he was signed in March to backup Ridder ($870,000). This is the same Ridder who didn’t play a millisecond last year for the Falcons as a rookie until he started the last four games.

Even so, Falcons head coach Arthur Smith and Falcons owner Arthur Blank suggested during the preseason that Ridder was the Falcons’ quarterback of the present and of the future to begin 2023.

The people’s choice for Falcons officials became a turnover machine. He took the Falcons to an uneven 4-4 record, and he was benched two games ago for the second half during a 28-23 loss to the Tennessee Titans after losing four fumbles and throwing three interceptions in 2 1/2 games.

In came Heinicke for the Falcons, and he faced a Vikings team without their three best offensive players for the game.

Along with Cousins, the Vikings were missing standout offensive left tackle Christian Darrisaw to a groin injury and clutch wide receiver Justin Jefferson to hamstring issues.

Then, during the game, Hall went down in the first quarter, and he later was joined out of action by wide receiver K.J. Osborn with a concussion and running back Cam Akers with an Achilles issue.

It didn’t matter for the Vikings.

While the Falcons’ defense hadn’t a clue how to stop Dobbs who kept learning and prospering on the fly, Heinicke was what he is — somebody playing for seven different teams in six seasons, mostly off the bench. He finished with a quarterback rating of 75.3 to Dobbs’ 101.8, and he completed 21 of 38 passes for 268 yards, a touchdown and an interception..

Dobbs did better than Heinicke.

Then again, Dobbs makes more money.