A Kevin O’Connell Comment Sounds Like the Kiss of Death for 1 Vikings QB

As cruel as it sounds, Max Brosmer likely needed some sort of poor outcome to arrive for a different Vikings QB to get onto the final roster. Such as life for a QB4 trying to overcome more entrenched passers.

After last night’s Broncos beatdown, Kevin O’Connell took some time to answer questions from the media. Among the questions to get sent in his direction was one about what’s to come for Brosmer. He made the 53-man roster last year. What’s his status going into cut weekend?

Kevin O’Connell Discusses Max Brosmer’s Roster Spot

“I think Max has shown some growth,” O’Connell began in response to the sophomore passer’s standing on the roster.

The skipper went on: “That’s definitely going to be a conversation. We’ll see what the final numbers look like. I don’t think it’s out of the question that we try to keep all those guys. But at the same time we’ve gotta do what’s best for our team. So we’ll work through that and that will definitely be part of the conversation.”

“There was a reason why we wanted to have a deep quarterback room, and all four of those guys had their moments,” O’Connell said toward the end of his Brosmer answer.

O’Connell’s answers boasts all the hallmarks of an upcoming roster cut. Tepid but genuine praise, some evasiveness, and a broader acknowledgement of the roster crunch.

Partnering the O’Connell answer with some common sense and then a simple evaluation of the quarterback’s performance further clarifies where things are going.

For starters, there’s the common sense part of things. Seldom do the Minnesota Vikings carve out four roster spots at quarterback. If, for instance, one of those passers was a player akin to Taysom Hill, then the move could be defensible since that’s a player who can help in other ways.

A QB4 on the final roster is hard to justify otherwise, especially since Brosmer doesn’t look like he’ll develop into a long-term weapon. Rather, his ceiling appears to be that of a rock-solid backup who thinks the game at a high level and who works very hard. He’s chasing down a future that ends up somewhere between Sean Mannion and Nick Mullens.

Partner the number crunch with what the kid has done on the field.

Last year, Max Brosmer was put into a position he was never intended to be in. He had to start several times as an undrafted rookie. His final stats showed going 1-1 behind 66.2% passing for 328 yards, 0 touchdowns, and 4 interceptions.

Go ahead and consider his more recent work from the 2026 preseason:

• Giants: 1/2, 6 Yards, 0 TDs, 0 INTs
• Ravens: 11/17, 98 Yards, 0 TDs, 1 INT
• Broncos: 20/35, 165 Yards, 0 TDs, 0 INTs

Do these statistics point toward somebody who is going to force the Vikings into an uncomfortable position? Put differently, is there enough promise here to suggest that Minnesota ought to burn a roster spot keeping a fourth passer rather than try sliding him down to the practice squad?

If, in the end, the Vikings opt to trade J.J. McCarthy, then the QB3 job will be vacant. In that scenario, Brosmer would be the lead candidate to remain as the emergency QB3 for games. Short of that scenario, though, it’s hard to envision him demanding some roster real estate.

Max Brosmer is 25. Look for him to be kept around as the QB4 on the practice squad.

Senior Editor for Vikings Territory & PurplePTSD . Twitter & Bluesky: @VikingsGazette. Email: k.joudry[at]vikingsterritory[dot]com. Canadian. Jude 1:24-25.