The Minnesota Vikings will not have J.J. McCarthy under center in Week 13 against the Seattle Seahawks, ruling the second-year passer out due to a concussion. As part of their plan in response, the Vikings have reunited with quarterback Desmond Ridder.
Rookie undrafted free agent Max Brosmer will start in McCarthy’s place, and the Vikings have 2018 UDFA QB John Wolford backing him up.
Ridder’s role seems clear, given his experience in the Vikings’ system.
Vikings Announce Desmond Ridder to Practice Squad
GettyDesmond Ridder #10 oof the Las Vegas Raiders reacts against the Los Angeles Chargers.
The Vikings announced in a post on X on November 27 that they had “signed QB Desmond Ridder to the practice squad.”
Ridder, 26, was the No. 74 overall pick of the 2022 draft by the Atlanta Falcons. He spent two seasons in Atlanta before the Falcons traded him to the Arizona Cardinals in 2024. Arizona released Ridder, re-signing him to their practice squad in September of that year.
The Las Vegas Raiders signed him to their active roster off the Cardinals’ practice squad.
That was in October, and the former Cincinnati Bearcats star spent the remainder of the 2024 campaign with the Raiders.
He signed with the Cincinnati Bengals during the 2025 offseason program, but was released at the end of the preseason. Ridder initially signed with the Vikings after their Week 2 matchup against one of his former teams, the Falcons.
Vikings HC Kevin O’Connell’s Comments Could Prove Telling
GettyDesmond Ridder #4 of the Cincinnati Bengals scrambles against the Philadelphia Eagles.
The last time Ridder was in play for the Vikings, heading into Week 3 against another one of his former teams, the Bengals, head coach Kevin O’Connell had named Carson Wentz the starter and Brosmer as the backup.
The Vikings took advantage of the NFL’s rule allowing teams to dress an emergency third QB, but not have them count against their game-day limit of 48 players.
“With the rules being what they are with the emergency third quarterback, we wanted to have one based upon just the early aspect of our season. We’re pretty deep into some position groupings as it is. So, we wanted to make sure we could at least get a guy that has played before, and Desmond had a great workout,” O’Connell said of adding Ridders in September.
“We have known about him a lot going back to evaluating him coming out. He’s been on his journey. It’s just good to get him in, and he’ll be that emergency No. 3 on Sunday and I’m sure he’ll do a great job getting some limited menu together that he feels good about.”
That could make sense for the Vikings and Ridder again in Week 13 against the Seahawks.
Ridder has good mobility for the position and has thrown for 4,002 yards, 16 touchdowns, and 14 interceptions on 63.6% completion in his career.
Vikings Facing Consequences of Offseason Actions
GettySam Darnold #14 of the Seattle Seahawks looks on against the Arizona Cardinals.
This matchup is noteworthy for the Vikings aside from the possibility that Ridder could be two plays from seeing the field. They are also facing Sam Darnold, who led them to 14 wins, a playoff berth, and earned his first Pro Bowl nod last season.
There was interest in re-signing Darnold on the Vikings’ part, but not at the three-year, $100.5 million contract he received from Seattle. His relationship with McCarthy was rigid.
The Vikings also wanted to give McCarthy as much runway as possible to win the QB1 job.
This season, McCarthy has struggled mightily to the point where questions about whether the Vikings will explore alternatives this coming offseason have already surfaced. The Vikings are 4-7 on the season and 2-4 with McCarthy at the helm.
Meanwhile, Darnold has the Seahawks at 8-3 and is having another solid season during his inaugural campaign in the Pacific Northwest.
Ridder (8-10 as a starter) is also an unlikely long-term option for the Vikings.
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