In Week 14 of the 2017 season, the Philadelphia Eagles were facing the Los Angeles Rams, and Carson Wentz left the game due to an ACL tear after the quarter. The Eagles won the game to clinch the NFC East.
In the playoffs a couple of months later, the Minnesota Vikings traveled to Philadelphia to take on the Nick Foles-led Eagles. Philly buried the Vikings 38-7 on their way to their first Super Bowl victory, and Philadelphia built Foles a statue outside Lincoln Financial Field.
Why does this bit of Philly history and Minnesota pain matter for the 2025 Vikings?
If you’re like me, you can’t help but wonder, nay theorize, that maybe, just maybe, the football gods have brought down a prophecy involving Vikings backup quarterback Carson Wentz.
The Lore
Wentz was on an MVP-level track in 2017 until his untimely injury ultimately resulted in Foles becoming Super Bowl LII MVP.
After a couple of slow starts and subsequently never completing a full season at the position, Wentz has been bouncing around the league since Philadelphia replaced him with Jalen Hurts in 2020.
While his future was uncertain coming into 2025, he was allowed to sign with a team led by a “quarterback whisperer” at head coach, who had successfully revived the careers of Kirk Cousins and Sam Darnold.
The Present Day
After moving on from Sam Howell, the Vikings brought Wentz in to back up J.J. McCarthy. Like a younger Wentz, McCarthy is entering his second season and has shown signs of great play. In Week 1, he won Offensive Player of the Week after an incredible fourth-quarter comeback win against the Chicago Bears.
Although McCarthy finished the game in a tough loss to the Atlanta Falcons in Week 2, he suffered an ankle sprain during said contest.
Which brings us to Sunday’s game against the Cincinnati Bengals.
Before even taking a snap in Week 3, the 32-year-old made history by becoming the first quarterback to have at least one start with six teams in six seasons.
In a game that was lopsided from the start, Wentz showed promise as he helped the Vikings demolish the Cincinnati Bengals, 48-10. Wentz started the scoring early with a TD pass to Josh Oliver on a starting drive where the Vikings only had one second and one third down, and picked up multiple first downs.
The Vikings never looked back from that point, constantly increasing their lead.
After the third quarter, Wentz had completed 14 of 20 passes for 173 yards and two touchdowns, while also being sacked three times. With the score being 48-3, Wentz, along with most of the other starters, watched the fourth quarter from the sidelines.
The Future
While McCarthy’s injury allowed Wentz to start in Week 3, McCarthy should be healthy enough at some point during the season to reclaim his role. When that point is remains to be seen.
The question becomes what happens if Wentz plays so well that he finishes out the year as a starter?
There must be remnants of Wentz’s history as an MVP-caliber starter for a Super Bowl-winning team, and it might take just the right guy to elicit those types of performances from him.
Given Kevin O’Connell’s track record with veteran QBs, it doesn’t seem unreasonable to think that KOC can find whatever it is that Wentz has been missing the last several years. After all, a backup replaced Wentz and led the Eagles to their first Super Bowl victory.
The prophecy states that it is his turn to be the backup who brings the Lombardi Trophy to Minnesota for the first time.
