Former NFL MVP Doesn't Think Josh Dobbs Deserved to Be Benched

Dobbs didn't get much help in Sunday's game against the Raiders.

Two-time NFL MVP Kurt Warner doesn't believe Vikings quarterback Josh Dobbs deserved to get benched for his performance against the Raiders on Sunday.

"Just watched (the) Vikings tape and I feel for Josh Dobbs being benched," Warner tweeted on Wednesday. "So important to watch each play and not just see the results… I feel he played well, dropped passes all over, some things didn’t work and of course missed some, but far from a 'benching' performance in my opinion!"

He later released an 18-minute YouTube video breaking down the tape to support his point.

Does Warner have a point? Dobbs was 10/23 for 63 yards and took five sacks against the Raiders before being pulled for Nick Mullens in the fourth quarter, but it's true that he didn't get much help. Pro Football Focus, which gave Dobbs (68.5) a higher grade than Mullens (59.3), credited Vikings pass-catchers with a whopping six drops while Dobbs was in the game. Some of those might be up for debate, but the point is that his stat line could've looked substantially better if his receivers had caught some passes. The offensive line struggling didn't help, either.

With that said, even the tape shows that Dobbs wasn't playing as poorly as the numbers suggested, Kevin O'Connell made an obvious and necessary move to go to Mullens in the fourth quarter. The veteran knows the offense, made quicker decisions, and showed off some pocket presence as he sparked the Vikings to the only points of the day in their 3-0 win. Dobbs seemingly had a hard time executing throws in rhythm and was shut down as a scrambler.

As expected, Mullens has been announced as the starter for this weekend's game against the Bengals. You feel for Dobbs, who played so well in his first couple games with the Vikings. Warner and PFF raise a valid point that his play wasn't the utter disaster that it looked like in Vegas. Nonetheless, going to the steadier Mullens feels like the correct decision for the Vikings right now. He figures to raise their floor and execute the offense competently while getting Justin Jefferson involved early and often.

With the way the Vikings' defense is currently playing, that might be good enough.

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