Minnesota Vikings are in trouble if they are without Sam Bradford

Let’s face it; the Minnesota Vikings are in trouble if Sam Bradford isn’t available.

I have tried to convince myself since Sunday’s loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers that somehow the Minnesota Vikings will be okay without the presence of Sam Bradford. I can’t convince myself of that statement. I wish I could buy into the thinking of everything is going to be okay, but I can’t.

First off, we don’t know how long Bradford is going to be out for. Heck, the Vikings are continually changing their story about what is actually even wrong with Bradford’s knee. If the team can’t get their story straight on the injury to the team’s most important player, that probably leans the injury into a category of, at least, a little concerning.

We saw Case Keenum on Sunday and that wasn’t very reassuring. Sadly, though, Keenum is the only real option for the Vikings at this point. Teddy Bridgewater is weeks away from being able to take the field, nonetheless be prepared to lead an NFL offense. Kyle Sloter is a rookie and there’s no guarantee what he could bring to the team.

There are not a lot of great free agent options either. The best options out there are probably Colin Kaepernick or Tony Romo. One, no matter your stance on his views, brings a lot of baggage and the other is currently killing it in the top team broadcast booth for CBS. The best two options outside of the organization probably aren’t going to happen for Minnesota.

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Can Keenum improve upon what he showed on Sunday against Pittsburgh? Of course. Will he be Sam Bradford quality? No.

Keenum simply doesn’t have the inherited skillset to be an NFL starting quarterback. Heck not all NFL starting quarterbacks have that skillset. If the offensive line steps up and so does Keenum, the Vikings can win a couple games with that combination, but they are not going to win as many as they would with Bradford.

If Vikings fans want a successful season, I hope they do, they better be hoping for a speedy return from Sam Bradford. Bradford opens up everything for the offense and opens up a world of possibilities for how far the Vikings can go this season.

Next: Four things we learned in the Vikings first loss

We’ll all find out who is the team’s quarterback next on Sunday when the Vikings take on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers from U.S. Bank Stadium. The kick is set for noon.

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