The Minnesota Vikings’ offense has been struggling against a tough Cleveland Browns defense in London. Kicking off the Sunday slate of Week 5, the Browns and Vikings have delivered a tightly contested game in the first half.
There have been plenty of storylines, including Dillon Gabriel’s NFL debut, Jordan Addison’s benching for a quarter, and now a potential Carson Wentz injury.
What Happened to Carson Wentz?
Wentz tried scrambling on a third down in the Vikings’ territory, but couldn’t pick up the first down.
After the play, Wentz headed to the medical tent with an injury. Then, he went to the locker room to get his left shoulder injury checked out.
Status alert: Carson Wentz (left arm) headed to locker room Sunday.
— Underdog NFL (@UnderdogNFL) October 5, 2025
Wentz has completed seven of 12 passes for 73 yards with 12 rushing yards on two carries. Max Brosmer is the backup and has been getting loose on the sideline in case he has to enter. Wentz is questionable to return, and fans will await whether he enters following the halftime break.
Wentz has had a solid season so far while filling in for J.J. McCarthy. He is 1-1 as the starter in Minnesota and was aiming for his second win before suffering the injury.
Wentz had excelled on the underneath passing this season (36 completions on 46 attempts thrown less than 10 yards downfield), and while he had been reasonably efficient on deeper passes through his first two starts, he was just two-of-seven prior to the injury.
Carson Wentz gets lit up by Browns defenders on this run, he has left the game 🤯
Hope everything is good. pic.twitter.com/bsTmfntcM7
— SM Highlights (@SMHighlights1) October 5, 2025
Wentz was inconsistent but reasonably effective in two-plus starts. Entering Week 5, Wentz’s 77.2 QB Impact grade ranked 19th among 37 qualifying quarterbacks. That far outpaced McCarthy’s first two games, when the first-year pro ranked 35th with a 53.9 QBi grade.
It was also a promising uptick for Wentz, whose last qualifying season in 2022 as the Commanders’ starting quarterback resulted in a 66.8 (D) grade that ranked 29th league-wide
Fantasy Impact of Wentz’s Injury
Wentz himself is obviously not fantasy relevant, but his pass catchers are. As much as Wentz is no longer an NFL-caliber starting quarterback, he is one of the better and more competent backups in the league.
Max Brosmer is a complete unknown, but it stands to reason he will not be able to sustain the fantasy values of the Vikings’ three fantasy-relevant pass catchers as well as Wentz did.
Justin Jefferson, being the WR1 and one of the best in the game, will likely be fine. But this could spell doom for the ancillary options. Jordan Addison, benched for the first quarter for an unknown reason, doesn’t have a catch yet. T.J. Hockenson has been minimally involved all season.
If Wentz has to miss extended time, Jefferson may be the only member of this passing attack worth starting, and he wouldn’t be a WR1 anymore, at least until JJ McCarthy returns.
