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QB Gus Frerotte, Minnesota Vikings

HT: 6-2, WT: 228, Born: 7-31-1971, College: Tulsa, Drafted: Round 7

2008 Projections

Best Case

Tarvaris Jackson could struggle yet again, leaving the starting job wide open for Frerotte to claim. Jackson showed signs of life at times last year, but those moments were far too few and far between. Frerotte is a veteran signal-caller with a lot more starting experience than Jackson. If the young QB struggles out of the gate, head coach Brad Childress may not hesitate to make a move for Frerotte. This team is capable of winning right now, and even though he's bounced around quite a bit, Frerotte is very capable of being a winning QB. Even if Jackson does play well, there's the matter of him remaining upright. Far too often last year, nagging injuries sent him to the sidelines. If any of those nagging injuries turns a bit more serious, Frerotte could see an extended look as the starter.

Worst Case

If Jackson remains healthy and performs as the team hopes, Frerotte has almost zero chance of getting any meaningful playing time. Frerotte also hasn't been a starting quarterback for a full season since 2005 in Miami, and he's now 37 years old. That's right around the age most NFL quarterbacks' skills really begin to erode, and no offense to Frerotte but he wasn't exactly Joe Montana to begin with. He filled in for Marc Bulger last year and had a 7-12 TD/INT ratio, and that was when he was surrounded by the likes of Torry Holt, Isaac Bruce, and Drew Bennett. In Minnesota, it's Bernard Berrian, Sidney Rice, and Bobby Wade -- not a terrible trio by any means, but not quite what he left behind.

Outlook

Because of Jackson's propensity to run with the football, that obviously leaves him very susceptible to injury. So there is a decent chance that Frerotte will see some meaningful snaps under center at some point during the season. Because the Minnesota passing game isn't expected to be one of the better units in the league, it's unlikely that anyone but those in the deepest of leagues would ever find a use for Frerotte, and even that's debatable.

Relevant Articles

2008 Schedule

2007 Game Summaries

Week 4 - Frerotte entered the game in relief of Bulger after the game was out of reach, completing three of six passes for 29 yards.

Week 5 - Frerotte got the start for the injured starter QB Marc Bulger who is nursing broken ribs and has not been effective. Bulger was active and served as Frerotte's backup in the game. Frerotte got off to a good start by leading the Rams to three points on the first drive of the game for St. Louis. Frerotte snapped a streak of 32 possessions without a touchdown by the Rams' offense by hitting WR Drew Bennett on a 16 yard touchdown in the second quarter. But Frerotte was inconsistent in the first half going only eight for 17 for 60 yards.

Frerotte would get his second touchdown pass of the game on an 11 yard pass to WR Torry Holt on the first drive of the second half. Frerotte lead them down on a seven play, seventy yard scoring drive. He had an interception in the third quarter when Holt had a pass bounce off his hands. He would make a huge mistake early in the fourth quarter when he threw a pass right to Cardinals' CB Roderick Hood in which he would take 68 yards for a touchdown. He would get his third interception of the game later in the fourth quarter on a poorly thrown deep ball. Frerotte did lead the Rams down on 70 yard drive late in the game and hit TE Randy McMichael on a 29 yard touchdown pass. He finished with very good numbers in the game, but he was inaccurate at times and did have three big interceptions in the second half.

Week 6 - Frerotte was rocked all day long. He was sacked only four times but was hit hard on virtually every single passing play. It was reminiscent of, well, of the beating Bulger took before bowing out due to injury. Frerotte flirted with success in the second half, when the Rams began throwing quick passes, but in the end turnovers killed them -- five of which were interceptions. Here's the thing: Frerotte is hardly at fault; he just never had time to throw. His offensive line was depleted, and he was already missing WR Isaac Bruce, when Drew Bennett left with an apparent hamstring injury. When he was able to get the ball off, his luck was just awful. Between dropped passes, tips becoming interceptions, along with a few bad throws, he just could not get his team into the end zone. He was knocked out of the game for good with about a minute left.

Week 12 - Frerotte came on in relief of Bulger, and promptly got sacked and fumbled. He led the Rams to the end zone in that same drive, however. As the game went on, he got worse, not better, and displayed a lack of patience in the pocket, leading to many incompletions. Completing the downward spiral, on the final play of the game with a chance to win the game, he fumbled the snap.

Week 13 - Frerotte looked like the second coming of Kurt Warner (circa 2000) in the first half, scoring easily on the first drive, and finishing the half with three passing TDs, and all to different receivers. In the second he threw two interceptions and allowed the Falcons a chance to get back in the game.

Week 14 - Frerotte was active, and dressed as the backup QB. He did not play a snap.

Week 17 - Frerotte came in late in the fourth quarter to spell Bulger. He promptly threw an interception to Cardinals linebacker Gerald Hayes, who returned it for a touchdown to put an end to any hopes of a Rams' comeback.