MINNEAPOLIS -- Carson Wentz will start at least one more game at quarterback for the Minnesota Vikings, coach Kevin O'Connell confirmed Sunday after the team's 48-10 victory over the Cincinnati Bengals.
Wentz completed 14 of 20 passes for 173 yards and two touchdowns Sunday while playing in place of J.J. McCarthy, who is recovering from a right high ankle sprain. The game got so out of hand that backup Max Brosmer replaced Wentz with 11:07 remaining in the fourth quarter.
ESPN's Adam Schefter has reported that McCarthy would need two to four weeks to recover, which means Wentz has always been in line to play in Week 4 against the Pittsburgh Steelers in Dublin. It's also possible that Wentz could start the team's Week 5 game in London against the Cleveland Browns, with McCarthy returning after the team's Week 6 bye.
"[McCarthy] has responded well to the early part of the treatment," O'Connell said, "but for a young player, I want to make sure that he's healthy -- especially a guy with the movement skills that he has and clearly shown in his first two [games]. We're going to do right by him."
In his first two NFL starts, McCarthy led a comeback victory over the Chicago Bears but overall compiled the NFL's second-worst QBR (20.3). If he were to remain sidelined through the Vikings' bye, his next start would be in Week 7 against the Philadelphia Eagles at U.S. Bank Stadium.