Valley City N.D. (Opinion)- With Kirk Cousins out for the year with a Torn ACL, the Minnesota Vikings are staring an uncertain future in the face at the most important position in football. Rookie Jaren Hall, who put up mixed reviews in his preseason performances, is the next man up on the depth chart. However, with the emergence of Brock Purdy, Hall might be able to step into the limelight right the ship and guide the Vikings into the playoffs.
However, Hall will likely be overwhelmed and struggle his first few weeks as the starter, leaving the front office scrambling to figure out what to do. They could call the Titans or Saints and see what it would take to acquire Ryan Tannehill or Jameis Winston. Or they could let Hall be the sacrificial lamb, ride out a possible lost season, and wait until then to figure it out.
If the season does fall apart, the Vikings could finish with a record around 6-11. In that case, they’ll probably be picking anywhere from 6th to 10th, which is too far back to wait to draft either Caleb Williams or Drake Maye, which means they either gamble on a project QB, like Michael Penix Jr, Bo Nix, Jayden Daniels, Shedur Sanders, etc. or they spin the veteran QB roulette wheel and see what they wind up with. So, let’s examine the possible options that Minnesota could have next year at quarterback.
Trade
Kyler Murray: The Arizona Cardinals are a terrible football team with a new head coach who is getting the team around him to play hard, resulting in many moral victories. Despite this, they’ll still be in a position to draft either Maye or Williams. Would the Cardinals move on from a guy they drafted number one overall and who is coming off an injury that kept him out the whole season?
They’ve done it before drafting Murray a year after they drafted former UCLA QB Josh Rosen, so the Cardinals are willing to be cutthroat when needed. Despite the red flags surrounding Murray about his love and commitment to playing football, he is still the best trade option for Minnesota, as he was on pace for 25 total TDs before he got hurt last season.
Justin Fields: Your opinion of Justin Fields is likely shaped by what you think of the coaching staff around him. After his rookie year, the Bears fired his first coach, Matt Nagy, and will probably fire their current head coach, Matt Eberflus, unless things take a drastic turn this season. While he has shown flashes this year with a two-game stretch against the Commanders and Broncos, yielding eight touchdowns to one interception, the rest of the year has produced mixed results.
Like Arizona, the Bears will be in a position to draft either Williams or Maye and with a new regime possibly on the way, Fields’ spot in Chicago is no longer safe. Do the Vikings think Kevin O’Connell is the man who can get the most out of the turbulent prospect? That right there is the multimillion-dollar question.
Russell Wilson: A former MVP-caliber quarterback written off for dead, with his current organization anxious to find someone to take him off their hands. If this tale sounds familiar to many Vikings fans, it should because Wilson might be this generation’s Randall Cunningham. He was a player who dominated the league early in his career, only to see it all fall apart as the league left him for dead.
Wilson has been playing better as of late, but his contract is an anchor preventing Denver from making serious moves to try and contend in the AFC West. If Minnesota is willing to take Wilson off Denver’s hand with the Broncos eating some of his salary, this could be an interesting option as it would pair the veteran signal-caller up with the most talented wide receiver he’s ever played with.
Free Agents
Ryan Tannehill: There was a stretch from 2019 to 2021 where Ryan Tannehill was arguably a top-eight quarterback in the league. During that time, he compiled 76 touchdowns to 27 interceptions while leading his team to an AFC Championship Game and a number one seed in the AFC Playoffs.
Since then, though, Ryan Tannehill has come back down to earth and has looked more like the guy the Dolphins gave up on after the 2018 season. That being said, it’s hard to find a team with less receiving talent than the Tennessee Titans, so there is some belief that one more good year could be squeezed out of the veteran if he is surrounded by elite receiving talent.
Baker Mayfield: Right now, the former number-one overall pick is one pace for 24 touchdowns to nine interceptions, emulating his career-best season in 2020. Nobody is talking about that because he’s playing for the lame-duck Tampa Bay Buccaneers on a lame-duck one-year contract.
However, given how hapless the NFC South is this year, it stands within reason that Mayfield could be starting a home playoff game this season if he continues to be a steady presence under center. There are limitations to Mayfield’s game, but he is the type of quarterback who can effectively utilize the weapons around him.
Jameis Winston: Speaking of forgotten number-one overall picks that played for Tampa Bay, it’s time to talk about Jameis Winston. Usually, I wouldn’t suggest signing a guy who once led the league with 30 interceptions and who has been benched in favor of Derek Carr, Andy Dalton, and Taysom Hill. However, this is an exception because Winston is the ultimate wild card.
In seven games in 2020, surrounded by minimal talent in New Orleans, Winston put up 14 touchdowns with only three interceptions before going down with a season-ending injury. When he is on, no free-agent quarterback offers more upside than he does, possessing the type of elite arm talent that only a few players have.
The Rams recently won a Super Bowl, with Matthew Stafford leading the league in interceptions. If the Vikings are willing to embrace the roller coaster, Winston could be the type of all-or-nothing move that could work for a short period of time.
Draft
This is widely considered a two-quarterback draft, with USC’s Caleb Williams and North Carolina’s Drake Maye likely being the first two players off the board. Both possess the type of creativity, athleticism, and arm talent that draw comparisons to Patrick Mahomes, Joe Burrow, and Josh Allen. Both are considered day-one starters in the NFL, with multiple teams willing to tank this season for their services.
In all likelihood, the Vikings will win too many games to be in the mix for those two, so they’ll need to do their quarterback shopping outside the top five picks. The worst thing the Vikings can do in this situation is reach for a quarterback they could get later in the draft. Depending on where they are in the draft, trading down is a legitimate possibility, as this QB class is loaded with intriguing project quarterbacks that could be available on day two.
Early in their careers, J.J. McCarthy of Michigan and Bo Nix of Oregon were volatile quarterbacks with moments of brilliance but always left their respective fanbases on edge. They’ve since molded themselves into two of the better quarterbacks in the country. McCarthy is the more mobile of the two, with Nix being the more talented pocket passer. However, both lack the field-stretching ability you’d like to see out of first-round prospects.
Michael Penix Jr. of Washington is one of the top contenders for the Heisman Trophy this year and possesses one of the most talented left-handed cannons since Michael Vick. Since he’s not the greatest athlete in the world, he’ll need a good line around him to ensure he stays upright. Penix Jr. also doesn’t have the cleanest bill of health, with two torn ACLs and a shoulder problem.
Jordan Travis, Quinn Ewers, and Jayden Daniels are all players who will likely be available in the fourth round or later, and all have aspects of their game that’ll get them drafted but also have glaring weaknesses that’ll leave them available on day three.
The Outsiders
Kirk Cousins: Now, hear me out for a second. Because of the miracle of modern medicine, Kirk Cousins could likely be ready to go by week three of next season, meaning he could play next year. Also, with the injury, his services will come at a significant discount, which opens the Vikings up to making moves in the offseason. It might be worth kicking the tires again if the Vikings are willing to deal with him possibly missing the first couple of games next season.
Jaren Hall: All of the previous ideas I’ve listed might be utterly irrelevant if Hall turns out to be the real deal. He put up more than respectable numbers at BYU, with 31 touchdowns and six interceptions his senior season. The real question for this Vikings front office and coaching staff is what exactly will Hall have to show this year to forgo making a meaningful move in the offseason at quarterback?
Trey Lance: Let’s address the elephant (or bison) in the room. It’s safe to say that Lance got Wally Pipped in San Francisco, replaced by Jimmy Garoppolo, and again by Brock Purdy before he could fully show what he could do. Currently, he’s backing up Dak Prescott in Dallas and is unlikely to see the field unless Prescott goes down with an injury.
Lance is a legend in North Dakota and Minnesota with his prowess in high school and his championship season in college at NDSU. If the Vikings are looking for a boom or bust move to sell tickets and build up buzz for next season, this would be the move to make. His services should be available for a day-three pick, so the Vikings won’t have to gut their upcoming draft to get him.
He is unproven and underachieved, with one of the best offensive minds in, Kyle Shanahan calling plays for him and with one of the best rosters around him. If the 49ers thought Trey Lance possessed any value whatsoever, they wouldn’t have traded him to Dallas. However, if Minnesota believes Kevin O’Connell can unlock his potential, two teams’ trash might be the Vikings’ treasure.