Armed with two first-round picks, the Vikings are a team worth watching in the build-up to next month’s draft. Minnesota is a strong candidate for a move up the board to land a quarterback, although the presence of Sam Darnold means the position could be a priority after Day 1. 
[RELATED: Vikings Among Teams Set To Host Jayden Daniels]
The Vikings made a deal with the Texans to add pick No. 23 earlier this month, giving the team that selection along with their own 11th pick. Minnesota thus has the capital to move into the top five, and in the wake of the trade a report quickly emerged pointing to a deal with Arizona (which owns the fourth selection) being in play. Both the Cardinals and Chargers (No. 5) are open to trading down.
With that in mind, ESPN’s Matt Miller notes the expectation around the league remains that Minnesota will trade into the top five. Specifically, many point to J.J. McCarthy being the target of that move, although the matter of whether he will be on the board after No. 3 is in the air. The Michigan product has seen his stock consistently rise over the past few weeks, and he may have worked his way into consideration for the second overall pick.
Neither head coach Kevin O’Connell nor general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah attended the Wolverines’ Pro Day (although QBs coach Josh McCown was part of the large contingent of NFL evaluators present). As Ben Goessling of the Minneapolis Star Tribune notes, however, Minnesota’s preference is to host quarterback prospects on private workouts, something which holds true of other teams as well. The team’s evaluation of McCarthy, Daniels and whichever other passers are brought in will determine much of their plans ahead of the draft.
Darnold is in place on a one-year, $10MM deal. The former No. 3 pick is thus in place to serve as the Vikings’ short-term Kirk Cousins replacement, but a long-term investment via the draft would be a reasonable approach. As could be expected this time of year, though, Adofo-Mensah has not confirmed the chances of a trade-up being executed or a signal-caller even being a Round 1 target.
“We just thought that [the Texans trade] gave us the best flexibility for whatever can happen,” Adofo-Mensah recently said, via Miller’s colleague Kevin Seifert. “Ultimately team building isn’t this one-size-fits-all exercise. There are ways you can build a championship team with certain types of quarterbacks, certain types of players around them and we’re trying to set ourselves up to be one of those and ultimately be in that last game which we’re trying to be in.”
Aside from Caleb Williams remaining on track to join the Bears in April, plenty is uncertain at the top of the board for the time being. Minnesota represents an X-factor at the QB spot, especially if the team makes a substantial move up the order. The Vikings’ evaluations of the top prospects over the coming days and weeks will be a key storyline to follow.
How exactly do the Vikings have the draft capital to move up to #4? They have 2 1st round picks( OK) but then they don’t pick again until the 4th round. That doesn’t scream move up to #4 from 11. At least to me it doesn’t. The Raiders probably don’t even have enough and they have all their picks. And even if they do I doubt it’s a great idea to trade up for the 4th best QB in a draft. See Bears, # Justin Fields.
They’ll likely have to add future picks to make it happen and I’m with you I’m not thrilled at the idea of taking the 4th best QB either unless it’s specifically the one they want. My hope is that all this QB hype is just to drive up the prices for those picks and guys like Alt, MHJ, Nabers, etc are really higher on team’s boards than what’s being reported.
Because Minnesota can supplement those picks with picks in 2025 and/or 2026. The Bears trade down last year and the Cardinals trade down last year both only included two 2023 picks. Chicago has not only an extra first this year, but an extra second next year.
So they’ve not only squandered this year by trading a bunch of picks to move up 20 spots( don’t quote me) but they’re going to ruin next year too? Hey as a Bears fan I hope they do. This is why Poles is making a mistake IMO. He should of kept Fields at 6 million bucks, Then traded #1 down again for another boatload of picks and another #1 next year. Then signed Tannehill as a B/U with Bagent and built a super team this year around Fields. At least he could of built up Fields value and then reset the QB clock next year. He could of drafted MHJ, Nabers or Odunze this year and Alt or Fashanau and had more picks later to get a C and an Edge or whatever he wanted to do. Then had 2 1sts and at least 2 seconds next year to finish it off. They could have traded for a QB, drafted a QB or even both next year if he wanted. My motto is always trade back not up. Trading up is for suckers, Unless it’s a couple of spots for a guy you really like and it’s not expensive.
Solving the QB question is more important than accumulating picks, especially if you’re the Bears and you don’t need to trade up to do it. They have plenty of questions answered on their roster and they have other draft capital. Fields would be cheap this year, but they were either going to have to commit to his fifth year option (and realistically an extension) or only have him for the one year. He hasn’t earned a long term commitment. He’s never had a full good season and no one was willing to trade much to land him, which should tell you how the league sees him. Williams is a better prospect than he was anyway. They can trade down from their second first round pick.
I SERIOUSLY doubt that Williams will be any better than Fields would have been this year. And i have serious doubt that Williams solves the QB problem either. The Bears didn’t have to pick up Fields option and let him walk next year . I agree with whoever said it that having Fields and Williams on the same team would have been divisive, Even though I was for it in the beginning hence signing a veteran B/U like Tannehill.
Fields has yet to demonstrate he can be a consistently solid starter, let alone have any shot at being a top ten QB. He has one cheap year left. The Bears are going to be too solid to draft this high again and there isn’t a QB prospect as good as Williams every year anyway. Williams is very likely to be better than Fields and he has a full four cheap years of rookie contract ahead of him instead of just one. Maybe Williams will be worse in year one than Fields would have been in year four, but it’s not like they were going to go far with Fields this year.
Worst case scenario, the Bears will lose as many games with Williams as they did with Fields. More realistic scenario is Bears win more games due to better QB play. If the NFL thinks the best Fields can be is a one year rental backup QB, that should say enough.
Plus 3-We don’t really know what Fields could have been since his first year was wasted with idiots for coaches and the next 2 years were wasted with Getsy and not a great OL and receivers. The jury is still out on Fields IMO. However why he wanted to go to Pittsburgh is curious. Sorry Pittsburgh fans if I offend you but Tomlin isn’t notorious for hiring great OC’s either. There are better places I think he could have gone but whatever. Fields didn’t really get a lot of help here. Pittsburgh has almost as bad a rep for QB coaching as the Bears do. Rothlisberger was a finished product basically when he got there and he didn’t even like some of the guys they made him work with.
@UncleMike – 2023 was the season for Fields to prove he could throw the ball. He couldn’t do it. The team was fine. The offense was simplified. They won a game with Tyson Bagent when they couldnt with Fields! I can’t see blaming Getsy when Fields showed he couldn’t react fast enough, couldn’t make decisions with the ball. That’s not the OCs fault. They even had a top running game too. From all reports Fields wanted to go to Pittsburgh, so off he went. Root for Caleb now!
Mike… The entire league showed what they think Field’s value is by the meager return he generated in that trade. Just let go of the “Fields is the guy” argument. It’s done.
I 100% agree with you, Mike. There is no point reaching for a QB, unless a QB is the last piece you need. GMs, and some fans, lose their mind when they don’t have a QB in place, though. Nevermind if there isn’t a LT to protect the guy, or any receivers to throw to, etc…
The Bears already did something foolish, and before the draft is over, a few more teams will too.
I believe the Vikings are doing this for no other reason than to try and keep Jefferson happy. But is he really going to be happy with McCarthy throwing him the rock? I have even more doubts about that than I do Williams being worth the #1 pick. I agree with you Outlaw. With what the Vikings lost in FA they should have kept those picks, They’re going to need them.
The Vikings are making moves for a QB because they need a QB, not to keep Jefferson happy. They’re going to give Jefferson a record contract to keep Jefferson happy.
I think Minnesota is concerned about Jefferson’s happiness, too- but I don’t think McCarthy, or any rookie QB is going to do much to move the needle there. Even if we assume McCarthy is going to be good, without fail, it won’t be immediate. Jefferson may not want to spend 2-3 seasons losing games, I don’t know.
Instead of reaching for a QB, keep the picks, do your best to build a team. If you feel you absolutely need to take a QB this year, a player like Penix could be drafted later without mortgaging your future.
Jefferson will be fine. They’ll pay him a boatload and Minnesota gets the highest ratings from the NFLPA on how they treat their players. Reportedly they’ve been trying to draft a QB for a couple of years. Now that they’re without Cousins and it’s a strong QB class, I can understand being more aggressive. I don’t particularly like Penix as a prospect or a fit for their system, but Nix could be, so I see your point, but they probably want more upside. McCarthy does almost certainly need to sit for a bit–he’s also just turned 21. The good news for Minnesota is that they should have a wild amount of cap space after this season, enough to lock up Jefferson and supplement the roster further.
I’d be interested in having a gander at that NFLPA list…can you provide a link?
Here you go. Be sure to scroll right. There are a lot of categories. link to nflpa.com
Thanks for that link. It seems comically ironic that the Chiefs won the SB despite being the second most disgruntled group of players in the league. Apparently they like Andy Reid and Taylor Swift but not much else…lol.
Passing on a strong top overall QB prospect to ride with Fields would be reaching for a version of Fields that hasn’t shown up in the pros yet.
I’ll let KOC know that Uncle Mike said trading up is bad. Thanks for letting us know.
If he’s not smart enough to know that then I guess as a Bears fan I’m happy he’s not too bright. Giving a haul of picks for the right to draft QB#4 is a Ryan Pace move. If that’s the guy you want I’m happy for you all.
Trading up is for suckers, Unless it’s a couple of spots for a guy you really like and it’s not expensive.
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I agree, particularly if you don’t really love the next guy on the board. Someone else will love the next guy, so just trade back and re-assess your options. The number of guys that my Raiders drafted, when they could’ve traded back a slot, and still gotten the same guy, is appalling.
The fact there are all these reports of multiple teams reaching for a likely 3rd/4th best fairly mediocre QB, in a pretty weak class is absolutely insane when you have guys like Joe Alt, Harrison Jr., Malik Nabers, Dallas Turner, and Brock Bowers all absolute studs just sitting there available on the board.
Unless this is a bunch of smoke there are going to be several teams that are picking in the latter part of the top 10 that will easily get a top talent and some of the best players in the draft.
I completely agree Richard.
With the level of mocks having picks 1,2 & 3 going to QB & more recently comments from high-level people picking 2-5 saying they want a haul of picks…..it is quite possible that its a buyers market to move into the top 4.
There’s a generational WR & bonafide OL studs at the top of the draft for teams at the top that need more than just a QB (picks 2-5, but more specifically Washington & New England).
The Vikes have pretty good ammo with two 1sts this year in a draft that has a 50% rate of underclassmen coming out, which means that draft isn’t as deep & top 75 picks more valuable than usual vs Day 3 picks.
This is exciting times for sure.
Vikes are wise to be patient, unless….there is only 1 guy that KOC covets.
By position value the 11th and 23rd picks are fair compensation for the 4th pick. The number 4 pick has a value of 1800 the 11th and 23 combined is 2010. The number 3 pick has a 2200 value so they would have to throw in a future 3rd round pick. The Vikings are reportedly recieving two compensatory 3rd rounders next year. So they have the draft capital to make the trades, it’s just a matter of how greedy Arizona or NE want to be.
Worst case for the Vikings is nobody bites on a trade in the first 4 picks so they take Bo Nix at 11 and use 23 to accumulate a second and third round pick or godefense at 23.
So they traded 2 2nd round picks to move up 20 spots, But you want them to trade back again for a 2nd and 3rd. That’s freakin awesome, LMAO
Heard on the morning sports radio show here in AZ, they were discussing that the Cardinals GM may have a idea where he would offer the Vikings Kyle Murray in trade for more draft capital, then turn around and draft a QB maybe JJ McCarthy with that fourth pick and with the Vikings 23rd pick would then package the 27th and move back up to the 13th, 14th, 15th spot in the first round where they would try and get their WR, CB, or edge Rusher. Just food for thought.
Murray is not worth what he is being paid. The catdinals woukd have to pay the vikes to take him on. Cardinals gm should lay off the pipe.
sorry for the typos…
Why would the Vikings give up trade capital to spend a boatload of money on a QB after they decided to not give a boatload of money to Kirk Cousins?
What percentage of Murray’s contract does AZ play in this scenario? I am sure Minnesota’s analytics GM would like to know.
This an unlikely scenario
I can’t say for sure, but I’m guessing Murray is getting less guaranteed money than Cousins. Either way, it doesn’t make sense. Everyone wants the rookie QB deal now- especially the Vikings who are gonna have to pay a king’s ransom for Jefferson.
The vikes are better off staying put and grabbing Nix at 11. Then use pick 23 on a interior linemam or on defense.