The Minnesota Vikings have their work cut out for them this offseason when it comes to finding a starting quarterback. Veteran Kirk Cousins, who has been with the team for six seasons, is entering free agency and may not be in their plans any longer.
Cousins will be 36 when the 2024 regular season rolls around, a risk in itself. When you add in the fact he will be returning from a devastating Achilles injury, there is a lot of risk involved for the Vikings, who have plenty of other holes on their roster to address.
Minnesota could look for a veteran stopgap option to hold them over in 2024, with a few options emerging as potential targets. The team could also opt to develop 2023 fifth-round pick Jaren Hall, who had two starts and three overall appearances during his rookie season.
NFL News & Rumors: Kirk Cousins, 2024 NFL Draft, Chicago Bears, Minnesota Vikings Updates
The Vikings could also get aggressive in the 2024 NFL Draft and look to make a jump up the board, putting them in position to snag one of the top quarterbacks in this year’s draft class. Currently slated to pick at No. 11, Minnesota isn’t going to be in a position to select a tier-one prospect; that would require a move up.
Brad Gagnon of Bleacher Report shared what it could look like for teams to move up and make a deal with the Chicago Bears for the No. 1 pick in the 2024 NFL Draft. For the Vikings, it certainly wouldn’t be cheap as they would have to unload Day 1 and Day 2 picks for multiple years.
“The leap from the No. 11 spot to the top of the draft is worth a top-five selection, per the chart. The Minnesota Vikings don’t have an extra one of those lying around, so they’d realistically have to surrender their next two first-rounders—if not 2026’s as well—and a boatload of Day 2 capital.
If nothing else is on the table, the Bears could become more flexible. But they’d be taking a significant draft-capital hit for 2024. The risks would be higher,” wrote Gagnon.
The trade that Gagnon put together was Minnesota sending six picks altogether to Chicago. They would surrender first-rounders in 2024, 2025 and 2026, second-rounders in 2024 and 2025 and a third-rounder in 2025.
NFL News & Rumors: Kirk Cousins, 2024 NFL Draft, Chicago Bears, Minnesota Vikings Updates
That is a steep price and honestly, may not be enough. It is hard to imagine the Bears sending the No. 1 pick to a division rival, potentially setting them up for success for years to come with a franchise quarterback. Chicago could ask for even more if that’s possible to even imagine.
For the Vikings, finding a franchise quarterback is not easy. If you want the chance to select one, you need to pony up a big price and that is exactly what they do in this deal.
Their analytic-driven front office may not go for this, but it was reported they made a huge offer to the Indianapolis Colts in the 2023 NFL Draft attempting to move up. The Vikings wanted Anthony Richardson, who the Colts ended up taking 4th overall.
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