ESPN Drops a Couple QB Draft Nuggets for Vikings
Josh Frey
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Right around two weeks from now, the 2024 NFL Draft will get underway.
Even with the event inching ever closer, there are plenty of uncertainties heading into this spring’s draft, particularly as it pertains to the Minnesota Vikings. Well, on Thursday, ESPN dropped a few QB draft nuggets for what they’ve been hearing out of the Vikings’ camp along with some insights from the other 31 teams.
New QB Draft Nuggets for the Vikings
The first bit of information comes from Kevin Seifert, who estimated that the chances of the Vikings drafting a quarterback in the first round are right around “fifty percent.” Here is what Seifert had to say on those propositions:
“The Vikings’ preference is to trade up. But to use two words that general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah and coach Kevin O’Connell have both repeated, Minnesota needs a ‘complicit’ team to make that trade, and they’ll need the ‘flexibility’ to pivot if none of their offers are accepted. There is a 100% chance the Vikings will draft a quarterback at some point in the draft, but the question is how highly regarded that player will be as a future pro. Adofo-Mensah and O’Connell know they can’t simply will a trade into existence.”
Minnesota’s interest in a quarterback has become very clear at this point. They’ve set up private workouts with five of the top six QB prospects in this draft. The only one that they haven’t gotten a chance to meet with is Caleb Williams, who is the consensus pick to go No. 1 overall to the Chicago Bears in two weeks.
As Seifert suggests, though, they will need to find a willing partner in order to actually make a trade to move up the board for a prospect. They will need to entice a team like the New England Patriots, Arizona Cardinals, or Los Angeles Chargers with a package that is worthy of sliding outside of the top 10.
Of course, that became a much easier proposition a few weeks ago when the Vikings acquired the 23rd overall pick from the Houston Texans, but there still is no guarantee that a deal can happen until it actually does. All of the teams above the Vikings have very major needs on their roster, and a top 10 selection could go a long ways towards solving them.
If asking prices become too exorbitant, Kwesi Adofo-Mensah could simply decide to sit back with his two first-rounders and either select one of the QBs who fall to him or select the best players available at other positions of need.
Adofo-Mensah stated during his press conference on Thursday morning, “I know we talk about quarterback a lot, and it is the most important position in our sport, but it is the most important position in a team sport. It’s not just getting the quarterback right. It’s getting the quarterback and the team around it.”
Additionally, the Vikings need to ensure that the quarterback that they target actually fits into their offensive scheme. According to another nugget from ESPN, this is precisely why Minnesota has opted to conduct private workouts with the QBs rather than simply attend pro days.
“It’s no secret the Vikings need a quarterback and are expected to be aggressive in adding one at the draft, but the front office and O’Connell — a former quarterback himself — did not attend pro day workouts of the top quarterbacks. Instead, the Vikings are trying something different. ‘We want to see them work out in a more intimate setting,’ is how a source with the team put it. ‘Get them a little uncomfortable running our workout vs. theirs,'” the article read.
It’s a very unique path that the Vikings are taking towards this evaluation process, but hopefully, it will pay off in the long run as they attempt to fill their QB needs for the future.
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Josh Frey is a Class of 2020 graduate of The College of Idaho and managing editor of PurplePTSD.com. When he’s not writing about the NFL, Josh enjoys running, gaming, or rooting for the Milwaukee Brewers and Bucks. Check out his Twitter account: @Freyed_Chicken.