The Vikings’ decision not to extend Kirk Cousins’ contract beyond next season has led to plenty of speculation about what they plan to do at the quarterback position.
Would they consider trading Cousins? Could Hendon Hooker be Minnesota’s first-round pick? What about potential interest in Kentucky’s Will Levis?
There is nothing like uncertainty at quarterback to cause a frenzy, and it appears the Vikings are willing to create questions at the position in order to land on what they believe to be the best solution.
Here is a look at some of the possibilities.
Trade Kirk Cousins to the 49ers
Kyle Shanahan’s admiration for Kirk Cousins dates to their two seasons together in Washington, and it’s no secret the 49ers coach remains a fan of the quarterback.
Thus, it came as no surprise when Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk said that there was some chatter around people in the league at the scouting combine that Cousins could be traded to San Francisco. Cousins has a no-trade clause included in his contract for 2023, so he would have final say over any deal the Vikings might try to make.
Cousins could be interested in reuniting with his former offensive coordinator and joining a team that has quarterback uncertainty but made a run to the NFC title game last season. Cousins could be especially interested in relocating if the 49ers were willing to give the 34-year-old a contract extension.
San Francisco doesn’t have a first-round pick in this month’s draft, but that wouldn’t necessarily stop a trade. The Vikings could be interested in Trey Lance, the third-overall pick in the 2021 draft
Lance was supposed to be the 49ers’ starter last season, but suffered a fractured fibula and ligament disruption in his ankle in Week 2. He still has two years, plus the fifth-year option, left on his rookie contract, so the Vikings could get a lengthy look at him to make a decision on whether he’s their franchise quarterback.
San Francisco also has 11 selections in this draft, starting with three third-round picks. That could interest Vikings general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah, whose first NFL job came with the 49ers in 2013.
Odds of a Cousins trade: Low. While it makes sense if you put the pieces of the puzzle together, there is no sign the Vikings are interested in breaking up with Cousins before this season and doing so could create a lot of question marks.
Draft Hendon Hooker in the first round
Hendon Hooker to the Vikings momentum has picked up in recent weeks as a few mock drafts, including Todd McShay’s most recent one for ESPN.com, had Minnesota taking Hooker in the first round.
This is interesting for a few reasons.
Hooker, who played college at Virginia Tech and Tennessee, tore the anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee last November. If Hooker landed in Minnesota, he could spend the season rehabbing and learning behind Cousins.
Coach Kevin O’Connell, a former quarterback and the Vikings’ play-caller, also could spend the season working with Hooker. The upside to making him a first-round pick, would be his rookie contract would be for five years instead of four.
Nonetheless, I’m not buying the Vikings are going to select Hooker. This seems like a typical pre-draft plant that we so often see. There was buzz last year that the Vikings were going to take Liberty quarterback Malik Willis and many projected him as a first-round pick. He went in the third round to the Tennessee Titans.
Taking Hooker at No. 23 overall would come with plenty of risk. Maybe O’Connell is convinced it would be worth it, but the timing of the Hooker-to-Minnesota rumors makes me think this is more fiction than fact.
Odds the Vikings take Hooker: Low. At least in the first round.
Trade up to select Will Levis
While Hooker is climbing in some mocks, Kentucky quarterback Will Levis is falling in others.
Again, be suspicious of the timing on all of this.
NFL executives love nothing more than to off-the-record plant misinformation that might give them an edge or make another team think twice.
The guess here is that Ohio State’s C.J. Stroud, Alabama’s Bryce Young and Florida’s Anthony Richardson are the first three quarterbacks off the board. So where will Levis go and could Hooker could ahead of Levis?
It will be surprising if Levis falls out of the Top 10, given how desperate teams are to take a shot on getting a productive quarterback on a rookie contract.
The Vikings are going to have to be willing to trade up — and sacrifice a pretty substantial package — in order to position themselves to grab Levis. That’s assuming they are interested. There was more buzz tying Minnesota to Levis a few months back than there seems to be now, but the more the Vikings like Levis, the more they are going to act disinterested.
Levis is 6-foot-3, 231 pounds and has a big arm, but there are concerns, including his awareness in the pocket. O’Connell might think he could fix those things, especially if Levis uses 2023 as a red shirt year, but would Adofo-Mensah want to pay the price to go get him?
Odds the Vikings take Levis: If Levis was going to fall to around the 20th pick, I’d say there’s a good chance. But I don’t see that and Adofo-Mensah has only five selections heading into this draft. Odds are better he trades back than trades up.
Take a quarterback in the third round or later
This wouldn’t generate near the excitement of the first three scenarios, but it’s a real possibility the Vikings could select a quarterback whom they consider a longer-term project.
This group includes Stanford’s Tanner McKee; UCLA’s Dorian Thompson-Robinson; BYU’s Jaren Hall; and Purdue’s Aidan O’Connell.
All could spend a season sitting behind Cousins and veteran backup Nick Mullens with no pressure on them and the ability to learn at their own pace. While it’s rare for quarterbacks drafted in later rounds to become stars, don’t forget the 49ers took Brock Purdy with the 262nd and final pick of the 2022 draft and he ended up guiding them to the playoffs.
Guys like O’Connell and Shanahan have enough confidence in their abilities to develop quarterbacks that if they get a guy with the right tools, they are convinced they can turn him into an NFL starter.
Odds the Vikings go in this direction: Certainly seems like a real possibility if the speculation about the Vikings taking a quarterback in the first round proves to have been reckless.
