ESPN floats latest leaguewide rumor of Vikings trading up for a QB

ESPN’s Matt Miller floated the latest leaguewide rumor on Saturday with the Minnesota Vikings trading with the Arizona Cardinals for pick 4

The rumors surrounding the Minnesota Vikings trading up in the NFL draft for a quarterback have been going on for some time now. After Friday when the Vikings acquired the 23rd overall pick from the Houston Texans, they became even more so.

After the first wave of free agency, ESPN’s Jordan Reid and Matt Miller took a look at the landscape of the NFL and Miller spoke on the latest leaguewide rumor being the Vikings trading up with the Arizona Cardinals for fourth overall.

With Cousins in Atlanta and Russell Wilson in Pittsburgh, the Vikings (No. 11) and Broncos (No. 12) are trade-up candidates. There is considerable buzz about Minnesota trying to move into the top five to secure a quarterback such as McCarthy or potentially Maye/Daniels if either falls past New England. Friday saw the Vikings make a move to add an additional first-round selection (No. 23) from the Texans — in exchange for 2024 second- and sixth-round picks, plus a 2025 second-rounder. With two first-round picks, the Vikings now own the draft capital to fly up the board for a quarterback. The latest leaguewide rumor has the Vikings trading to No. 4 overall, where the Cardinals are in a sweet spot to trade out with a quarterback-needy team.

The interesting verbiage from Miller in here is this is “the latest leaguewide rumor.” There have been rumors about trading up with multiple teams already, including the New England Patriots and the Los Angeles Chargers.

If they did trade up with the Cardinals, the trade would likely look something like this, which I wrote about after the trade to get 23rd overall.

The Vikings trade picks 11 (358) and 23 (245) for picks 4 (491), 66 (76) and 104 (33). It would be 603 points for 602 points which is fair per the Rich Hill trade chart but not realistic, mainly due to the quarterback tax.

The likely move would look something like 11 (358) 23 (245) and 129 (18) for pick 4 (491).

That feels relatively palatable for both sides, especially the Vikings who would prefer to not give up a first-round pick next year with the Texans already having their second-round pick.

What will happen remains to be seen and this will be far from the last rumor we see on the subject.

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Vikings get QB of the future without trading up in Draft Wire mock

The Minnesota Vikings get their quarterback of the future in J.J. McCarthy without having to trade up in the latest Draft Wire mock draft

The Minnesota Vikings made a trade this week with the Houston Texans to get the 23rd overall pick, presumably to move up for a quarterback. In the latest mock draft from Curt Popejoy of Draft Wire, they get that quarterback without having to move up.

Popejoy has the Vikings staying at 11th overall and taking Michigan quarterback J.J. McCarthy.

After losing Kirk Cousins to the Falcons, quarterback becomes the team’s top priority and J.J. McCarthy is a mature, productive quarterback with all the intangibles.

McCarthy has been a very popular pick for the Vikings. He isn’t just popular, but is the most popular pick with 43 total selections in the first 10 weeks. Second through fourth place are edge rushers.

It would be a really interesting pick for the Vikings to take McCarthy. Despite not having the same type of production or in-game experience throwing the football, McCarthy has flashed brilliance in many areas that translate to the National Football League, especially on third down.

Will he have to sit to get to his potential? That remains to be seen, but the potential is there.

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The Real Forno Show: Vikings trade for 23rd overall pick

The Minnesota Vikings traded to get up to 23rd overall likely to take a quarterback. Tyler Forness and The Real Forno Show break it down.

The Minnesota Vikings have shocked the National Football League by making a trade to get back into the first round of the NFL draft.

They acquired the 23rd and 232nd overall picks from the Texans in exchange for picks 42, 188 and a second-round pick in 2025.

The Rich Hill trade chart puts a value on those picks at the following

  • 23rd: 245
  • 232nd: 2
  • Total: 247 points to the Vikings
  • 42: 142
  • 188: 6
  • 2025 second: 56
  • Total: 204 to the Texans

That is a net gain of 43 points for the Vikings or the value of the 92nd overall pick. The reason the Vikings gain here is that future picks are viewed as devalued by a round per year in the future. That’s quite the haul for the Vikings who are looking to make a trade up.

What does this mean and what can we gather from this move? Are the Vikings going to be hyper-aggressive to get a quarterback?

We are here to break it all down and more on the latest episode of The Real Forno Show, airing Monday and Wednesday nights at 6 pm central on the Vikings 1st & SKOL YouTube channel.

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Vikings trade up for J.J. McCarthy in FantasyPros mock draft

FantasyPros’ Thor Nystrom has the Minnesota Vikings drafting J.J. McCarthy after a trade with the Los Angeles Chargers for a top 5 pick.

In what is becoming a popular prediction, FantasyPros writer Thor Nystrom has the Minnesota Vikings trading up in his latest mock draft to grab a quarterback. That quarterback, perhaps unsurprisingly, is former Michigan product J.J. McCarthy.

McCarthy, who Nystrom compared to a former Minnesota Vikings (among others) quarterback, Rich Gannon, has become a popular selection for the Vikings as the draft season has gone on and McCarthy has reportedly risen up draft boards.


In order to land McCarthy, Nystrom has the Vikings trading with the Los Angeles Chargers to move up to the five spot. Nystrom has the Vikings moving their 2025 first-round pick to make the trade work. For the Chargers part, Nystrom has them moving down to 11 and still landing Georgia tight end Brock Bowers, who has been a popular pick for them as well.

Nystrom doesn’t provide additional details on the trade-up scenario, but it’s likely that a trade up to the top 5 would cost the Vikings more than simply a first-round pick in next year’s draft. However, it’s an easy decision if that’s all it takes to get the potential next franchise quarterback.

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Minnesota Vikings take unorthodox QB in latest Draft Wire mock

Minnesota takes an interesting avenue to address the QB position in recent mock draft

Draft Wire’s Curt Popejoy released his mock draft ahead of the legal tampering period that signals the start of NFL free agency. With this mock draft, there were no trades, leaving teams to reach for some premier positions, including the Minnesota Vikings.

At pick number 11, the Vikings found themselves without a quarterback after the top four quarterbacks (Caleb Williams, Jayden Daniels, Drake Maye & J.J. McCarthy) were taken off the board. So, according to Popejoy, they decide to take Oregon’s Bo Nix to address the position. Whether Kirk is back in the fray or not, taking Nix within the top 15 should not be an avenue Minnesota pursues.

There was not a defensive player picked within the first ten picks. Minnesota could have their pick of a defensive playmaker, whether at edge or cornerback, to add to Brian Flores’ arsenal. That is a much more advantageous bet than Nix at this point.

In the second round, at pick 42, the Vikings select West Virginia’s Zach Frazier. Offensive line depth is a concern and Frazier is a great run blocker who can add instant value to the offensive front.

However, two picks later, Washington’s Michael Penix Jr. goes off the board to Las Vegas. Penix and Nix seem to be on the same tier for most, with one going at 11 and the other going at 44, picking Nix that high feels like a massive reach.

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Minnesota Vikings trade up for franchise QB in latest mock

The Athletic’s Diante Lee selects Michigan’s J.J. McCarthy to be the future franchise quarterback for the Minnesota Vikings

The Athletic’s Diante Lee released his mock draft just ahead of the NFL’s legal tampering period starting today. As teams hammer out deals, one of the major questions is who will be the quarterback for the Minnesota Vikings next season.

According to Lee, Minnesota has at least one direction they can go to as they trade up with the New York Giants to acquire Michigan QB J.J. McCarthy.

Projected trade: Vikings send No. 11, No. 128 and a 2025 first-round pick to the Giants for No. 6 and 2025 third- and fifth-round picks

It seems inevitable that a QB-needy team will leapfrog Atlanta (or which team ultimately holds the eighth pick) to ensure the next best prospect is still there.

I have my qualms with the passer McCarthy is right now, relative to his draft stock, but he has some enticing tools — and he’s still early on his developmental curve. He would walk into a healthy offensive situation, and it’s possible Minnesota will have a bridge QB he can sit behind until he’s ready. After Chicago, this would be the best landing spot for a rookie QB.

With the future of Kirk Cousins floating in the air, Minnesota will continue to be in the conversations of trade-ups and other aggressive moves to address the position. McCarthy is a far cry from a ready-made prospect. At only 21 years old, he is a raw prospect who could use a year to sit and learn how to be an NFL quarterback. Whether that’s behind Kirk or a stop-gap quarterback is the question that needs to be answered.

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Purple Daily on Draft: Prospect discussions and mock draft

Who should the Minnesota Vikings select in the 2024 NFL Draft? Purple Daily on Draft does a mock draft and discusses multiple prospects.

Free agency is set to open the legal tampering period on Monday morning but it’s never a bad time to talk about the NFL draft.

On the latest episode of Purple Daily on Draft, we went to the listeners who asked about multiple different prospects.

To finish the show, the crew does a three-round Minnesota Vikings mock draft which saw them pick three times. How did they get the extra selection and who would be going to the Vikings in this simulation?

All of that and more on the latest episode of Purple Daily on Draft, dropping every Monday afternoon on the Purple Daily YouTube channel.

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SKOL Search: Texas WR’s Adonai Mitchell and Xavier Worthy

Texas WR’s Adonai Mitchell and Xavier Worthy thrived in 2023 with the Longhorns. Tyler Forness breaks down their 2024 NFL Draft stock

Welcome to SKOL Search!

This series will be your guide to the 2024 draft class. From scouting reports to mock drafts and exploring different scenarios, we will be covering the NFL draft and the future of the Minnesota Vikings from all angles.

On the latest show, we discuss the talented Texas wide receivers Adonai Mitchell and Xavier Worthy.

The two Longhorns wide receivers had a fantastic 2023 season where they made the College Football Playoff for the first time. Both bring dynamic skill sets with high-upside athletic profiles.

  • How did Mitchell thrive after transferring from Georgia?
  • Mitchell ran a 4.34 40-yard dash. Does that show up on film?
  • Was Worthy’s 4.21 40-yard dash a surprise?
  • Is there more to Worthy than just deep speed?

Join us throughout the offseason leading up to the NFL draft in April as we break down prospects with the smartest minds in the industry on the Vikings 1st & SKOL YouTube channel.

Vikings get aggressive for QB in latest Yahoo Sports mock draft

The Minnesota Vikings trade up with the Los Angeles Chargers for J.J. McCarthy in the latest mock draft from Yahoo Sports’ Charles McDonald.

We’re still more than a month away from the NFL draft, but with the scouting combine behind us and the free agency period on the horizon, a good portion of the puzzle will start to fall into place. With the Minnesota Vikings likely to lose out on quarterback Kirk Cousins, they’ll need to find his replacement.

That’s exactly what happens in the latest Yahoo Sports mock draft from Charles McDonald and Nate Tice. In this mock, McDonald is the one picking for the Vikings, and he has them trading up with the Los Angeles Chargers to get Michigan quarterback J.J. McCarthy. Here’s McDonald’s analysis of the selection:

In this world where Kirk Cousins has become the quarterback of the Falcons, the Vikings need to find their new guy. Here, they trade up for McCarthy, who has the upside to become a good NFL starter, even if he needs time to grow into the player people hope he can be in the future.

The idea of the Vikings drafting McCarthy is nothing new. He’s become a popular target for the Vikings in mock drafts. Minnesota trading up for a quarterback isn’t anything new, either. What is new here is the trade partner, the Chargers. Los Angeles would make a lot of sense in a trade down, as they need to replenish the weapons and offensive line around young star Justin Herbert.

The mock doesn’t go into detail on what the compensation in the move up would be, but if it’s a deal that allows Minnesota to keep All-Pro wide receiver Justin Jefferson, it’s worth exploring.

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Vikings get QB of the future in latest CBS Sports mock draft

The Minnesota Vikings get their QB of the future without trading up, as Drake Maye falls to them at 11 in CBS Sports’ latest mock draft.

The Minnesota Vikings are in an interesting — if precarious — position heading into NFL free agency and the NFL draft. On the one hand, it’s looking more and more likely that they’re going to be heading into a new era at QB with the departure of long-time starter Kirk Cousins. On the other, they may be in prime position to land their QB of the future in the draft.

That’s exactly how it plays out in Chris Trapasso’s latest mock draft for the folks over at CBS Sports. Trapasso has the Vikings standing pat at the 11th spot, and their patience pays off in the form of former North Carolina quarterback Drake Maye.

Maye, who many see as the #2 prospect at the position in this year’s draft, slips down to QB4 here, with both Jayden Daniels and another hot name for the Vikings, J.J. McCarthy, leap-frogging him. Here’s Trapasso’s analysis of the pick for Minnesota:

The top 10 couldn’t have played out better for the Vikings here, as Maye falls into their lap at No. 11. He ticks all the boxes.

While it may seem unlikely that Maye is still on the board when the Vikings come up on the clock, it’s certainly a possibility. The buzz around McCarthy has only gotten stronger as the draft process has gone on, and the rumors about Maye’s fall have been out there for weeks. Stranger things have happened!

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