Tag: Minnesota Vikings

Walter Rouse selected in the sixth round by the Minnesota Vikings in the NFL Draft

With the 177th pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, the Minnesota Vikings select Walter Rouse from the University of Oklahoma.

The Minnesota Vikings added one of the steals of the NFL draft when they selected offensive tackle Walter Rouse in the sixth round of the 2024 NFL draft. The Vikings took Rouse No. 177 overall.

Rouse, who started his career at Stanford, played one season with the Sooners, helping solidify Oklahoma’s offensive line. His experience and work ethic made a huge difference on a unit replacing both offensive tackles after the 2022 season.

In five seasons, Rouse played more than 3,400 snaps and was good in both the run and pass blocking schemes.

In 2023, he was a part of a Sooners offense that was one of the most efficient and explosive in college football. On 480 pass blocking snaps, he didn’t allow a sack, according to Pro Football Focus.

Rouse will be remembered for his awareness and effort at the end of the Red River Showdown. Down three in the final seconds of the game he blocked two Longhorns, giving Dillon Gabriel just enough time to find Nic Anderson in the corner of the end zone to beat the Longhorns.

Now, Rouse gets the opportunity to compete for snaps with another explosive offense in Minnesota.

Vikings select CB Khyree Jackson with 108th overall pick in 2024 NFL Draft

The Minnesota Vikings addressed their secondary needs on day three of the 2024 NFL Draft bys electing Khyree Jackson out of Oregon.

The Minnesota Vikings with the 108th selection in the 2024 NFL Draft were able to get Khyree Jackson, a cornerback out of Oregon. The Vikings had a need at cornerback and they finally addressed it on day three in the NFL draft.

Khyree Jackson played at Oregon in 2023, but he had previously played at Alabama and at East Mississippi State Community College. If the latter sounds familiar to you that is because it was the focus of the Netflix series Last Chance U.

Jackson does very well playing with a physical style in press against opposing receivers. He also does a good job of staying with them whenever they attempt to go over the top of the defense, which allows them to make shorter gains.

DC Brian Flores likes physical corners who can make plays on the ball, hence why Xavien Howard did so well in his defense. By no means are we saying Jackson will be an All-Pro like Howard, but his skillset is one that Flores can scheme with and get the most out of.

Contract details for new Vikings quarterback J.J. McCarthy

New Minnesota Vikings quarterback J.J. McCarthy will get a 4-year deal worth $21.858 million, with a team option for a fifth year.

The Minnesota Vikings came into the 2024 NFL draft determined to walk away with a quarterback, and they did just that. They did trade up to get him, but only one spot and were able to keep their second first-round pick in the process. All of that landed them former Michigan quarterback J.J. McCarthy.

Thanks to the rookie wage scale, the process of getting rookie draft picks under contract has become much more streamlined and quick than it was in year’s past. For being the 10th pick in the draft, McCarthy is going to get a 4-year deal with a team option for the fifth.

He’ll be making just shy of $4 million in his upcoming rookie season, and that number will climb to just over $6.5 million in 2027, the year before the team’s fifth-year option kicks in. We don’t yet know how much that option will cost the Vikings, but it will likely be a massive upgrade from the previous four years.

McCarthy’s deal will be fully guaranteed for the first four years, and should come in at a total of just over $21.8 million, with a $12.715 million signing bonus.

Jim Harbaugh on J.J. McCarthy: Minnesota was ‘where he had his heart set’

The Michigan quarterback has fans within the Vikings facility. On the Chargers, however, head coach Jim Harbaugh remains his biggest fan.

The Minnesota Vikings were sweating on Thursday during Round 1 of the 2024 NFL draft. They watched as quarterbacks made up four of the first eight picks, leaving the team scrambling as they knew the Denver Broncos and Las Vegas Raiders were behind them.

It left only one choice: to trade up just one spot to No. 10 to get their guy, J.J. McCarthy.

The former Michigan quarterback had plenty of fans in Minneapolis within the Vikings facility, and he clearly has allies around the league. The biggest is Los Angeles Chargers head coach Jim Harbaugh, who was McCarthy’s coach at Michigan.

Harbaugh hasn’t been shy about praising McCarthy, stating he was the “best quarterback in the class” a few weeks back. The former Wolverine was on his mind again when the Chargers coach met with the media and was asked about his thoughts on the pick.

“That’s where he had his heart set, and I’m just so happy for him. Love him like a son, and I was praying and pulling for it to work out the way he wanted it to work out,” Harbaugh said.

Harbaugh added that Minnesota got “a great player” and hinted at the stars aligning for things to play out the way they did. Vikings GM Kwesi Adofo-Mensah doesn’t have a background in astronomy, so he may not be counting stars, but he is counting on McCarthy to be the face of the franchise.

The NFL is already pushing him with the draft being in Detroit and his ties to the state of Michigan. Everyone is behind the Vikings’ top draft pick, it seems.

Bill Belichick gives his scouting report on J.J. McCarthy

Vikings landed their franchise quarterback in the form of J.J. McCarthy. Bill Belichick gave his thoughts on the new Vikings quarterback.

The Minnesota Vikings landed their franchise quarterback in the form of J.J. McCarthy out of Michigan. Everyone was impressed with what GM Kwesi Adofo-Mensah was able to do by letting him fall into their lap. The whole process caught the eye of everyone, including a future hall of fame coach.

During the Pat MacAfee Show’s NFL Draft Show, Bill Belichick was the “lead analyst.” It all came together after the Super Bowl-winning coach mentioned during an appearance on their show that he was still scouting players despite not being on a sideline in 2024.

Belichick was familiar with the Vikings quarterback and gave a rather glowing review:

“He’s (McCarthy) got a quick release and he sees coverages very well. . .he can play under center and out of the shotgun. . .he has good ball security and he doesn’t turn the ball over.”

He also added that he appreciates how “sneaky athletic” and “has the ability to extend plays” when needed. All of these traits and skills had Bill Belichick praising the Vikings and the idea of McCarthy within Kevin O’Connell’s system. The former Patriots coach is known for picking apart and not thinking much of rookie quarterbacks so this praise comes with a lot fo weight.

Now it is up to McCarthy to show he is deserving of it.

Here are the massive trade offers the Patriots reportedly passed up for Drake Maye

The Patriots reportedly had massive trade offers on the table for the No. 3 pick

The New England Patriots might not have gotten “the bag” they wanted, but they were reportedly offered a massive haul in exchange for the No. 3 overall pick in the 2024 NFL draft.

North Carolina quarterback Drake Maye was expected to be the player available in the spot, and that’s exactly how the board fell on Thursday night. That prompted the New York Giants and Minnesota Vikings to make last-ditch trade offers to the Patriots.

Per Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer, the Giants offered the Patriots their 2024 sixth-round pick, along with their 2025 first-rounder, while the Vikings offered three first-round picks in total, including the No. 11 and No. 23 picks this year, along with a 2025 first.

Breer wrote:

The Minnesota Vikings and New York Giants did make offers to the New England Patriots for the No. 3 pick to take Drake Maye. Earlier this week, Minnesota offered the Nos. 11 and 23 picks, and its 2025 first-rounder, with pick swaps favoring the Vikings as part of the proposal; and that offer ticked up with New England on the clock. The Giants, meanwhile, did wind up putting their 2025 first-round pick in their offer to move from No. 6 to No. 3.

According to Breer, the fact that Vikings coach Kevin O’Connell and Giants coach Brian Daboll were so interested in getting Maye made the Patriots want him even more.

Both coaches are strong evaluators of talent, and they obviously saw the incredible potential in Maye. Of course, if the North Carolina quarterback ends up being a bust, people will look back on these trade offers as major missed opportunities.

But the hope is that Maye lives up to the hype to the point where people forget the massive trade offers ever existed.

Report: Giants offered Patriots 2025 first-round pick to move up

The New York Giants reportedly offered the New England Patriots the sixth overall pick and their 2025 first-rounder for No. 3 overall.

The New York Giants made a “last-ditch” effort to trade up from No. 6 to No. 3 but the New England Patriots chose to stay put and select North Carolina quarterback Drake Maye, who was Big Blue’s target.

The Patriots were said to want a massive haul in return for the No. 3 spot and that turned out to be true.

Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated reports that the Giants offered the No. 6 overall pick in addition to their 2025 first-round pick but were rebuffed.

The Giants, meanwhile, did wind up putting their 2025 first-round pick in their offer to move from No. 6 to No. 3.

The Giants, of course, got a weapon for Daniel Jones, selecting star receiver Malik Nabers.

Pat Leonard of the New York Daily News reports that the Giants also included their 2024 second-round pick, No. 47 overall, in the trade offer.

Even with the additional assets thrown in, the Giants didn’t stand much of a chance. Not only were the Patriots seeking even more than that, but they had a better offer from the Minnesota Vikings which still wasn’t enough.

Earlier this week, Minnesota offered the Nos. 11 and 23 picks, and its 2025 first-rounder, with pick swaps favoring the Vikings as part of the proposal; and that offer ticked up with New England on the clock.

The Giants had the opportunity to select J.J. McCarthy, Michael Penix Jr., or Bo Nix with their first-round pick but ultimately settled on Nabers.

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Zulgad: Suspense turns to celebration after Vikings land J.J. McCarthy

The suspense that held every Vikings fan by a thread was finally seen as rewarding as the team landed their guy in J.J. McCarthy.

It was no secret the Minnesota Vikings badly wanted to find their next quarterback in the first round of the NFL draft on Thursday night. The question was whether they would be able to make that happen by trading up from the 11th pick or standing pat. The latter seemed to be a risky move, and the former figured to be potentially very expensive.

This worked under the assumption that the top four quarterbacks, of the six who potentially would be taken in the opening round, were Caleb Williams, Jayden Daniels, Drake Maye and J.J. McCarthy. Michael Penix Jr. and Bo Nix also were in the mix, but many considered them to be a step down.

As expected, Williams went first overall to the Chicago Bears, and Daniels was taken second by Washington. The intrigue began at No. 3 since there was some thought the Patriots might have been willing to move off that pick for an enormous return. But New England either didn’t get the offer it wanted or never intended to pass on Maye.

That left the Vikings in the position of having to trade up, or rely on hope, if they wanted to land McCarthy. The first sign that things were turning in the Vikings’ favor came at the sixth pick as the New York Giants grabbed wide receiver Malik Nabers to serve as a weapon for quarterback Daniel Jones. Many had thought the Giants might opt for McCarthy with an eye toward having him replace Jones.

The next break came two picks later as the Atlanta Falcons made the most surprising move of the first round by taking Penix at No. 8. These are the same Falcons who signed former Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins to a four-year, $180 million contract in free agency last month and appeared to be all in on the veteran.

Two picks later, with McCarthy still on the board, Vikings general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah ended the waiting by acquiring the 10th pick, along with a seventh-rounder, from the New York Jets in exchange for the No. 11 selection and a pick each in the fourth and fifth rounds. McCarthy became the first quarterback the Vikings have ever invested a top-10 pick on.

Smart money said O’Connell’s first choice was Maye, but McCarthy wasn’t believed to be far behind. Missing on McCarthy, with Penix already off the board, would have left the Vikings in position to be criticized and second-guessing themselves for not being more aggressive in moving up the draft board.

O’Connell, who was part of a contingent from the Vikings that conducted private workouts with all of the top QBs except for Williams, acknowledged there were some anxious moments as the process played out.

“We knew we weren’t the only ones that had identified (McCarthy) as a quarterback that we wanted to select,” he said. “So, in those moments you start thinking about kind of the what if? If we’re not able to get this thing done, making that one pick jump. Once we were able to do that and agree to that deal and I knew we were going to be selecting J.J., it was just pure excitement.”

That wasn’t just true for O’Connell. The majority of Vikings fans also were very pleased.

Cousins’ departure left many wondering what the team would do at quarterback, and the move to sign veteran Sam Darnold to a one-year, $10 million contract in free agency didn’t provide much confidence.

The Vikings’ obtained the 23rd pick in the first round from Houston in March in part because it was believed they might need to package two first-rounders in order to move into the top five to take a quarterback. But the Vikings got the best of both worlds as they were able to get one of the QBs they wanted and keep their second first-round pick.

That was used on Alabama edge rusher Dallas Turner, whom the Vikings took at No. 17 after trading No. 23 and a fifth-round pick in this year’s draft, as well as third- and fourth-rounders in 2025, to the Jacksonville Jaguars.

O’Connell did his best in his press conference Thursday to include Turner in conversations, but it was clear McCarthy was the main story. If Cousins’ departure created questions about the future at QB, the drafting of McCarthy put an end to the Cousins chapter and gave the Vikings new life at quarterback.

Attention now will turn to what O’Connell can get out of McCarthy and when McCarthy might take over the starting role. O’Connell earned well-deserved credit for his work with Cousins, but in that case he inherited a quarterback who was well into his career.

O’Connell, a former backup quarterback in the NFL, will get the opportunity to develop the 21-year-old McCarthy from scratch. At least as a professional.

McCarthy’s critics will point to the fact he was 94th in FBS last season in passes per game at 22.1. But playing for Jim Harbaugh at Michigan, McCarthy was 27-1 as a starter and helped guide the Wolverines to the national championship last season. McCarthy also had success in high school, winning two state championships at Nazareth Academy in Illinois. He won a high school national title after moving to IMG Academy for his senior season.

He’s basically won everywhere he has gone.

“J.J. was a guy, very, very early in the process — obviously coming off a national championship — (he) has won at every level he has been at,” O’Connell said. “Then when you really dive into the tape, some of the things I really look for and really emphasize in my evaluation process, there was a lot to really like about J.J.’s tape and that was before he absolutely crushed the process postseason.”

McCarthy will arrive in Minnesota with a big advantage over a guy like Maye, who is joining the bottom-feeding Patriots. O’Connell will have a coach who understands his position and wants to mold him, and a wide receiver group that includes stars Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison. The Vikings are coming off a disappointing season but they aren’t rebuilding.

What they are hoping is that on Thursday night they landed a guy who will lead them to their first Super Bowl appearance since Fran Tarkenton.

Grading every trade from the 2024 NFL Draft first round

So, uh, what at the Bills trying to do here?

The NFL Draft is never neat or tidy. It’s a frenetic, sloppy mess of trade offers and over-analysis.

Thus, we add to that pile by combining both.

The first round of the 2024 draft will be loaded with big swing trades designed to either jump start a franchise’s rebuild or add the missing piece needed for a Super Bowl run. Here’s where we’ll break down each one and figure out which side came out ahead in the deal.

For an idea of the value each team got, we’ll use two different systems. The first is the well-known Jimmy Johnson trade value chart, derived by the former Dallas Cowboys head coach in the early 1990s. We’ll also include a Bill Belichick-inspired chart discussed by Bill Belichick and brought to life by Pats Pulpit’s Rich Hill.

Of course, there’s more to each deal than just draft assets. It boils down to needs, which players are available and more. Let’s take a look at the trades that defined the first round of the 2024 NFL Draft.

The Vikings make a modest move up to land J.J. McCarthy

New York Jets send: 10th overall pick (QB JJ McCarthy), 2024 fourth round pick (129th overall), 2024 fifth round pick (157th overall)
Minnesota Vikings send: 11th overall pick (OT Olu Fashanu), 2024 sixth round pick (203rd overall)

Belichick trade value analysis: The Jets got excess draft value of 13 points, equivalent to the 146th overall pick.
Johnson trade value analysis: The Jets got excess draft value of 11.2 points, equivalent to the 201st overall pick.

The Vikings got the quarterback with whom they’d been linked throughout the pre-draft process and didn’t have to trade any Day 1 or Day 2 picks in order to do so. McCarthy is a gamble, but he’s a modest one whose risk-averse game should at least make the Minnesota offense viable in 2024. Having Justin Jefferson, Jordan Addison and T.J. Hockenson around should help considerably.

The Jets got a little extra Day 3 flair to slide back one spot and take the player they would have taken at No. 10 anyway. Fashanu is a monster and could be the best blocker in the 2024 class. Everyone wins.

Jets grade: A-
Vikings grade: B+

The Vikings strike again, get an edge rusher who means they may not blitz 50 percent of the time in 2024

Jacksonville Jaguars send: 17th overall pick (EDGE Dallas Turner)
Minnesota Vikings send: 23rd overall pick (WR Brian Thomas Jr.), 2024 fifth round pick (167th overall), 2025 third round pick, 2025 fifth round pick

Belichick trade value analysis: The Jaguars got excess draft value of 30 points, equivalent to the 109th overall pick.
Johnson trade value analysis: The Jaguars got excess draft value of 71.9 points, equivalent to the 111th overall pick.

Pundits across the board expected Turner to be selected in the first 10 picks, notably by an Atlanta Falcons team with a definitive need at edge rusher. But Atlanta went with Michael Penix Jr. (… huh) and Turner slid out of the first half of the first round. That made him irresistable to the Vikings, whose blitz-heavy defense spammed extra rushers and forced an overtaxed secondary into entirely too much single coverage situations.

Turner has the chops to fix that, generating pressure from four- or five-man sets. While Minnesota gave up extra value in the deal, it’s not something the team will feel this spring, The Vikings are intent on building a competitive team around J.J. McCarthy, and Turner’s arrival will help them win games even when the offense sputters.

The Jaguars felt they were in good shape to trade back and still be able to address a major need. Without any cornerbacks selected through 17 picks and a lull in the wide receiver market, it was a sensible call. Thomas lingered to 23 and gives Jacksonville a potential WR1 to top a useful, if unspectacular, depth chart.

The question is whether the Jags maximized their value here. There’s nothing wrong with taking a shotgun approach to the draft — it’s what the Patriots did so well for a while there — but the real impact of this deal won’t be felt until next spring.

Jaguars grade: B+
Vikings grade: B

The Cowboys do something, let the Lions overpay to land a stud cornerback

Dallas Cowboys send: 24th overall pick (CB Terrion Arnold), 2025 seventh round pick
Detroit Lions send: 29th overall pick, 2024 third round pick (73rd overall)

Belichick trade value analysis: The Cowboys got excess draft value of 29 points, equivalent to the 110th overall pick.
Johnson trade value analysis: The Cowboys got excess draft value of 124 points, equivalent to the 94th overall pick.

The Lions overpaid here. They did so for a good reason; their secondary was a mess and the chance to take arguably 2024’s top cornerback prospect was suddenly a possibility. So Detroit gave up a top 80 pick to move up five spots, but did so for a blue chip player at a premium position.

There’s logic to that, even if the value stinks. Arnold is a first-team All-American who had five interceptions and 17 passes defensed at Alabama last season. He’s explosive and capable of playing inside and out, giving him the skills to be a true island defender in the NFL.

A trade back may not have been the move Cowboys fans wanted, but it’s a smart one. Dallas hemhorraged talent this offseason as a salary cap crunch left the team to sit and watch as the rest of the NFL added veteran talent. Adding a bonus third round pick — one in the first half of the round, even — is great value for a team that badly needed it. And plenty of great players will still be on the board at No. 29.

Cowboys grade: A-
Lions grade: B

The Chiefs make a modest move to land their new Tyreek Hill

Buffalo Bills send: 28th overall pick (WR Xavier Worthy), 2024 fourth round pick (133rd overall) 2024 seventh round pick (248th overall)
Kansas City Chiefs send: 32nd overall pick, 2024 third round pick (95th overall), 2024 seventh round pick (221st overall)

Belichick trade value analysis: This trade is perfectly balanced, with each team giving up 240 points worth of draft value.
Johnson trade value analysis: The Bills got excess draft value of 12.5 points, equivalent to the 197th overall pick.

The Chiefs didn’t have a reliable deep threat either of the last two years and still won back-to-back Super Bowls. Now they get the fastest runner in modern combine history in Worthy, who ran the 40-yard dash in 4.21 seconds and is, to put it lightly, quick.

Is he complete enough as a receiver to lift the Chiefs offense? Maybe not, but he doesn’t necessarily have to be. Patrick Mahomes’ average target distance fell to a career low 6.5 yards last season. If Worthy can light it up for a few deep targets per game it wouldn’t just create big gains but provide the breathing room the rest of the offense needs to thrive.

It’s easy to drag the Bills for trading back without picking up too much in return, but Worthy wasn’t a fit for their offense that badly needs a bigger, more versatile wideout than the Texas star. Of course, giving the team that’s been a thorn in their side in the playoffs the added dimension the Chiefs need while extracting minimal value in return adds salt to that wound. It’s not great, no.

Bills grade: C
Chiefs grade: B

The Bills trade back *again* so someone else can draft a wideout

Buffalo Bills send: 32nd overall pick (WR Xavier Legette), 2024 sixth round pick (200th overall)
Carolina Panthers send: 33rd overall pick, 2024 fifth round pick (141st overall)

Belichick trade value analysis: The Bills got excess draft value of 5 points, equivalent to the 195th overall pick.
Johnson trade value analysis: The Bills got excess draft value of 14.1 points, equivalent to the 193rd overall pick.

Buffalo has plenty of holes to fill after shedding talent this offseason amidst a veteran lineup and salary crunch. The Bills also had a massive need at wideout, so trading back twice for minimal value while other teams drain the pool of talent at receiver is… not ideal.

On the plus side, trading into the first pick of the second round gives the team an extra 20 hours of fielding trade offers and other potential moves backward as more wideouts roll off the board. And if there’s no receiver to be found there are several solid defensive backs who’d be proper picks on Day 2.

Did Carolina really have to trade up to make this happen? Legette is big and fast, so there’s some A.J. Brown/DK Metcalf potential to his game. But he was also largely considered a Day 2 selection. And having the first pick of the second round is a luxury that allows you a full day of fielding trades from increasingly desperate teams looking to pull from a dwindling pool of instant impact rookies.

Was Legette, a player with exactly one season in five spent at South Carolina with more than 167 receiving yards, worth it? We’ll see.

Bills grade: C
Panthers grade: C-

Dallas Turner Minnesota Vikings jersey: How to buy Dallas Turner NFL jersey

All aboard the Dallas hype train?! Order your 2024 #Vikings Dallas Turner jersey now:

With the No. 17 pick in the 2024 NFL Draft the Minnesota Vikings have selected Dallas Turner.

Turner, a linebacker out of Alabama, will look to help the Vikings improve on last season’s run which ended with a 7-10 regular season record.

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Fans can get a glimpse into their team’s future by having their first look at Dallas Turner’s new NFL jersey right here:

Dallas Turner Minnesota Vikings jersey
Dallas Turner Minnesota Vikings jersey (Fanatics)

The NFL is expected to release the 2024 schedule in May, but we know that Vikes fans can look forward to the first matchup of the season, whoever the foe is. It will be the first outing for the next era of Vikings football with Dallas Turner in their lineup.

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