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With Jameis Winston moving on from Tampa Bay, every QB taken in the 2015 NFL Draft has moved on from the team that chose them.
Jameis Winston won’t be with the Tampa Bay Bucs anymore. The No. 1 overall pick in 2015 has been inconsistent and led to TB signing TB 12 — Tom Brady — in hopes of finding playoff success. How did the quarterbacks drafted in 2015 fare?
The Denver Broncos drafted Trevor Siemian out of Northwestern. He was 13-11 as a starter for the Orange Crush. Siemian wound up with the New York Jets last season and was 0-1.
It would have been fun if the Vikings mixed the quarterback rotation this offseason, but backup quarterback Sean Mannion is reportedly returning to the team.
Sean Mannion, who started the final regular season game for the Vikings and served as a backup for 2019-20, is returning to the team, according to a report.
The Star Tribune’s Ben Goessling said a source told him that Mannion will get a new deal to back up starting quarterback Kirk Cousins.
Source said the Vikings are bringing back Sean Mannion on a new deal to back up Kirk Cousins.
— Ben Goessling (@GoesslingStrib) March 18, 2020
Goessling also said it will be just a one-year deal, according to a league source.
This is a tough sign for Vikings fans who maybe wanted the team to take a backup quarterback in the NFL Draft. That can still happen, but it seems less likely if the backup from 2019-20 is already returning.
I would have loved it if the Vikings had drafted a quarterback, but Mannion probably won’t command a huge price, and maybe Minnesota didn’t like the quarterback prospects in this draft class.
Mannion was drafted by the Rams in 2015. He signed a one-year deal with Minnesota in 2019, and became a free agent this offseason. The 2019 deal was worth $900,000, according to the Pioneer Press’ Chris Tomasson.
It will be interesting to see what the new deal will be worth. The Vikings are still strapped for cash this offseason, so I doubt it will be a huge offer.
Per Ben Goessling of the Star Tribune, Sean Mannion will be back in purple behind Kirk Cousins.
The Vikings made headlines earlier this week when they extended quarterback Kirk Cousins.
It appears as if they’ll be bringing his backup back to Minnesota as well.
Per Ben Goessling of the Star Tribune, Sean Mannion will be back in purple behind Cousins.
Source said the Vikings are bringing back Sean Mannion on a new deal to back up Kirk Cousins.
— Ben Goessling (@GoesslingStrib) March 18, 2020
Mannion started in Week 17 for the Vikings and threw for 126 yards and two interceptions against the Bears.
If Cousins gets hurt, the Vikings are likely doomed. But by all accounts, Mannion is a good guy to have in the quarterbacks room and is well-respected on the team.
Mannion, 27, was a third-round pick by the Rams in 2015.
We don’t know the specifics of his contract yet, but it’s probably safe to guess it’s around what he got paid last season. Prior to the 2019 season, Mannion signed a 1-year, $895,000 deal.
The Jets need a backup quarterback behind Sam Darnold who can perform in a pinch – these aren’t those quarterbacks.
Joe Douglas knows he needs to fill the holes on the Jets roster. The offensive line, cornerback, pass rush and wide receiver are the obvious gaps, but he should also target finding a good, veteran backup quarterback for Sam Darnold.
We talked about the top backups the Jets should target, but there are also a lot of quarterbacks they should avoid. If the Jets want to make sure the offense operates at a high level should Darnold go down with injury, they need to find someone who is a mix of experienced, proficient and cheap. They won’t be able to find someone that’s all three, but they definitely can’t afford to sign someone who isn’t either experienced or proficient.
Here are the top four backup quarterbacks the Jets shouldn’t sign.
Mariota is an intriguing option as a player but wouldn’t fit well with the Jets and Adam Gase, who prefers pocket-passers over mobile quarterbacks. Mariota can do both, but Gase needs someone who could step up at a moment’s notice and there’s no real indication Mariota could do that without understanding the offense.
Another problem with Mariota is his inability to avoid sacks. He was sacked on 13.5 percent of passing attempts in 2019 for the Titans despite only playing in seven games. His backup and eventual replacement, Ryan Tannehill, was sacked on 9.8 percent of passing attempts.
Mariota does have promise, though, which could be a negative thing as a Jets backup. For one, he’d likely command a salary the Jets shouldn’t spend on a backup. For another, Gase can’t afford to roster a backup that the fans could clamor for if Darnold has another disappointing game. It could zap his confidence and hinder the team’s long-term success.
with Sean Mannion set to be an unrestricted free agent, who could the Vikings have back-up Cousins in 2020?
The Vikings have their starting quarterback, at least for another season, in Kirk Cousins.
But with Sean Mannion set to be an unrestricted free agent, who could the Vikings have back-up Cousins in 2020?
Here are three options:
Bring him back. If Cousins gets hurt, the Vikings are probably doomed no matter what. Why not bring back a guy who was liked in the quarterbacks room and can help Cousins break down opposing defenses?
Mannion made under $1 million last season. While there are other backup candidates such as Colt McCoy, Case Keenum and Chase Daniel on the market, they will go for nearly more than double that. The cash-strapped Vikings can’t afford that.
This would probably be the choice for most Vikings fans.
With a mid to late-round pick, why not take a flier on a player who could become the quarterback of the future and learn from Cousins as a backup for a season (or more)?
Options could include guys like Jacob Eason, Anthony Gordon, Josh Love or Jalen Hurts.
Browning spent last season on the team’s practice squad. The team already signed him to a future contract, so the Vikings have the rights to him.
If Browning would happen to earn the backup spot (which seems unlikely), he would likely have to beat out a player like Mannion during training camp and preseason.
The Vikings have a decision as far as their backup quarterback is concerned.
The Vikings have just one player set to be a free agent this offseason at quarterback.
Quarterback Kirk Cousins still has one year and $31 million left on his contract. And recently, the Vikings signed second-year player Jake Browning to a futures deal.
Backup quarterback Sean Mannion, however, will be a free agent after signing a one-year, $895,000 deal with the team last offseason.
Will Mannion return?
By all accounts, it seemed like the team liked Mannion as a guy in the quarterbacks room and if he signs for less than $1 million again, that is right up the Vikings’ alley considering they currently are in the negative for cap space in 2020.
Mannion started Week 17 and was underwhelming, throwing for 126 yards and two interceptions against the Bears in a loss. It’s worth noting that he didn’t have the rest of the offensive starters around him.
There are better options for backup as far as talent, but the Vikings’ budget may not allow that.
The Week 17 contest between the Vikings and Bears didn’t mean anything as far as the playoffs were concerned.
The Week 17 contest between the Vikings and Bears didn’t mean anything as far as the playoffs were concerned. Minnesota was locked in as the sixth seed, while Chicago had already been eliminated from the playoffs.
That didn’t stop it from being a fun and competitive game, though. The Vikings rested nearly all their starters, including Kirk Cousins, and fell 21-19 on a last-second kick from Chicago’s Eddie Pineiro.
Sean Mannion got the start for the Vikings and was mostly unremarkable, throwing for just 126 yards to go with two interceptions (although, one was off the hands of Mike Boone).
Boone was solid for the Vikings, rushing for 148 yards and a touchdown. He was responsible for Mannion’s only interception and also fumbled early in the game.
Kicker Dan Bailey drilled all four of his field-goal attempts and will have a nice little $1 million bonus headed his way.
The Vikings end the 2019 season with a 10-6 record and will play on the road in the wild card round. We’re just not sure who they’ll face yet.
After failing to force a turnover in the previous four games, the Bears defense has forced two in the first quarter against the Vikings.
After failing to mount a takeaway in their previous four games, the Bears defense had two in the first quarter against the Vikings.
Things didn’t look good for the Bears defense on the Vikings’ opening possession when third-string running back Mike Boone cranked off a 59-yard run on the first play of the series.
With the Vikings on Chicago’s 16 yard-line, backup quarterback Sean Mannion tossed the ball to Boone, which was bobbled and fumbled, It was recovered by defensive tackle Bilal Nichols.
Then on Minnesota’s second possession, Mannion was picked off by linebacker Kevin Pierre-Louis on the Vikings’ 39-yard line.
Take it away, take it away, take it away now!@MrHyde_24 | #CHIvsMIN pic.twitter.com/mwtBrTEWLj
— Chicago Bears (@ChicagoBears) December 29, 2019
The Bears offense has only managed two Eddy Pineiro field goals off those takeaways and lead the Vikings 6-0 in the second quarter.
[lawrence-related id=434395,434381,434298,434366,434341]
Mannion’s last, and only, start came in 2017 in Week 17 against the 49ers.
The Vikings are likely going to sit the majority of their starters in Sunday’s Week 17 game against the Bears with the sixth seed already guaranteed for them.
That means that we’re probably looking at the second-career start for backup quarterback Sean Mannion.
Mannion’s last start came in 2017 in Week 17 against the 49ers. In the 34-13 loss, Mannion threw for 169 yards, zero touchdowns and zero interceptions. He did fumble once.
He will have his hands full against a talented Bears defense that has certainly had the number of Kirk Cousins over the last two seasons.
This is an audition of sorts for Mannion, who only signed a one-year deal with the Vikings last offseason.
If Mannion has himself a solid game, he’ll do himself some favors in free agency this offseason. If not, he’ll likely find himself in the same position he was in last season where he’s in competition for a backup spot.
In the 23-10 loss, Cousins threw for 122 yards, one touchdown and one interception while completing just 51 percent of his passes.
Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins didn’t have his best game on Monday Night Football in Week 16 against the Packers.
In the 23-10 loss, Cousins threw for 122 yards, one touchdown and one interception while completing just 51 percent of his passes.
With that dud of a game, Cousins moved from sixth to eighth in NFL.com’s quarterback rankings.
While Cousins is now 0-9 on MNF and he’s had trouble beating good teams, let’s not lose sight of the fact that Cousins has had one of the best seasons of his career in 2019, throwing for 3,603 yards, 26 touchdowns and six interceptions while completing 69.1 percent of his passes.
That will likely be Cousins’ final season numbers. The Vikings are already have the sixth seed locked up in the NFC and their Week 17 matchup against the Bears means nothing to the standings. You can probably expect Sean Mannion to start.
