The J.J. McCarthy narrative has basically landed him among the first five or six picks of so many 2024 NFL mock drafts.
It seems like the Michigan QB is universally loved and could even go ahead of names like Jayden Daniels. In the latest NFL mock draft from our Christian D’Andrea, he went No. 11 to the Minnesota Vikings. But in the latest mock from PFF, he’s No. 5 overall … to the Vikings, thanks to a mock trade up with the Chargers, led by McCarthy’s college coach Jim Harbaugh.
What’s the deal there? Here’s what Brad Spielberger had to say about the trade up:
Letting quarterback Kirk Cousins sign in free agency with the Atlanta Falcons had two hidden benefits for Minnesota:
-
First, the Falcons, who are slated to select at No. 8 overall in this year’s draft, will no longer look to trade up in the draft for a quarterback. Atlanta was arguably the one obvious team ahead of Minnesota in the trade-up sweepstakes, and now the Vikings are in pole position.
-
Second, the Vikings are currently slated to receive a third-round compensatory pick for Cousins in next year’s draft, as well as another for edge defender Danielle Hunter’s departure, making their own 2025 third-round pick that we included in this trade more expendable.
Minnesota signed quarterback Sam Darnold to a strong bridge deal at one year and $10 million, but we’re not buying that they’re not looking to move up in this draft. They might be on the phone at the time of this writing, for all we know.
Intriguing! Make sure to check out the latest NFL mock draft from Christian D’Andrea and the updated 2024 NFL draft order.