Report: Vikings wanted to trade up and draft Bryce Young
The quarterback the Minnesota Vikings wanted in the NFL Draft was Bryce Young, according to NFL Network's Tom Pelissero.
The Minnesotan who works for NFL Network broke the news Tuesday during an appearance on The Pat McAfee Show, saying most rumors about the Vikings and quarterbacks going into the draft were "just completely wrong," but the idea that they could trade up into the top five was very real.
"They were making calls about moving up very high in the draft. My understanding is that was for one player and that was for Bryce Young, who ended up going No. 1. And so there went any possibility for Minnesota to go get him. They knew he wasn't going to be a Minnesota Viking, so the focus really turned toward getting another weapon for the offense in the draft," he said.
As for Kirk Cousins's future in Minnesota, the ball is still up in the air.
"With Cousins, there were contract talks about an extension. It's just, last year Kirk Cousins signed a one-year extension which gave the Vikings flexibility to do exactly what they did, which was explore their options, decide that Kirk Cousins right now is their best option and roll with him in 2023. So Kirk was never going to take another short-term type of deal, another one-year extension. It just didn't make a lot of sense," said Pelissero.
Meanwhile, Pelissero said the Vikings have no real sense of urgency to make decisions on Danielle Hunter, Za'Darius Smith and Dalvin Cook. He said he thinks Smith ultimately "ends of playing some place else," but the Vikings won't just cut him or give him up easily in a trade.
He said "ideally a contract extension" will develop for Hunter, while Cook's future remains unknown just as it has for a couple of months.
