The Athletic's QB Predictions For Vikings Are a Nightmare

Two former Jets draft busts? That's not exactly an inspiring duo.

Author:
Will Ragatz
Publish date:
Mar 7, 2024 1:59 PM EST

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Should the Vikings build their 2024 quarterback room out of New York Jets draft busts? That's what Zack Rosenblatt of The Athletic sees happening in his recent article of QB predictions for all 32 teams this year.

Rosenblatt thinks Kirk Cousins is headed to Atlanta, which is looking more and more likely by the day. But instead of the Vikings adding a decent veteran free agent and drafting a rookie, he's got them swinging for post-hype upside on a pair of former top-three picks who didn't pan out. Rosenblatt's picks for the Vikings are signing Sam Darnold and trading for Zach Wilson.

Let’s get wild. If the Vikings lose Cousins, their top target will be (Baker) Mayfield. But if Mayfield doesn’t hit free agency, Minnesota might try to take a flier on a young option with some upside. Darnold has never been in particularly winning situations as a starter but no one has ever questioned his arm talent. After a year in Kyle Shanahan’s system, he might be ready for another shot at starting — though it’s possible Justin Jefferson (desiring a new contract) would not be thrilled with this arrangement.
In 2021, some with the Jets wanted to keep Darnold and draft Wilson and now the Vikings have the chance to play out that dream. Wilson is on his way out in New York but in the right environment, with the right coaching, he still has the talent to, at worst, be a high-end backup. Minnesota is a good fit.

While acknowledging that Minnesota's options might not be great this offseason without Cousins, this is about as uninspiring as it could possibly get. They'd be taking two fliers on players who have never proven to be effective NFL quarterbacks. Darnold, who I suppose would start in this situation, is 21-35 in his career with a 78.3 passer rating. Wilson is 12-21 with a 73.2 rating. Getting drafted by the Jets probably wasn't idea for either player, but it's also hard to imagine them succeeding somewhere else.

If this happened, the best quarterback on the Vikings' roster would probably still be Nick Mullens (career passer rating: 88.1). And we saw how that turned out late last season.

Darnold, the 3rd overall pick in 2018, is potentially intriguing as a flier after spending last year as a backup with the 49ers. Maybe Kevin O'Connell's coaching and the Vikings' offensive environment could prop him up and give him a chance to resurrect his career.

But if you're going to sign Darnold, you also need to add a high-floor option (for example, a veteran like Jacoby Brissett) or any of the top-six quarterbacks in this year's draft. The other half of the equation can't be trading for Wilson, the No. 2 overall pick in 2021 who has been abysmal at the NFL level. The most likely outcome of this hypothetical duo would be nothing but awful QB play and all kinds of frustration from Justin Jefferson.

Taking a flier on someone like Darnold or Wilson, as part of a larger plan at QB, could be understandable. You just can't make the whole plane out of fliers.

For the record, Rosenblatt has J.J. McCarthy going sixth overall to the Giants. You can see the rest of his predictions here.