Kevin O'Connell talks Vikings' backup QB options, NFL draft approach

The Vikings have been patient about adding a backup quarterback, but Kevin O'Connell doesn't seem concerned about the plan at that spot.

Dec 16, 2024; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Minnesota Vikings head coach Kevin O'Connell looks on before the game against the Chicago Bears at U.S. Bank Stadium. | Jeffrey Becker-Imagn Images

Speaking to reporters on Monday, which marked the first day of the Vikings' offseason program, head coach Kevin O'Connell was asked about the team's plan at backup quarterback. Minnesota hasn't made any sort of addition at that position this offseason after watching Sam Darnold, Daniel Jones, and Nick Mullens sign elsewhere in free agency. But despite the plan being unclear to those on the outside, O'Connell didn't seem very worried about the options that are out there.

"We’ve been patient and evaluated a lot of different ways that we can potentially do that," he said. "There’s potential trades and free agency and still the draft. We’re going through a process of just figuring out who is the player we want to solidify that room with, knowing that J.J. [McCarthy] and Brett [Rypien] are here working, starting today, and eventually we'll complete that room out and still have a competitive situation in there. We've got a pretty detailed plan for how we want to go about it. When that happens, the timing of it remains to be seen."

The obvious assumption is that the Vikings are waiting until after the draft for multiple reasons. If they were to sign someone like Carson Wentz — the most notable non-Aaron Rodgers free agent still on the market — they wouldn't be risking impacting the compensatory pick formula after the draft. (They could also sign Ryan Tannehill, who was never going to impact comp picks because he didn't play last year). Additionally, the draft could bring some clarity to various quarterback situations across the league, which could have an impact on which backups might be available via trade.

The two names that have come up as potential Vikings QB trade targets are the Seahawks' Sam Howell and the Raiders' Aidan O'Connell, but there could be all kinds of other possibilities that come out of seemingly nowhere. The one thing we know for sure is that at some point this spring, O'Connell and company will be adding a veteran quarterback to join J.J. McCarthy and Brett Rypien. Maybe that happens as soon as next week.

O'Connell on Vikings' draft approach

The big event of the week for the Vikings isn't the start of the offseason program, it's the NFL draft, which runs from Thursday through Saturday. They've been preparing for this moment for a long time, and despite having a league-low four picks, they've done their due diligence on this class as if they have more selections than they do. That approach, O'Connell said, should allow them to feel very confident in their board whenever their picks do come up.

"I think we've gone about the process as if we have much more than four picks," he said. "It certainly feels like it, and I'm sure it'll really feel like it on Thursday and Friday and Saturday when we're recognizing a lot of these names that are getting selected. But at the same time, when our picks come up, we should have a really, really good feel for the players in those areas and have done a lot of work on the players that we’ll be adding to the team."

The reason why the Vikings have so few picks traces back to a couple moves they made that resulted in the Dallas Turner selection in last year's draft. Knowing that they didn't have a ton of draft capital to work with, and that they have the benefit of a starting quarterback a rookie contract, they went out and addressed their needs in free agency last month. They added interior offensive linemen, interior defensive linemen, cornerbacks, and more. They even traded for another starting-caliber running back. Doing so has helped put the Vikings in a position where they feel like they have a lot of different options in this draft.

"Looking at what we did in free agency, I truly do feel like we have a roster that really — I don't know if we're gonna be on the clock at any one of those particular four picks and think we need to do anything. But at the same time, I think where the depth of this draft is, and you're not only just drafting for 2025, you're trying to build something that sustains. And what does your depth look like at different positions? Where can you have really competitive situations that will make your team better?

"A lot of the guys we targeted (in free agency) are Minnesota Vikings, and that's across offense, defense, that's across a lot of different positions. To know that the 'target to get them to sign ratio,' we're hitting for a pretty good average right now for a lot of different reasons, a lot of different people who put in a lot of hard work and what this place has become, and players want to come play here. So now we've got a roster we feel like we can truly be selective on who we're gonna pick."

It would be surprising if the Vikings don't make at least one trade down the board to end up with more than four total selections. In terms of the players they draft and the position groups they address, there are all kinds of possibilities on the table for Kwesi Adofo-Mensah, O'Connell, and the rest of the team's leadership this weekend.