The Minnesota Vikings are willing to embrace the risk attached to Drake Maye.
ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported on April 15 that Maye, who has seen some polarizing reviews due to some inconsistencies as a thrower, is the Vikings’ “preference” ahead of the draft.
“I think Drake Maye is the leader in the clubhouse, but it all depends on the team,” Schefter said on Sports Center. “If Minnesota were to find a way to go up to No. 3, my sense is Drake Maye is the preference.”
The Vikings have taken a long look at several prospects throughout the pre-draft process. Arguably, no team has more insight on Maye than the Vikings, who hired Josh McCown as their quarterbacks coach. McCown coached Maye in high school and has followed his career closely.
That insight is vital for the Vikings to understand what amount of draft capital they’re willing to give up for Maye, whose arm talent gives him the highest ceiling of any quarterback in the draft but inconsistency has made him the most polarizing prospect of the top-four quarterbacks in this year’s draft.
Maye is the consensus No. 2 quarterback in this year’s class behind Caleb Williams but has also received the most flak in the media. Merrill Hoge was the lead bell-ringer, saying Maye “is the kind of player that will get you fired.”
Per @AdamSchefter, Drake Maye is the “preference” for the #Vikings 👀
“I think Drake Maye is the leader in the clubhouse, but it all depends on the team. If Minnesota were to find a way to go up to 3, my sense is Drake Maye is the preference.”
Former Vikings QB, ‘The QB School’ Makes Final Call on Drake Maye
GettyDrake Maye #10 of the North Carolina Tar Heels.
Former Vikings quarterback J.T. O’Sullivan, who launched his digital platform “The QB School” to provide insight into quarterback play analysis, offered his quarterback rankings for this year’s draft class.
O’Sullivan spent the first six minutes of the video stating his parameter, which was merely which quarterbacks are most polished and NFL-ready without any consideration of their development, character or the other intangibles that are unknown until they enter the league.
Here’s his rankings of the top-four quarterback prospects:
No. 1: Caleb Williams
No. 2: Jayden Daniels
No. 3: J.J. McCarthy
No. 4: Drake Maye
O’Sullivan didn’t have many slights on Maye other than the ball control and at times errant plays. He gave J.J. McCarthy the edge over Maye due to his level of consistency and polish at this stage of their careers, likening McCarthy to San Francisco 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy.
Meanwhile, Maye continues to garner a wide net of NFL comparisons, with the ceiling being Josh Allen and the floor Blake Bortles.
“If he can become a consistent guy who could also make the splash plays he could be very easily the best guy coming out of this class,” O’Sullivan said. “Is he as consistent as these guys coming out right now? He’s not.”
Vikings ‘In Love’ With Multiple QBs Ahead of NFL Draft
GettyKwesi Adofo-Mensah (R) and Kevin O’Connell of the Minnesota Vikings.
While Maye could be the preference for the Vikings, general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah said in a pre-draft news conference that they’re “in love” with many prospects in this year’s draft.
“There are multiple guys that we are in love with,” Adofo-Mensah said, per the Star Tribune. “But there’s also other guys that we are in love with … if we get them at a certain value.”
Schefter’s report signals the Vikings are willing to swing big on an upside quarterback like Maye.
However, if they could find a higher-floor quarterback and not compromise future draft capital to land them, that could be a path the Vikings venture down come draft day.
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Vikings Reach Final Verdict on Polarizing QB Drake Maye, Insider Reveals