The Minnesota Vikings have a handful of hours left to find a QB until the 4 pm ET trade deadline on Nov. 10. It’s become clear that neither Carson Wentz nor Kyler Murray is the answer for the Vikings.
Minnesota’s 23-6 loss in Week 9 to the Buffalo Bills on Nov. 9 exposed that if the Vikings have championship aspirations, they can’t stay with the status quo with Murray and Wentz.
In the loss to Buffalo, Wentz was awful filling in for the injured Murray as the veteran QB went 8-for-25 on his pass attempts for 81 passing yards, zero touchdowns, two interceptions, and a passer rating of 8.9. Furthermore, Wentz was eventually replaced by backup QB Max Brosmer.
With the Vikings now likely working the phones to find a QB, WFAN’s Tommy Lugauer believes that Minnesota should be calling the New York Jets over Geno Smith.
“If I’m the Jets, though, I would trade Geno Smith,” Lugauer said in a Nov. 10 video from WFAN. “I would call up the Vikings right now and say, ‘All right, we’re going to give you Geno Smith. What do you want to give us back?’ Carson Wentz stinks. Kyler Murray stinks.
“The quarterback situation in Minnesota, remind me if this sounds familiar, is a mess. Geno Smith has had a really good year. It’s not his fault the Jets stink. You can trade him when his value is high. You can maybe get a third-round pick.”
Jets Could Get Day 2 Pick Out of Minnesota for Geno Smith
Smith would be a pretty good solution for the Vikings, and there’s the connection to general manager Nolan Teasley, who was with the veteran QB during their time with the Seattle Seahawks. Moreover, Smith is producing on a bad Jets team.
This season in New York, Smith has a passer rating of 100.5 with 2,078 yards, 12 touchdowns, and three interceptions in nine games, per StatMuse. As a result, Lugauer sees this scenario as a win-win, with the Jets potentially getting a Day 2 pick from a desperate Vikings team.
“The Cardinals got a fourth-round pick for Jacoby Brissett,” Lugauer added. “So maybe you get a third-round pick from Minnesota, who’s very desperate. Their season is hanging by a thread here when you consider their division and the fact that they have no quarterbacks. They’re beyond desperate to find some type of answer at that position, and Geno Smith can give you something.
“Justin Jefferson is clearly frustrated. He’ll probably ask for a trade at some point. So if you can make Jefferson happy and put a guy out there like Geno Smith who can sling it and get the ball to his receivers, which Carson Wentz can’t do and Kyler Murray can’t do, you have an opportunity to win.”
Vikings Urged to Pursue Browns’ Shedeur Sanders
Meanwhile, NFL insider Josina Anderson believes Teasley should be calling the Cleveland Browns for Shedeur Sanders.
“[The] Vikings will be on the [phone] at sunrise [on Nov. 10],” Anderson wrote on X on Nov. 9. “If you ask me, they should be on the phone with Browns GM Andrew Berry. The Raiders and 49ers should not give up their options at QB without analyzing their depth at the position.
“It makes no sense for the Jets to decline the trades they have, then deal their QB. The Colts‘ option should stay in Indy. I think the Vikings’ WRs need Shedeur Sanders.”
Sanders started in the Week 9 loss to the New Orleans Saints, where he went 19-for-31 on his pass attempts for 297 passing yards, two touchdowns, and a passer rating of 114.6.
Vikings Get Clear Trade Deadline Message on Jets QB Geno Smith