The Minnesota Vikings have little choice but to trade for a quarterback after Carson Wentz bombed against the Buffalo Bills on “Monday Night Football” in Week 9, and the best option could be to try and replicate a move that worked two years ago when the team signed Sam Darnold in free agency.
Darnold rebuilt his confidence and his value by playing behind Brock Purdy for the San Francisco 49ers. He came to Minnesota on a one-year deal worth $10 million and led the team to a 14-3 record and a playoff berth while earning the first Pro Bowl honors of his career.
And while the Vikings didn’t have to trade anything for Darnold in 2024, the opposite is true with regards to current 49ers backup Mac Jones. But even the extra cost of potentially a Day 2 pick in 2027 is something Minnesota must strongly consider after taking its second consecutive loss and gaining firsthand evidence that Wentz isn’t the answer.
The previous seven games made evident that the same is true with regards to Kyler Murray, who the Vikings signed to a one-year deal for the league minimum because the Arizona Cardinals still owed him approximately $36 million in 2026.
Mac Jones Was Successful Starter for 49ers Last Year in Place of Brock Purdy
Jones has appeared in just two games for the 49ers this season and has thrown zero passes because Purdy has been healthy and playing at a borderline MVP level. But last season, while Purdy struggled with injury issues, Jones completed nearly 70 percent of his passes for 2,151 yards, 13 TDs and six INTs across 11 games played, including eight starts (5-3).
He is in the second season of a two-year, $8.4 million contract and will become a free agent next spring if he does not sign an extension somewhere before that. He has made $23.4 million over the course of his six-year professional career.
It may be difficult for the Vikings to justify moving a second- or third-round pick for Jones on a half-year rental.
However, he is likely to provide a meaningful upgrade over both Murray and Wentz and give a team with a Super Bowl-caliber defense and special teams unit a chance to compete in what Bill Barnwell of ESPN suggested recently might be the best division in NFL history.
Mac Jones Makes More Sense as Costly Trade Acquisition if Vikings Immediately Ink Him to 1-Year Extension
Minnesota would attach less of a stigma to spending that kind of draft asset on a quarterback like Jones, a former first-round pick of the New England Patriots in 2021, if the team immediately inked him to a one-year extension on a value similar to the $10 million the Vikings paid Darnold two years ago.
That would, at the very least, solidify the QB room for the 2027 campaign with a veteran who has had some recent success. Minnesota might then consider drafting a quarterback late in Round 1 next April in what should still be a relatively deep class at the position.
This is far from a perfect solution, but when examining the other options, it quickly raises to the top of the possible options.
Vikings May Not Have Better Value Option Than QB Mac Jones at NFL Trade Deadline
The Baltimore Ravens might move on from Lamar Jackson in the offseason, but he’s out with an injury for several weeks and can’t help the Vikings now.
Meanwhile, the Los Angeles Chargers won’t trade 35-year-old pass-rusher Khalil Mack despite an 0-8 record, so they aren’t liable to move on from QB Justin Herbert even for a massive return. And he is also dealing with a potential fracture on his non-throwing hand.
The Indianapolis Colts don’t intend to trade Daniel Jones, even though he is in the first year of a two-year $88 million contract and coming off an Achilles injury while also playing poorly.
Then there is Kirk Cousins of the Las Vegas Raiders. But multiple NFL analysts have suggested that the Vikings may need to spend a first-round pick to secure him on a half-year rental at 38 years of age, which is an asinine price to pay.
Meanwhile, Shedeur Sanders of the Cleveland Browns has proven little across two pro seasons, while his teammate Dillon Gabriel has proven even less.
All that said, the Vikings clearly need a QB upgrade, and Jones is the type of strong-armed, pocket-centric passer that has worked in Kevin O’Connell’s offense before. That renders him perhaps the best option of any available given that he won’t cost a first-rounder in trade and might extend on a reasonable one-year contract for next season.
Proposed NFL Trade Sees Vikings Land $23 Million Former First-Round QB