The Minnesota Vikings put up their best offensive performance of the season so far in Sunday’s 23-13 victory against the New Orleans Saints.
Most importantly, quarterback Kyler Murray finally started to look like the player the team envisioned him to be when he signed with the Vikings back in March, going 24/30 for 229 passing yards and 1 touchdown, adding a further 51 yards on the ground off 10 rushes.
But one game is not a season. And as Arizona Cardinals fans can attest to, Murray is anything but consistent throughout the course of the season, even at his best.
So a new trade pitch has the Vikings take an enormous swing and buy low on one of the most naturally gifted quarterbacks in football: Los Angeles Chargers QB Justin Herbert.
Justin Herbert Could Get New Fresh Start in Minnesota
Minnesota Vikings Receive: Justin Herbert, 2028 fourth round pick.
Los Angeles Chargers Receive: Kyler Murray, 2027 first round pick, 2028 first round pick, 2029 first round pick.
Justin Herbert has had a miserable start to the season in 2026. Across five games the two-time Pro Bowler has thrown for 937 passing yards with a 59.4% completion percentage, 5 touchdowns and 7 interceptions for a well-below average quarterback rating of 70.2. For reference, Herbert has never in his prior six seasons of pro football ended a year with a QBR of less than 90.
He’s also conceded 17 sacks and fumbled a whopping 6 times through the first month of the season, with the latter joint-leading the league alongside Cleveland Browns QB Deshaun Watson.
But there is no denying that Herbert is one of the more talented throwers to grace the NFL in recent times. And for a much-proclaimed quarterback whisperer like head coach Kevin O’Connell, having the opportunity to start fresh with an elite signal caller is not an opportunity that comes round often; and certainly not one that should be scorned.
Would the Chargers Trade Justin Herbert to the Vikings?
At this stage it would seem unlikely that the Chargers would want to move off their prized possession. But if the poor performances continue and head coach Jim Harbaugh gets frustrated with his QB, it is not impossible to see that he and general manager Joe Hortiz; neither of whom actually drafted or extended Herbert; could look to move off the 28-year old in favor of a new, younger quarterback prospect from the forthcoming NFL drafts.
And it is important to remember that even in his good years, the former Oregon product has consistently failed to hit the mark in the biggest moments, and despite reaching the playoffs three times has yet to win a post-season game, even though the Chargers were favored in two out of those three matchups.
More and more in recent years we have seen top quarterbacks traded in the midst of their prime, or at least whilst they are still performing at a very high level.
Matthew Stafford, Russell Wilson and Deshaun Watson were all moved for multiple draft picks and/or players, with Watson being absolutely in the middle of his peak at the time of his trade. Stafford went on to have arguably the best years of his career after being moved to LA, garnering both a Super Bowl ring and a league MVP in the half-decade since leaving the Detroit Lions.
Kyler Murray would go the other way as a cheap, temporary starting QB for the Chargers, although he would not likely be a long term solution for the franchise at the position.
This is far from a slam dunk, but another month of struggles from the team and their franchise QB – especially if Harbaugh’s seat starts to get more than a little warm – a Herbert trade could be on the horizon around the trade deadline on Nov. 10.
Vikings Trade Pitch Swaps Kyler Murray For Justin Herbert