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As i watch the playoffs the more I’ve realized the idea of a “competitive rebuild” is literally impossible at this point. The Packers are so young and good. The Lions are a legit contender and are not going anywhere. The Bears have 3 picks in the top 75, 2 in the top 10 and won 4 of their last 6 games.
The Vikings IMO have 2 choices, all-in compete or completely rebuild. That decision begins and ends with Cousins. Either they sign him and draft to compete or they let him walk and the tank is on from game 1 of next season.
If Cousins walks, you decide if either Caleb Williams or Drake Maye are worth moving all in for as your franchise QBOTF. If you think either of those QB's are Stroud/Burrow/Lawrence level where you KNOW you can build around them (and QUICKLY), you sell the farm draft pick-wise and go get em. Then you use that extra money to lock up Jefferson and Hunter, because you assume you're a only a year or two out from competing with your new QB.
If you decide that neither Maye nor Williams are THE guy, you nuke the roster. That means trading Jefferson for absolutely as much as you can possibly get for him. He's literally the only piece we can flip for all the gold in the kingdom. He's 25 and he's worthless to a team starting a dog shit journeyman while searching for a QBOTF. You stay at 11, draft the best player available regardless of position, spend some of what you get for Jefferson, and draft a project QB that may or may not work out. Then you trot Josh Dobbs or Nick Mullens out there and stink up the joint in 2024. 2-3 wins gets us a Top 3 pick and we'll have the extra Jefferson picks to spend.
Choose your adventure Vikings
For the record, i dont feel like the third scenario would acceptable to the Wilf's. I think they'd be willing to go through some minor growing pains with someone drafted to absolutely be the franchise guy, but not someone who's a "project" or "might work out".
I think it's going to come down to whether or not this front office is first willing to put their jobs in the hands of one of the top QB's this year, and secondly whether or not they can pull a deal off.
If the answer to either of those questions is no, then #8 is the only option left.
I believe all the chatter that the Vikings tried HARD to move -up last year.
It takes 2 to tango and if they Vikings dont find a trade partner willing? There will be no top 3 qb.
I dont see it happening myself.
They''ll try to sign Cousins (within the parameters of the financial rules they set for themselves). In that case, they can go for someone in that next tier 2 of qb rooks - if they like any of em.
Keep the draft choices and try to shore-up the rushing game and defense.
Quote: @purplefaithful said:
I believe all the chatter that the Vikings tried HARD to move -up last year.
It takes 2 to tango and if they Vikings dont find a trade partner willing? There will be no top 3 qb.
I dont see it happening myself.
They''ll try to sign Cousins (within the parameters of the financial rules they set for themselves). In that case, they can go for someone in that next tier 2 of qb rooks - if they like any of em.
Keep the draft choices and try to shore-up the rushing game and defense.
I actually believe this as well. If a deal is done to move up this year, I believe that it will have to be completed before the draft as opposed to draft night.
The problem is the looming new league year puts them at a disadvantage. Teams know that Minnesota needs to get Kirk re-signed before free agency starts if they intend to do so. All teams have to do is drag out negotiations until after free agency begins to drive up the price of Minnesota moving up because their backs will be against the wall.
Any way you look at it, Minnesota will be negotiating from a place of weakness if a move up is coveted.
Quote: @CFIAvike said:
@ purplefaithful said:
I believe all the chatter that the Vikings tried HARD to move -up last year.
It takes 2 to tango and if they Vikings dont find a trade partner willing? There will be no top 3 qb.
I dont see it happening myself.
They''ll try to sign Cousins (within the parameters of the financial rules they set for themselves). In that case, they can go for someone in that next tier 2 of qb rooks - if they like any of em.
Keep the draft choices and try to shore-up the rushing game and defense.
I actually believe this as well. If a deal is done to move up this year, I believe that it will have to be completed before the draft as opposed to draft night.
The problem is the looming new league year puts them at a disadvantage. Teams know that Minnesota needs to get Kirk re-signed before free agency starts if they intend to do so. All teams have to do is drag out negotiations until after free agency begins to drive up the price of Minnesota moving up because their backs will be against the wall.
Any way you look at it, Minnesota will be negotiating from a place of weakness if a move up is coveted.
I would say anybody trying to move up into the top few picks is coming from a position of weakness, you dont give up the kind of assets a move like that takes if you dont have a weakness you are targeting to fill.
Well neither Green Bay nor Detroit are world beaters. But Minnesota needs to get their franchise moving forward with a new QB, whether they play now or in a year or two.
I don’t think 1-3 are for sale at any price. Im assuming the top 3 go 1-3. So we should resign Cousins.
The Vikings should draft D with 11 and try to move into the bottom of the 1st with this year and next years 2 for McCarthy.
Both Green Bay and Detroit are improved, but this is a very weak NFC class. The Bucs and Baker Mayfield? C'mon. Jared Goff? Jordan Love and a Packer team whose receivers might be even worse than the Chiefs? Even the 49ers look very beatable this year.
I agree completely with your 2nd paragraph. They either sign Cousins and go for it. Or they don't and tear it all up. If you don't sign Cousins, there's really no point in signing Hunter. Or anyone else for that matter.
Personally, I find it impossible to believe that a team with JJ, Addison, Hock, two elite tackles and an improving defense will choose to let one of the best QBs in the NFL sign elsewhere and go on one of those never-ending rebuilds, but ya never know.
I don't know what a trade up scenario that works would be. Chicago, Washington and New England could easily all take QBs, which means you are probably moving up and overpaying for a guy such as Penix who would probably be an overpay even in the #11 slot where we are.
Teams have been overdrafting QBs for years now due to the way the game and contracts have evolved and when that happens your franchise just gets set back even more.
Alternatively, running it back with Kirk and needing to pay him, Jefferson, Darrisaw, Hunter, and somehow upgrade a defense that is weak at every position seems unlikely to work imo. I don't even know if Kirk will come back as there might be a situation out there where the money and the chance at a ring looks better.
To me all of that plus the other teams in the North trending up means this franchise is between a rock and a hard place. The g.m.'s talent acquisition record is middling at best, the coach motivates well but thinks he can call an offense when he clearly cannot, and his ability to develop a QB is a total question mark to me at this point.
So maybe it will all just work out somehow, or maybe it's a disaster in the making.
Quote: @comet52 said:
I don't know what a trade up scenario that works would be. Chicago, Washington and New England could easily all take QBs, which means you are probably moving up and overpaying for a guy such as Penix who would probably be an overpay even in the #11 slot where we are.
Teams have been overdrafting QBs for years now due to the way the game and contracts have evolved and when that happens your franchise just gets set back even more.
Alternatively, running it back with Kirk and needing to pay him, Jefferson, Darrisaw, Hunter, and somehow upgrade a defense that is weak at every position seems unlikely to work imo. I don't even know if Kirk will come back as there might be a situation out there where the money and the chance at a ring looks better.
To me all of that plus the other teams in the North trending up means this franchise is between a rock and a hard place. The g.m.'s talent acquisition record is middling at best, the coach motivates well but thinks he can call an offense when he clearly cannot, and his ability to develop a QB is a total question mark to me at this point.
So maybe it will all just work out somehow, or maybe it's a disaster in the making.
I agree with most of what's in this thread but I'll push back on the bold. Whiffing on a QB is about the same as whiffing on any other first round pick. It happens every year to about half the teams drafting in round 1. It only sets you back if you marry yourself to said QB longer than necessary when all evidence is telling you he's probably not the guy. Think Trubisky in Chicago or Daniel Jones in NYG.
Other teams have realized their mistake early and moved on (ARI with Rosen, SF with Lance, WAS with Haskins). Sure the franchise was set back by a season or two but whiffing on QB doesn't automatically mean 5 years of futility.
I do agree that the Vikings have two options- re-sign Kirk or rebuild. The same two options we've had the past two seasons. Trying to sign Kirk while also drafting a QB in the first does not make sense to me as I've said many times, unless the plan is for Kirk to only be here one more year. Frankly, I doubt he'll go for that and I don't blame him. So therefore we need to commit to 2-3 more years of Kirk and draft defense/OL, or roll with a kid. I lean to the latter.
JJ is still so young that I think you lock him up regardless of the plan. I understand the temptation to trade him for a ransom but I just love watching him play so much that for me he's pretty much untouchable. If he tells the team, "Kirk for 3 years or I want out" well then that's another story. But we have no reason to think that's the case.
Vikings absolutely put themselves into a bad spot by neglecting the QB position behind Kirk for a long time. It might not have been an either/or scenario when Kirk was younger but now with his age and injury I think it's gotta either be all in for one last voyage, or all in with a new Captain.
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