Vikings Linked to Trade for Familiar $180 Million QB

The Minnesota Vikings appear to have both their QB of the future as well as their starter in 2025 in second-year signal caller J.J. McCarthy. 

But they still don't have a backup outside of Brett Rypien, and that isn't likely to remain the case for long. Minnesota needs at least one more QB on the roster heading into training camp and, in all likelihood, will add two as the spring progresses into summer, as most squads head into the preseason with four passers on the roster. 

The priority addition, though, is almost certainly going to be an established veteran who can fill in for McCarthy in a pinch while also offering him some guidance as he navigates an NFL regular season for the first time. 

Adam Schefter of ESPN reported on Monday, April 21, that former Vikings starter Kirk Cousins is very much in the mix to assume that role, as the Atlanta Falcons look to deal their former starter to whom they pledged $180 million over four years just last offseason ($100 million guaranteed).

Atlanta has asked for any acquiring team to pay $20 million of the $37.5 million worth of guarantees left on Cousins' contract. To date, no team has been willing to do that, and no team is expected to be willing to.

There is a feeling around the league that a team, whether it is the Vikings or Steelers, might be willing to pay down roughly $10 million. How much any team would be willing to pay also would influence the compensation it gives up. The higher the payment, the lower the draft compensation; the lower the payment, the higher the draft compensation.

Minnesota only owns four picks in the upcoming draft as of Monday, which may position them better than Pittsburgh in a deal for Cousins, as the Vikings would have to pay more of his salary based on Schefter's suggested trade paradigm. 

However, Cousins is looking for a chance to start in his age-37 season, and that will only happen in Minnesota if McCarthy falls flat in training camp and/or suffers another injury like the knee issue that robbed him of his entire rookie campaign. 

That Cousins holds a no-trade clause makes those circumstances and the QB's desires vastly more relevant to any potential deal than they would be otherwise.