The Minnesota Vikings entered the 2025 season with an unknown at the quarterback position, but most assumed the team would ultimately be fine. After all, head coach Kevin O’Connell proved himself to be one of the game’s best offensive minds, and who couldn’t find success playing in that scheme while throwing to Justin Jefferson?
As it turns out, the answer to that question is J.J. McCarthy. The 2024 first-round pick has been historically inefficient during his six starts and hasn’t been able to consistently stay on the field. With undrafted free agent Max Brosmer performing even worse in his lone start, Minnesota will likely need to remake its quarterback position in the offseason completely. Perhaps the Vikings give McCarthy another season to compete for the job, but that’s anything but a given.
Finding a franchise quarterback isn’t easy, but the Vikings had two on last year’s roster in veterans Sam Darnold and Daniel Jones. While Darnold isn’t going anywhere, the Vikings have a theoretical path to reuniting with Jones.
Vikings Could Try to Reunite With Quarterback Daniel Jones
Jones entered the 2024 season with the New York Giants but struggled to do much of anything with such a poor supporting cast. Brian Daboll’s squad ultimately released him midway through the season, and Jones spent the remainder of the year on Minnesota’s practice squad. Despite the familiarity with the scheme and Minnesota’s uncertain future under center, Jones opted to sign a one-year deal with the Indianapolis Colts.
This proved to be a wise decision. The former first-round pick beat out Anthony Richardson for the starting job and has guided the Colts to an impressive 8-4 record. Tied for the lead in the AFC South, Jones has completed 67.9% of his passes for 3,041 yards, 19 touchdowns, and seven interceptions on the season. Put simply, he’s played like a franchise quarterback and will likely receive a major raise in the offseason.
The only question is who will hand out that raise. The answer to that question is almost certainly the Colts, as they can use the franchise tag to retain his services and have no realistic way to upgrade the position. However, the Vikings could make a desperate push for the quarterback. The Vikings will probably have a high first-round pick, so would they consider trading that selection to the Colts for Jones? Only time will tell for sure.
Plan B
If the Vikings cannot get Daniel Jones, then they could look at reuniting with a different quarterback. Kirk Cousins is technically under contract with the Atlanta Falcons, but it’s safe to assume the team will part ways with him in the upcoming offseason. Even after Michael Penix’s ACL injury, Atlanta won’t want to pay top dollar for an aging veteran like Cousins. The Vikings wouldn’t take on Cousins’ entire deal, but they could trade a draft pick for him if the Falcons agree to eat some of his guaranteed money.
Cousins was playing the best football of his career in 2023 before an Achilles injury sidelined him for the season. While he never recaptured his old form, he showed some signs of life over the past two weeks. Facing off against the New York Jets and New Orleans Saints, the veteran completed 37 of his 56 attempts for 333 yards, three touchdowns, and one interception. This production came without Drake London in the lineup, so imagine what Cousins could do with Justin Jefferson and a better offensive scheme.
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