Former Vikings QB Traded to Chargers
Make it seven NFL teams for former Minnesota Vikings quarterback Taylor Heinicke.
Former Vikings QB Traded to Chargers
The 31-year-old is on the move this week, traded to the Los Angeles Chargers for a conditional 7th-Round draft pick.
ESPN’s Adam Schefter tweeted Thursday, “Chargers announced they officially have acquired quarterback Taylor Heinicke from the Atlanta Falcons in exchange for a 2025 7th-round pick that converts into a 6th-round pick if specific conditions are met.”
The Falcons had Kirk Cousins and Michael Penix Jr. ahead of Heinicke on the current depth chart, so a trade wasn’t too surprising. Atlanta now has no official QB3 on the roster as of Thursday, including the practice squad, meaning the organization will likely use free agency in the next few days for a Heinicke replacement.
Heinicke will instantly become the Chargers’ QB2 behind Justin Herbert, nudging Easton Stick to QB3. If all goes well for Jim Harbaugh’s new offense, Heinicke and Stick won’t be needed at all in 2024. Stay tuned.
The Vikings discovered Heinicke in 2015 as an undrafted free agent. He later won the QB3 job behind Teddy Bridgewater and Shaun Hill, staying with the Vikings until September 2017. After his Vikings adventure, Heinicke landed with the Houston Texans, Carolina Panthers, Washington Commanders, and Falcons. He also had a pit stop in the XFL in 2020 with the St. Louis BattleHawks.
In Minnesota, Heinicke was his own villain. He canceled his chance at stardom with the Vikings because he reportedly kicked a glass door when locked out of a friend’s apartment and sliced up his leg. An bizarre ordeal indeed, he never took a regular snap for the Vikings and later signed with the Texans in 2017.
Heinicke has started 29 games in his career, tallying 174.6 passing yards per game, with 39 passing touchdowns and 28 interceptions. He was arguably at the peak of his powers during a 2020 playoff loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, a team led by Tom Brady that eventually won the Super Bowl.
Heinicke started four games as a Falcon in 2023, while Atlanta tabulated a 1-3 record on his watch, with one of the losses occurring versus Joshua Dobbs’ Vikings. Many believe Heinicke would latch on elsewhere in 2024 following the termination of former head coach Arthur Smith, but the 31-year-old stayed put on a discounted deal in Atlanta, at least initially.
But he’s now one snap away from the Chargers’ top job.
Dustin Baker is a political scientist who graduated from the University of Minnesota in 2007. Subscribe to his daily YouTube Channel, VikesNow. The show features guests, analysis, and opinion on all things related to the purple team, with 4-7 episodes per week. His Vikings obsession dates back to 1996. Listed guilty pleasures: Peanut Butter Ice Cream, ‘The Sopranos,’ Basset Hounds, and The Doors (the band). He follows the NBA as closely as the NFL.
All statistics provided by Pro Football Reference / Stathead; all contractual information provided by OverTheCap.com.
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