Vikings Reportedly Pursued Trade for Pro Bowl QB This Offseason
What seemed like an outlandish rumor four months ago actually had a backbone, at least per the Minnesota Vikings’ offseason diligence.
Vikings Reportedly Pursued Trade for Pro Bowl QB This Offseason
That’s the Los Angeles Chargers’ would-be interest in trading quarterback Justin Herbert, and perhaps, per the theory at the time, taking the draft plunge at quarterback with J.J. McCarthy, who was coached at Michigan by Jim Harbaugh. Harbaugh is now the Chargers’ skipper.
ESPN’s Kevin Seifert recently wrote an article about Kirk Cousins’ exit from the Twin Cities and tucked inside the publication was a nugget about Herbert.
“ESPN spent the offseason tracking the Vikings’ quarterback transition, one that took them through intense negotiations with Cousins, included a check-in on the Los Angeles Chargers’ Justin Herbert and the acquisition of a second first-round pick that ultimately helped secure Turner rather than McCarthy,” Seifert wrote. “It featured a set of five private workouts around the country, one big surprise and the first top-10 quarterback pick in team history (Daunte Culpepper was No. 11 in 1999).”
General manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah ultimately scooped McCarthy out of Round 1 with the 10th overall pick after a trade up the board with the New York Jets. It’s a new era in the Twin Cities, as Cousins left for the Atlanta Falcons in March.
But the Herbert temptation was evidently on the table for Minnesota, which would make sense because he’s an established Pro Bowl quarterback. At least for now, McCarthy is a question mark.
After inquiring about Herbert, per ESPN’s reporting, Adofo-Mensah shipped two 2nd-Round picks to Houston for the Texans’ 2024 1st-Rounder (Pick No. 23) and a late-round pick swap. The trade helped the Vikings net Dallas Turner with the 17th overall pick — not a quarterback, as McCarthy fell near the bottom of the Top 10.
Before the draft, the Herbert-to-Vikings theory went like this: new head coach Jim Harbaugh, at all costs, would find a way to draft McCarthy, his quarterback at Michigan, a squad that won the National Championship in January. Then, Herbert would’ve apparently become expendable, and a quarterback-needy team like Minnesota could swoop in for the swap.
In the end, the Chargers weren’t willing to trade an elite quarterback who has yet to enter his career’s prime. The man is 26 years old, and would one really believe that Harbaugh’s first order of business would be to trade a borderline Top 5 NFL quarterback? Not so much.
But the Vikings had to be sure.
There was also the dead cap problem. If the Chargers traded Herbert, they’d eat over $60 million no matter when the trade hit on the calendar, making the Denver Broncos’ recent dead cap sins with Russell Wilson look pedestrian.
Overall, Herbert to Minnesota was never realistic, but Minnesota apparently had to test the waters.
Dustin Baker is a political scientist who graduated from the University of Minnesota in 2007. Subscribe to his daily YouTube Channel, VikesNow. He hosts a podcast with Bryant McKinnie, which airs every Wednesday with Raun Sawh and Sal Spice. His Vikings obsession dates back to 1996. Listed guilty pleasures: Peanut Butter Ice Cream, ‘The Sopranos,’ Basset Hounds, and The Doors (the band).
All statistics provided by Pro Football Reference / Stathead; all contractual information provided by OverTheCap.com.
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