Purple Rumor Mill: Another UDFA Gem, Justin Jefferson Trade Remnants, Darnold v. McCarthy
VikingsTerritory’s Purple Rumor Mill is a two-day chronicle each week. All the week’s Vikings rumors are lassoed and plopped in two spots — articles on Saturday and Sunday — for review. Today is the June 8th edition.
Purple Rumor Mill: Another UDFA Gem, Justin Jefferson Trade Remnants, Darnold v. McCarthy
Remember — rumors are rumors. What you read on weekends in these pieces is what the world is talking about pertaining to the purple team, not necessarily items that will come to fruition.
Here’s the first batch of the week.
Rumor: Cornerback Dwight McGlothern could be the Vikings’ next undrafted gem.
The McGlothern UDFA addition to Minnesota’s roster was applauded six weeks ago, and so far, so good. The man turned heads at minicamp, the latest UDFA to shine after Ivan Pace Jr.’s masterclass in 2023.
The Athletic‘s Alec Lewis wrote about McGlothern this week, “McGlothern spent most of this week with the developmental group, but Thursday, the Vikings tossed him in with some of the starters. Neither size nor length is an issue. He stands 6 feet 2 and is as lanky as Evans, who is big for the position.”
McGlothern has a long way to go before experiencing regular season playing time, but considering the Vikings’ CB room doesn’t have a bonafide shutdown star, the youngster could see action sooner than some expected. The field is wide open.
Rumor: The Vikings tried to trade Justin Jefferson, according to ProFootballTalk.com.
This website cannot let it go.
PFT was defiant this week, even after Jefferson inked his four-year, $140 million megadeal, teeing off on beat reporters for not reporting Jefferson-themed trade theories. “While the Vikings have zero interest in giving those past possibilities any credence, it’s fair to think they were waiting to see if someone might have spontaneously made an offer they wouldn’t have refused,” Florio wrote Thursday.
Florio continued, “Then there’s the fact that more than a few people have said the Vikings were trying to trade up from No. 11 to No. 5 to draft LSU receiver Malik Nabors. Too many people heard that for it to have been something that someone pulled out of thin air and/or their ass. Even though Vikings coach Kevin O’Connell got the predictable softball earlier this week regarding the question of whether the Vikings shopped Jefferson, no one aske[d] about the Nabors rumors and reports.”
The article weirdly misspelled “Nabers” and suffered from grammar woes on the whole.
“Some would say beat writers know a given team better than anyone else. While that might be true in many circumstances, there’s a real difference between what beat writers can and will write and what they know but can’t say,” Florio argued. “Surely, some of the people covering the Vikings heard about the frustrations from Jefferson’s perspective and/or about the potential effort to get Nabers. Even more surely, it wouldn’t have been great for the business of covering the team on a constant basis to be banging the drum about things the team would rather no one mention.”
VIkingsTerritory never advanced Jefferson trade rumors as credible because its sources wouldn’t substantiate any of PFT’s claims. “No chance,” is the reply we received — repeatedly — when asking about legitimacy of Jefferson trade rumors.
The Vikings extended Jefferson for the long haul. Nothing else really matters anymore regarding Jefferson hearsay.
Rumor: Rookie quarterback J.J. McCarthy is nowhere near the QB1 job.
Vikings fans should prepare for Darnold to start at QB1 in September, with little to no debate over J.J. McCarthy as an out-of-the-gate option.
ESPN’s Kevin Seifert explained this week about Minnesota’s quarterback situation, “Here’s what we can say about McCarthy so far. After two days of minicamp, and with one final week of OTAs remaining, he’s squarely behind veteran Sam Darnold on the depth chart. During the practices open to reporters, Darnold has taken nearly all of the first-team reps, and more often than not, veteran Nick Mullens has been the next quarterback to step in followed by McCarthy and then Jaren Hall.”
Darnold will be the team’s QB1 to start the season. What folks should debate is whether 2024 will become a total redshirt season for McCarthy.
Contract Extension Talks Aren’t Over for Vikings
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 MIN 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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