Purple Rumor Mill: QB Draft Bombshell, The Big Snub, Mock Draft Darling
VikingsTerritory’s Purple Rumor Mill is a two-day chronicle each week. All the week’s rumors are lassoed and plopped in two spots — articles on Saturday and Sunday — for review. Today is the January 7th edition.
Purple Rumor Mill: QB Draft Bombshell, The Big Snub, Mock Draft Darling
Remember — rumors are rumors. What you read on weekends in these pieces is what the world is talking about pertaining to the Vikings, not necessarily items that will come to fruition.
Here’s the second batch of the week. Yesterday’s can be read here.
Rumor: The Vikings were willing to trade everything last April for quarterback Anthony Richardson.
A credible source, Brett Kollmann told Mina Kimes this week, “I don’t think people realize how hard the Vikings tried to trade up for Anthony Richardson last year. Like, the haul that they put on the table was massive. They were going to give away the entire farm, all of it. They were going to give everything. But, it takes two to tango. Their trade partner thought that they were going to be too good, and so they went elsewhere. They didn’t want low picks, they wanted high picks.”
Richardson was injured early in 2023, so it’s debatable whether it’s good or bad news that the Vikings didn’t land him.
However, this does prove, if true, that Kwesi Adofo-Mensah is willing to spend big on draft night, which could apply to the franchise this April.
Rumor: Once again, Christian Darrisaw was snubbed by Pro Bowl voters, and it’s ridiculous.
Another year, another Pro Bowl no thanks for Darrisaw.
It’s always the same situation for the Virginia Tech alumnus who has established himself as a premiere left tackle. Trent Williams, Lane Johnson, and Peneii Sewell received the honor over Darrisaw, and as a fourth alternate, Darrisaw is a longshot to achieve his first Pro Bowl.
But the man deserves it. He ranks fifth leaguewide per Pro Football Focus grade among all offensive tackles, ahead of Lane Johnson by four spots. Darrisaw should’ve been a primary Pro Bowl inductee, with Johnson as the alternate. Yet Johnson has been in the NFL since 2013 — Darrisaw joined in 2021 — so this feels like a lifetime achievement award.
Every summer and early autumn, Vikings fans chant that Darrisaw should alas gain Pro Bowl notoriety for the first time. That slogan will now drift into 2024.
Rumor: Per mock drafters, Oregon’s Bo Nix is the most likely pick heading to the Vikings.
NFL Mock Draft Database logs every prominent mock draft under the sun, filed by draft, team, etc. At the moment, the Vikings are most linked to Bo Nix by popular consensus.
Nix showcased a glorious Fiesta Bowl on Monday, helping the Ducks smash then-undefeated Liberty 45-6. In his final collegiate game, Nix delivered 5 touchdown passes on 363 passing yards and will now presumably set sights on the draft process. He’s projected to be selected somewhere in Round 1.
Thankfully for the Vikings’ sake, if they’re interested in Nix, he’ll likely be available at Minnesota’s organic draft spot. A lot can change between now and the draft, but Nix probably won’t get talked into the Top 10, and hence, the Vikings could choose Nix wherever they land per draft seeding.
Otherwise, Caleb Williams (USC), Drake Maye (North Carolina), Jayden Daniels (LSU), Michael Penix Jr. (Washington), and J.J. McCarthy (Michigan) are expected to go off the board in Round 1 as well.
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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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