Friday mailbag: Quarterback ideas abound

Vikings fans have questions about how to view the QB situation as their offseason begins

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Bradley P…. What are the top five attributes that KOC and KAM will look for in a rookie QB?

I’ll try to do something on this at some point for a longer article but I’m guessing that the attributes that they are looking for are the same that you would look for. Production in college, arm talent, toughness, leadership skills and athleticism. The problem is that college football isn’t great at telling us how someone is going to play at the next level because in college football they have pictures of Peppa Pig to call the plays and in the NFL you have the head coach of a franchise in your helmet with complicated play calls and a bunch of the most gifted/scary defensive players on earth trying to kill you. So you try to pick a guy that has the raw talent to be a 10-year quarterback if it works.

I’ve never seen any measure work all the time. If you tell me you’re all about accuracy, I’ll point to Josh Allen and Jordan Love being inaccurate in college. If you say you’re big on arm strength, how about Joe Burrow? If you’re into height, Kyler Murray, Jalen Hurts and Tua Tagovialoa. Footwork? Mahomes.

There are counter examples to everything. So I usually look at production, how often they get sacked and how the guy handles himself and deals with tough situations.

I think the way the Vikings should do it is O’Connell picks his favorite guy (outside of Williams/Maye) and Adofo-Mensah makes it happen by any means.

SOCIALorDIRTY… Are we going to see any changes to the coaching staff? Thomas Brown??

We asked O’Connell the other day at the press conference and he said he was still working through it. Last year he said the same thing and then fired Ed Donatell a few days later. If there is going to be a change it’s probably coming at running backs coach because they have struggled in that area over the last two years with Curtis Modkins but I have no idea how they view him. They might think the running game would have been great if they just had more talent in the backfield or they might think the run plans were not all that good. Hard to know. Seeing that this comes out on Friday, that’s the day people usually get bad news, so we’ll see.

TwoToedSloth… Now that the field is set who is your pick for the Superbowl matchup? I think Ravens over 49ers even if picking the #1 seeds is uncreative

Those are the two strongest teams and the picks that make the most sense because they were pretty far out ahead in the regular season and in a lot of head-to-head matchups. But if I’m trying to go off the path, I’ll pick Buffalo and Dallas. Let’s go 1993 style. Over the last month or so the Bills have become the team we thought they would be all year and Josh Allen can win any game anywhere any time by himself. The Cowboys have a great case for the best roster in the NFL and the only real question is whether Mike McCarthy will hold them back. It feels kinda Andy Reid-ish with him in Dallas. They have had three straight top-five offenses (twice No. 1) and two top-five defenses in the last three years… it has to break through at some point, right?

Colt… What do you believe the chances are that the Vikings sign Cousins to a team-friendly contract while also drafting a QB (Nix, please) in the draft?

I could be wrong but I can’t see it happening. If they bring Cousins back then all assets need to be focused on winning the Super Bowl in 2024. The pick needs to be a pass rusher or No. 1 corner. Why bring him back if you’re thinking about the future? Plus if I’m Cousins, that’s part of the deal. He said that he wants to win — that’s his top priority. How would he be OK with spending a pick on a guy who won’t help him win? When the Packers did it with Jordan Love, they already had a team capable of winning the Super Bowl with Rodgers. The Vikings need more pieces to get there. A LOT more pieces.

Jeff… I am unclear how Kirk’s dead cap hit for 2024 would be impacted, if he signs another contract with the Vikings. Does the dead cap go away or is the can just kicked down the road, if he’s here another year or two?

Well, Jeff, that’s what I’m here for my friend. If Cousins reaches free agency, the Vikings have a $28 million dead cap hit no matter what — even if they brought him back. If he signs an extension before free agency, they can spread out the $28 million over a few years. Dead cap hits never go away.

Ramsey… who cares about QBOTF, who is the Fullback of the future?

You jest but I do wonder about CJ Ham. I thought Kevin O’Connell did a good job of reinventing his role as a pass blocker and it worked well. I would imagine they keep him next year to do something similar and continue to be a special teams ace. But I’ve never felt like this offense had a great grasp of how to use him in the way Kevin Stefanski did in 2019.

Ben… If the Vikings move on from Cousins and pick the right Quarterback in the draft could they be the NFC Texans next year??

Yes and no. Could they be a team that makes the playoffs with a rookie QB? Oh yes. Any time you have a good passing blocking O-line, Justin Jefferson, Jordan Addison and TJ Hockenson, rookies have a chance. It’s always wild when people act like rookie QBs can’t compete. Mac Jones, Lamar Jackson, Russell Wilson, RG3, Andrew Luck, Andy Dalton, Dak Prescott, Mark Sanchez, Joe Flacco, Matt Ryan all made it. Kenny Pickett was 7-5 and he’s not even good. Brock Purdy played great as a rookie.

The “no” part is that the Texans have mostly cheap talent. Their superstars recent draft picks Derek Stingley Jr. and Will Anderson are on rookie contracts. The Vikings missed that bus. Justin Jefferson, Christian Darrisaw, TJ Hockenson, Danielle Hunter if he returns… those dudes are costly. That is an added challenge even if they have a rookie QB contract.

Josh… First of all, congrats on another successful season! PI and its community is the absolute best!! Ok now the tough questions...Draft related so no pressure on answering since the season just ended...two parter- 1) in order for the Vikings to have a shot at the top 3 QB’s which non QB players would need to see their stock rise? Harrison is the only guy I can think of but curious if you had other names to keep an eye on. 2) I’m NE and/or Wash....talk me out of drafting a QB and instead trading with the You(the Vikings).

Appreciate that, Josh. I can’t thank everyone enough for supporting this. Every year is special to me because you guys — even if the team didn’t play how you folks hoped.

To your question, there are a few guys who could be targeted by the top teams that are non QBs and not Harrison Jr. The LSU receiver Malik Nabers is one. I have seen Penn State’s tackle Olumuyiwa Fashanu up there too. I remember in 2020 there were three QBs we thought could be the top picks and Tua and Herbert ended up slipping a tiny bit because Washington preferred to pick Chase Young (yikes!). Maybe we see something like that from the Patriots, who may want a veteran QB to get them back in the playoffs rather than a rebuild. Some mocks right now don’t have Daniels going until eighth to Atlanta. But like you said…. we’re a looooong way away.

Kyle… Kirk Cousins said, “It's not about the dollars, but it is about what the dollars represent.” Some people have focused on the first part of that comment and inferred that Kirk is ready to take a discount on his next contract. I thought the second part of that quote was more important. I interpreted that as Kirk saying he knows he doesn’t need the money but he wants it, as it signifies a team is fully buying into him. What's your read on Kirk's comments?

The most notable thing Kirk said in that conversation was that it’s going to be about structure. He can deal with less on a per-year basis if it comes along with length and guarantees — and maybe another no-trade clause mixed in. That particular quote about dollars representing something, I think he means that he has to have some self respect. He doesn’t need more money in his bank account but if Daniel Jones and Derek Carr make more than him, he’s disrespecting himself.

I’ve always respected Cousins’ approach. As Andrew Brandt would say, he’s a business Hall of Famer.

Jason… Make a case for the Vikings giving Kirk a three year deal at market value and winning a Super Bowl. To be clear, I don’t think resigning Kirk is the way to go because I can’t do what I just asked you to do.

The only way I could see it happening is if they went into full bleep-them-picks and bleep-the-cap mode and pulled off some crazy stuff on the defensive side. They sign Brian Burns, Christian Wilkins and Jordyn Brooks and trade for Marlon Humphrey and then some of the recent defensive draft picks take big steps forward and everyone stays healthy and the division slides a bit. They would really have to try to replicate Dallas but the Cowboys, as previously mentioned, have three straight years of top-five offenses and that’s never happened with Cousins under center. It’s a tough league.

Jack… Am I the only person crazy enough to think that signing Kirk to a 3 year extension then trading up for...MHJ makes a lot of sense? I mean, that offense would be on par with the 99 Rams or better.

I appreciate the enthusiasm, Jack. The ‘99 Rams scored 526 points, which is 17 more than any team in 2023. And the crazy part is that the 2000 Rams scored 540 points! If you were wondering, the ‘98 Vikings put up 556.

If the Vikings were to acquire Marvin Harrison Jr., that would probably give them the best chance to win a Super Bowl with Cousins. It sounds weird because the defense is so severely lacking in talent but the 2016 Falcons had a pretty bad defense and still outscored opponents by 134 points because they put up 540 points on offense.

That said, A) it’s going to be really hard to get Harrison Jr. B) Corey Davis was a top five pick. So was Sammy Watkins. Receivers aren’t any more of a sure thing than QBs, so why not just get Jayden Daniels if you are trading up that far?

Chris S… How much turnover was there in the scouting department for the 2022 draft vs 2023 draft with Kwesi and Co.? 2022 draft wasn't ideal but like the 2023 draft results thus far. If 2022 scouting dept. was all holdovers from Spielman regime I can give Kwesi somewhat of a pass and more optimistic with drafting the right players knowing he has his own handpicked scouting department moving forward.

There was some turnover yes but it’s really hard to wrap our heads around the fact that bad drafts just happen. Spielman picked Eric Kendricks, Danielle Hunter and Stefon Diggs in 2015 and then turned around and picked Laquon Treadwell, Mackensie Alexander and Willie Beavers the next year. Same scouts. Same GM.

This regime has had two drafts. They have come away with a star receiver, TJ Hockenson via trade, a starting-caliber linebacker (Pace Jr.), starting caliber corner (Blackmon), below average starting guard (Ingram), possible starting RB (Chandler) and some secondary depth (Evans, Ward). That’s not terrible.

They don’t deserve any excuses for the trade down decision or the picks that went bust in ‘22. Those decisions did not work out and it really hurts the overall strength of the roster that Cine and Booth Jr. aren’t foundational pieces. That’s how it goes sometimes, even for the best teams. Nobody has all the answers. The 49ers picked Nick Bosa and Deebo Samuel in one draft and turned around and took Javon Kinlaw and Trey Lance the next two years.

The only thing they can do is follow the proven statistical marks from the past and try to pick guys that fit what their coaches want and then pray.

Ford42-P… The line is probably the major weakness of the D rn, no rusher in the middle and on the edge they have... P.Jones? Please make a case how they can improve the line significantly besides re-signing Hunter. Whom could they target in fa, trade for or draft?

Right now free agency and the draft are hard to answer because we don’t know which free agents will sign deals last minute and how draft boards will look after the Combine but I can say there are quite a few good interior D-linemen who could hit free agency like the aforementioned Christian Wilkins, Grover Stewart (IND), Leonard Williams (SEA), Chris Jones (KC), DJ Reader (CIN) and Sheldon Rankins (ATL).

The edge rushing group of free agents is a lot more bleak. I’m a big fan of Andrew Van Ginkel (that sounds like a joke but it’s a Miami Dolphin player). AJ Epenesa is pretty good.

My favorite guy in the draft as of right now — with admittedly very little draft analysis done since the season ended — is Dallas Turner, an edge rusher from Alabama. He’s a beast.

There are going to be options. The question is always: Are the Vikings going to be outbid by teams with more cap space? Or will they have the cap space?

JimDanks… Could you see new regimes in Washington/New England being willing to trade down in the hopes of a rebuild with more draft picks? If not are Sam Howell/Mac Jones better players to take a flyer on with a late pick trade, over spending 1.11 on Penix or Nix? I'm all for taking a QB wherever KOC and Kwesi deem is right, I just am trying to think of other scenarios that could (however unlikely) play out.

I could see New England trying to sign Baker Mayfield or Gardner Minshew or Jacoby Brissett in order to compete for the playoffs and trading down, yes. Washington absolutely is drafting a quarterback.

I’ll pass on taking fliers on quarterbacks other teams do not want. I’d much rather have Penix or Nix than players we know aren’t good enough.

Scott… Can we have 5000 words on the iOL options for next year and just never bring it up again for the rest of the off season?

It’s really just left guard. I don’t see any chance they move off Bradbury or Ingram this offseason unless they were really put off by Ingram’s play and think he can’t improve. That’s possible, he was still in the top five in pressures allowed by guards but he graded much better than last year by PFF. Are they bringing Risner back? I’m not so sure. He really struggled with run blocking and that’s a clear area of improvement. I’d guess he is going to want a decent amount of cash to stick around, maybe in the $6-$8 million range? They can probably find another free agent guard for cheaper who can run block better.

Tim… Is it possible to build a team to compete for a Super Bowl utilizing a veteran quarterback?

Sure. The following veteran QBs (non rookie contract) have reached the Super Bowl in the last 10 years: Matthew Stafford, Tom Brady, Tom Brady, Matt Ryan, Tom Brady, Peyton Manning, Tom Brady.

There were others in the running, certainly. Russell Wilson, Aaron Rodgers, Drew Brees, Philip Rivers, Ben Roethlisberger, Carson Palmer.

I don’t need to explain the key takeaway here, right?