ESPN report: Minnesota Gets $262.5 Million in QB Through Vikings Trade Proposal

The Minnesota Vikings’ chances of trading up for a quarterback seem to be dwindling as the NFL draft draws near. However, there are other approaches to sign a franchise player.

According to ESPN sports betting analyst Joe Fortenbaugh, the likelihood that the Los Angeles Chargers will choose a quarterback at No. 5 has increased from 1% to 14%, while the New England Patriots are seeking three first-round draft picks and more for the third overall pick.

“Prop: The Chargers will select a quarterback with their first pick in the draft: Opening of the market: 100/1; yesterday: 15/1; today: 6/1. On Tuesday, April 23, Fortenbaugh made a post to X.

Justin Herbert’s trade market would likely be created by the Chargers’ interest in J.J. McCarthy.

The Chargers are likely to pursue a trade involving incumbent signal-caller Justin Herbert if they are interested in picking a quarterback in the draft and starting over at that position with a fresh contract.

Field Yates of ESPN and Mel Kiper Jr. have both long anticipated that the Vikings will eventually trade for Los Angeles in order to get into the top five. Experts like Kiper and Yates have mocked draft scenarios before, and their most recent one from April 15 shows quarterbacks Caleb Williams, Jayden Daniels, and Drake Maye going to the Chicago Bears (No. 1), Washington Commanders (No. 2), and either the Patriots or a trade partner (No. 3) in whatever order they come off the board.

The most likely scenario, assuming the Chargers choose a quarterback at No. 5, is that J.J. McCarthy is chosen by incoming head coach Jim Harbaugh. McCarthy and Harbaugh recently won a national championship together at the University of Michigan in January. The Vikings would thus likely have little need to trade up for a quarterback and would only have two options: either choose a player at little. 11 or No. 23, such as Bo Nix of Oregon or Michael Penix Jr. of Washington, or put together a trade offer for Herbert.

Excellent NFL quarterback Justin Herbert, but his contract limits his trade value

It’s challenging to estimate Herbert’s exact trade value because he has a number of advantages and at least one significant disadvantage.

Herbert, who is only 26 years old and getting up for his fifth NFL season, was a first-round selection in 2020 (number one out of Oregon). According to Pro Football Reference, the former Pro Bowler (2021) threw for a career-low 3,134 yards last year across 13 games. He has never thrown for less than 3,100 yards.

On his way to a 66.6% career completion rate and 114 total touchdown passes in 62 games played, he has passed for more than 4,000 yards passing twice and 5,000 yards once. If Justin Jefferson, Jordan Addison, T.J. Hockenson, Aaron Jones, and Herbert were added to the Vikings roster, the offense would be absolutely dangerous from the first play.

As fantastic as all of that sounds, Herbert won’t be cheap, even if the Vikings were to get him in a trade for practically nothing, which is, incidentally, not going to happen. In July 2023, Herbert inked a $262.5 million five-year contract deal with the Chargers, keeping him under contract until the 2029 season.

Vikings’ QB calculations must take into account the financial implications, which include a new deal for Justin Jefferson.

It’s great to have quarterback security like that, since it locks up an elite player through the end of the decade at an average salary that’s outrageous right now but probably won’t be in three or four years when the league cap rises and other quarterbacks sign bigger deals.

However, Minnesota has been battling its own cap problems for the past few seasons, so it is tempting to select a quarterback who will play on a rookie-scale contract for the first four years of his career. The Vikings would have the financial flexibility to sign a record-breaking contract with an All-Pro level receiver, like 2024’s Jefferson, who just so happens to be in the final year of his rookie contract.

On paper, trading for Herbert and matching him with Jefferson seems fantastic, but it would undoubtedly cost Minnesota at least one of its two first-round picks this year, if not more. However, giving the two of them alone an average salary of between $85 and $90 million per year for a number of seasons in a row will make it more difficult for the organization to add elite talent to the rest of the squad beyond what the Vikings can choose in the draft.

Nevertheless, there is justifiable pressure on general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah to identify a long-term fix under center. Herbert provides Minnesota with a reliable player at the most crucial position in the game if he is unable to trade into the top five. The other alternatives are Nix and Penix, but selecting one of them would mean that head coach Kevin O’Connell and Adofo-Mensah would be taking a significant risk on a guy who has never played a snap in the NFL.