The Minnesota Vikings have a busy offseason ahead of them. After winning the NFC North during the 2022 season, they took a step back in the 2023 campaign, going 7-10. A four-game losing streak to finish the season ultimately cost them a playoff spot as they couldn’t get things situated at quarterback.
With starter Kirk Cousins going down with an Achilles injury in Week 8 against the Green Bay Packers, the Vikings were left scrambling. Joshua Dobbs, who was acquired from the Arizona Cardinals ahead of the trade deadline, got a few starts but was eventually benched in favor of Nick Mullens.
Mullens didn’t fair much better, going 0-3 in his starts. He, too, was benched and rookie Jaren Hall took over as the starter. Hall went 1-1 in his two starts as the team wasn’t able to sustain production without Cousins.
NFL News & Rumors: Justin Jefferson & Minnesota Vikings Updates
Figuring things out at quarterback will be the No. 1 priority for Minnesota this offseason. Alas, it is far from the only task they have. Another important one is working out a long-term deal for star wide receiver Justin Jefferson.
However, there are some people who don’t believe Jefferson is long for Minnesota. One of those people is Charley Walters of the Pioneer Free Press. Given the state of the Vikings’ roster, Walters wonders if the team will trade Jefferson instead of committing to him long-term.
“There could be a better chance of Jefferson, 24, getting traded than anybody’s saying. That’s because it doesn’t make sense to pay the NFL’s best receiver the money he wants (expected to be at least $150 million over five years) on a team that’s not expected to be seriously competitive for several more years.” wrote Walters.
That is certainly an interesting take as the Vikings don’t look too far off from being playoff contenders again. Had Cousins not gotten hurt, it is fair to assume they would have pushed for a Wild Card spot, especially given some of the losses they suffered.
NFL News & Rumors: Justin Jefferson & Minnesota Vikings Updates
Turnovers were a major issue, as each of Cousins’ replacements had a higher interception percentage than him. Dobbs and Mullens equaled or surpassed his interception total despite throwing half the amount of passes.
If a rebuild is on the horizon, moving on from Jefferson makes some sense. But the Vikings will have to be prepared for some bad backlash from such a move as Jefferson is arguably the best player on the team.
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