The rumors are buzzing hard in Minnesota that the Vikings are going to do something at the quarterback position in this upcoming draft. Various reports claim that they “have the book” on Tennessee starter Hendon Hooker, while other draft analysts believe Minnesota will move up to draft one of either Hooker, Ohio State’s C.J. Stroud, Kentucky’s Will Levis, or Florida’s Anthony Richardson.
However, if the team really wants to make a move at quarterback, they should just make a deal with the San Francisco 49ers to acquire a hometown kid in the form of former North Dakota State starter Trey Lance. Trading for Lance makes sense for a few reasons.
The first reason, and this is the most obvious one, is that the Vikings lack the draft capital necessary to make a big move up the draft board. Having just five draft picks (one each in the first, third, fourth, fifth, and sixth rounds), the Vikings would need to give up something in the form of what the 49ers gave up two years ago to move up and draft Lance. For reference, the 49ers traded three first-round picks and a third-round selection to the Dolphins to move from 12th overall to third overall. The Vikings cannot afford to do that, given the holes that need to be addressed on this roster, especially on the defensive side.
Secondly, this quarterback class, outside of Alabama’s Bryce Young, is described by a lot of insiders as weaker than people think. One anonymous NFL agent called it “anemic” due to its lack of depth. To be fair, they have many reasons to think that the class is weak. Stroud was seen by many people as a taller version of Young, but his poor score on a recent pre-draft test quarterbacks take to measure their cognitive skills has affected his draft stock. Insiders have even described Stroud as the most likely QB to bust. However, Stroud isn’t the only quarterback in this draft with concerns surrounding him.
Richardson could be another good choice in the draft, but he is raw and his stock largely rose due to his combine performance. Nobody knows where he will end up, and some scouts don’t even have a first-round grade on him, which says something. The last time a QB’s draft stock rose due to a performance at the NFL Combine, you got the mess in New York known as Zach Wilson.
Finally, we have Levis and Hooker. Both have something in common: they are older prospects. By the time the 2023 NFL season gets underway, Levis and Hooker will be 24 and 25 years old, respectively. Both quarterbacks also have their own issues, as Levis struggles with turnovers and general decision making, and also performs poorly under pressure while lacking pocket awareness. Hooker, for his part, also lacks consistent pocket awareness, and his concerns are more based on his age and the fact that he is coming off a torn ACL suffered during his final year as a starter. Speaking of injuries, both Levis and Hooker have struggled with them, and Levis actually dealt with a litany of injuries to his foot, finger, and shoulder during the 2022 season.
If you’re Kwesi Adofo-Mensah, why move up and surrender a bounty of draft picks to draft someone who is unproven and may not work out, especially with how weak this quarterback class is? Why move up and select either an older prospect with injury concerns or a raw prospect whose stock was raised by a combine performance? If I was Adofo-Mensah, I would call the 49ers and offer two picks (one this year and next) and Kirk Cousins to acquire Trey Lance. The team has basically confirmed that they are moving on with Brock Purdy, last year’s Mr. Irrelevant, as their starter going forward after he is fully recovered from his torn UCL. Giving up Cousins would allow the 49ers to use him as a bridge option until Purdy recovers, in the event he were to miss the entire 2023 season.
Yes, Lance is raw and unproven in a way similar to this quarterback class, but he’s been in the NFL for two years now and has learned under both a veteran quarterback in Jimmy Garoppolo and a veteran coach in Kyle Shanahan. He is much more proven than any player in this draft class, and should be the answer at quarterback for the Vikings if they really want to upgrade at the position.
