Similar to the New York Jets when Aaron Rodgers tore his Achilles four snaps into the season, the Minnesota Vikings were left scrambling after Kirk Cousins suffered the same injury during last Sunday’s win over Green Bay.
Internally, GM Kwesi Adofo-Mensah and coach Kevin O’Connell knew what their options were. The only active QB on the roster was fifth-round rookie Jaren Hall, but is the 25-year-old prepared to finish out the season, starting nine more games for a team currently in position to earn a playoff spot in the NFC? The Vikings knew they needed a contingency plan behind their first-year pro.
With veteran Nick Mullens still on injured reserve and Sean Mannion just signed to the practice squad on Oct. 11, the Vikings had to seek outside help.
We now know they landed on Josh Dobbs after striking a trade with the Arizona Cardinals, but the aspiring astronaut wasn’t the only QB the Vikings considered.
According to Dianna Russini, signing John Wolford off Tampa Bay’s practice squad was a possibility. But the Buccaneers promoted the former Los Angeles Rams QB to the active roster on Tuesday, meaning a trade would have to be conducted to reunite him with Coach O’Connell.
The Vikings’ front office also reportedly had a brief discussion about calling the Dallas Cowboys about trading for Minnesota native Trey Lance. The former No. 3 overall pick just arrived in Dallas in August after the Cowboys sent a fourth-round pick to San Francisco for the 23-year-old. Yet, the Cowboys would likely want more than just a fourth-round pick to part with Lance.
That was likely too expensive for the Vikings to pay. Russini notes the Vikings had “one rule” while searching for a QB: “Minimize the impact on their team-building beyond 2023.”
After giving up just a sixth-round pick in exchange for Dobbs and a seventh-round pick, it’s clear the Vikings accomplished their goal. Whether they get satisfactory results out of the QB room for the final nine games of the season remains to be seen, but we’ll never know if players like Wolford, Lance, or another option would have delivered a different outcome either.
Related: See where Jaren Hall lands in Sportsnaut’s NFL QB rankings