It keeps coming back to the same issue with the Minnesota Vikings: quarterback.
That’s the conversation every season, and it hasn’t gotten any quieter. The Vikings took an offseason swing that made sense at the time, bringing in Kyler Murray while choosing between J.J.
McCarthy and Carson Wentz. But the bigger regret is hard to miss now - they let Sam Darnold walk, and that decision has already aged badly.
Even so, that door is shut. The Vikings can’t undo it, only keep looking for ways to strengthen the position now and down the road. At the moment, there isn’t a star passer clearly on the market, though Justin Herbert of the Los Angeles Chargers has been floated as a possible trade target if the price is right.
What makes the idea tempting is simple: Minnesota already has the kind of defense that can support a top quarterback. CBS pointed out that the Vikings are No. 1 in the NFL in fewest points allowed, and argued that Herbert could be the missing piece that turns them into a true contender.
“It's clear that the Vikings have a championship-caliber defense (they're currently No. 1 in the NFL in fewest points allowed) but need help on offense. Herbert, in theory, could help the Vikings bridge that gap while becoming a surefire Super Bowl contender.
“While this season has been a mess so far, Herbert was without a doubt one of the league's best quarterbacks during his first six seasons. He threw for the second-most passing yards in league history during a player's first six seasons - only Peyton Manning threw for more yards. Herbert's 163 touchdowns was the sixth-most in league history for a player in that span,” CBS wrote.
Herbert comes with plenty of debate attached, but the production has been there for most of his career. He may not sit in the top tier of NFL quarterbacks, yet he has shown he can deliver a season with more than 4,000 passing yards, 25 touchdowns and fewer than 10 interceptions when the system is right.
The Chargers, for their part, have been one of the league’s biggest letdowns this season. Still, it’s fair to wonder whether they’d really part with a quarterback like Herbert when landing a true franchise passer is so hard in the first place.
In Other News...
Vikings Could Catch A Break As Colts Injuries Start Looming
The Colts second injury report of the week gave Minnesota a little more to monitor heading into Sundays game at U.S. Bank Stadium. The reports, which track participation from Wednesday through Friday and note designations like IR-OUT and limited work, showed a handful of Indianapolis starters dealing with availability concerns as the weekend draws closer.
Sauce Gardner, Tyler Warren and Rigoberto Sanchez were among the Colts players who were not on the field Thursday, leaving their status worth watching as the week moves along. Indianapolis did have some players move in the right direction on the report, but with no final game designations out yet, the Vikings still have to wait for the last word before knowing exactly who theyll be facing. [Read more 🡒]
Vikings Fans May Have Blamed The Wrong Coach For Last Season
The frustration around last seasons finish still lingers in Minnesota, and it is easy to see why special teams keeps coming up in the discussion. A single kickoff return, along with a handful of other key moments across the year, fed the belief that the Vikings let a playoff spot slip through their hands. But when you zoom out from one play to the broader arc of the season, the blame gets harder to pin on any one coach or unit alone.
Matt Daniels has remained a central figure on that side of the ball, and his work has continued to matter for both special teams and player development. The bigger lesson for the Vikings is that the seasons disappointment was built from more than one breakdown, from quarterback play to coaching decisions to late-game execution, which is why the aftermath still feels unfinished. [Read more 🡒]
Demond Claiborne Nears A Make Or Break Vikings Moment
Demond Claibornes first month-plus in Minnesota has been a quiet one for a rookie running back who arrived with a chance to carve out a role. Through the first five games of the 2026 season, he has barely gotten on the field, and the Vikings have continued leaning on other options in the backfield even as injuries have created openings around him.
Claibornes situation is becoming harder to ignore because the snaps have not turned into much production, and the depth chart has not exactly cleared in his favor. Jordan Mason and DeeJay Dallas have both seen more work, leaving Claiborne in a spot where the next opportunity could say a lot about whether Minnesota still views him as part of its plan moving forward. [Read more 🡒]