The Minnesota Vikings are running out of time to make a quarterback move, and the latest buzz around the league says the answer may be no move at all.
That matters because Tuesday’s 3 p.m. CT trade deadline is the last shot for teams to reshape their rosters before the stretch run.
Minnesota enters Monday Night Football against the Buffalo Bills at 6-1, but the offense still has obvious problems, and the quarterback spot sits at the top of the list. Carson Wentz is starting tonight in place of Kyler Murray, who is out with a Grade 2 hamstring strain, and the Vikings’ need for help under center has only become more obvious.
For a stretch, Daniel Jones, Kirk Cousins and Geno Smith were the names most closely tied to Minnesota. Now, though, the market appears to be drying up fast. The teams holding all three quarterbacks have made it clear they are not eager to move them, and in Jones’ case, Indianapolis has already shut the door.
Tom Pelissero said Sunday night that the Colts told Jones on Saturday they were not trading him, and he repeated Monday morning on The Ringer NFL Show that the Vikings would have to ask whether any available quarterback is really a clear upgrade over Carson Wentz.
“I think that the key question, if you’re the Vikings, and they’ve had discussions internally, I believe they’ve at least kind of like felt out what the possibilities might be, but the biggest question is, are any of these guys out there a clear upgrade over Carson Wentz that we want to go and shell out something significant to go get him?”
“Cross off Daniel Jones because he’s not getting traded. Cross off Justin Herbert because at the deadline right now, there’s just way too many moving parts.
I don’t foresee that being a possibility. … I can think of one guy that’s a possibility who they know well, but there’s not that many options of quarterbacks that are a clear upgrade over what they have in the building now.”
Tom Pelissero - The Ringer NFL Show
James Palmer also said multiple teams had shown some interest in Jones before the Colts ended the discussion. In Las Vegas, Adam Schefter reported Sunday that the Raiders had not received trade inquiries on Cousins and have no interest in moving him right now.
Schefter said the Raiders plan to keep Cousins in place until they believe their No. 1 overall pick Fernando Mendoza is ready.
Wentz will make his second start of 2026 tonight. He came on for Murray in Week 1, then started Week 2 at Chicago. This season, he has completed 23 of 39 passes for 276 yards with three touchdowns and no interceptions.
The teams connected to Minnesota’s quarterback search all lost this week, which would normally push them toward sell mode. Instead, all three seem more inclined to hold onto quarterbacks who are aging, nearing the end of their contract, or not performing at a high level.
Cousins remains the cleanest fit on paper, especially after Vegas dropped its game at San Francisco on Sunday and slipped to 4-5. He threw three interceptions in that loss, but his season numbers still jump off the page: 202 completions on 315 attempts for 2,340 yards, 20 touchdowns and eight interceptions.
That kind of production is exactly the sort of thing Justin Jefferson and Vikings fans would love to see in Minnesota, but the reunion does not appear close. Jori Epstein wrote Sunday night that it seems “more likely than not that Cousins will stay put in Vegas,” and that the Raiders “will not simply give away Cousins.”
Ben Goessling also wrote Sunday that a Cousins return to Minnesota “seems unlikely,” while Dan Graziano said Monday morning that he doesn’t “buy all the talk” about the Vikings chasing a quarterback trade.
So the Vikings are left with two possibilities: either they are keeping their real plan hidden and will surprise everyone before Tuesday’s deadline, or they truly are not landing a quarterback at all.
If it’s the second option, that would leave Minnesota to address other spots instead. General manager Nolan Teasley could still look at running back, offensive line, defensive line or the secondary. But none of those moves would solve the biggest issue hanging over this team all season.
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