Will the Minnesota Vikings re-sign one of their 2017 quarterbacks or will they add a new player through free agency or the draft?
It was a bit of a crazy year for the quarterbacks of the Minnesota Vikings during the 2017 season.
Sam Bradford kicked the year off with an impressive game against the New Orleans Saints. Then Bradford was sidelined with a knee injury and the Vikings had to call upon Case Keenum to save the day.
Surprisingly, Keenum did just about as good as Minnesota could have ever hoped.
Oh, and Teddy Bridgewater took his first snap from under center during a regular season game since badly injuring his knee during the 2016 preseason.
However, there is a possibility that neither of these three quarterbacks will be the Vikings’ starter when the team begins their 2018 season. All three signal callers are scheduled to be free-agents when the new league year begins in March and at least one of them is likely to test the waters outside of Minnesota.
So what are the Vikings going to do for next season? Will Minnesota attempt to re-sign Bradford, Bridgewater, or Keenum? Or will they go looking elsewhere for someone new to lead their offense in 2018?
Sam Bradford:
After Week 1 of the 2017 season, it seemed like Bradford was about to have himself an impressive year. However, old knee issues flared up following the Vikings’ first game and the quarterback ended up playing just two more quarters for the rest of the season.
It’s likely that Bradford and his agent are going to be looking for the quarterback to get one last big money contract as his future seems a little in the air after his knee problems in 2017. Spotrac has Bradford’s market value listed around $23 million per year, but that seems pretty high for a guy coming off a season in which he only played in a total of six quarters.
For Minnesota to bring the quarterback back to the team for 2018, the two parties would have to agree to a deal that allows the Vikings to back out after a year or two. Bradford’s injury history with his knees just makes him too much of a risk for Minnesota to invest a big chunk of their salary cap in him heading into the future.
Chance: 20 percent
Case Keenum:
2017 was a career year for Keenum in his first season with the Vikings. Signed to just a one-year deal by Minnesota last offseason, no one expected the quarterback to be anything more than a backup in 2017.
But after Bradford went down in Week 2, Minnesota really did not have any other options than to play Keenum. Due to the Vikings winning week after week with him under center, Keenum remained the team’s starter for the majority of the season and had his best year as an NFL quarterback.
That being said, this was the very first season of his career in which Keenum was able to play at a level that consistently produced wins. Most of Minnesota’s wins were not directly due to his performance under center, but Keenum did a good job in 2017 of not putting the Vikings in bad situations.
Is his play last season something that can be expected for the future? Or was his success due more to the strategic play-calling of former Minnesota offensive coordinator Pat Shurmur?
Are the Vikings willing to take a chance on finding out if Keenum can continue to perform well without Shurmur calling the plays for him? Even if Minnesota wants to re-sign Keenum, he may actually be better off getting a big-money contract from another team while he still has the chance to do so.
Chance: 60 percent
Teddy Bridgewater:
At 25-years-old, it would seem like Bridgewater still has plenty of time left to play in his NFL career. His knee is really the one issue that could prevent the Vikings from bringing him back in 2018.
Bridgewater’s knee injury in 2016 was nothing close to normal (he almost lost his leg). Minnesota has seen the quarterback rehab and return to practice during the last year and he likely would have started a few games in 2017 if the Vikings were not playing so well with Keenum under center.
Re-signing Bridgewater would definitely not be as expensive as it would for Minnesota to re-sign Bradford or Keenum. With Bridgewater not starting in a regular season game in over two years and the uncertainty surrounding how fragile his knee may be, the Vikings should be able to keep the young quarterback around for around $15 million per year or less.
That is, if Bridgewater wants to return to Minnesota too.
Chance: 80 percent
Kyle Sloter:
Not much is known about Sloter considering he went undrafted out of Northern Colorado in 2017. But it’s pretty obvious the Vikings are intrigued by the young signal caller since they kept him on the active roster all season long, preventing another team from signing him off the practice squad.
At 6-foot-4, 215 pounds, Sloter certainly has the measurables of a prototype NFL quarterback. But does he have the talent?
Sloter does have a pretty strong arm, but his accuracy and pocket presence could use some more work. Aspects of his game that would likely improve with another season on the bench.
Chance: 25 percent
Rookie quarterback:
There are a handful of good quarterbacks that will be available in the upcoming 2018 NFL Draft. Minnesota will likely use one of their draft selections on a signal caller, but when exactly that will be is something that is still up in the air.
Thanks to their successful 2017 season, the Vikings will have the 30th pick in this year’s draft. A little late to land one of the top quarterback prospects from the 2018 class, but there’s still a chance they could still snag a talented signal caller before the end of the first round.
Unless Minnesota trades up into the first five picks of the draft, there is absolutely no way they will be able to land a franchise-type quarterback like UCLA’s Josh Rosen or USC’s Sam Darnold.
Some quarterbacks that could be available when it’s the Vikings’ turn to select in the first round include Louisville’s Lamar Jackson, Oklahoma’s Baker Mayfield, Washington State’s Luke Falk, and Oklahoma State’s Mason Rudolph.
Chance: 30 percent
Free-Agent quarterback:
Outside of Drew Brees and Kirk Cousins, there are not a whole lot of quarterback options in free agency this year.
The Vikings can try and lure one of these two signal callers to town, but actually signing one of them does not seem too likely. Especially since Brees has already said that he wants to remain in New Orleans with the Saints and it has been reported that the Washington Redskins are possibly going to place the franchise tag on Cousins, once again, this offseason.
After these two, the quarterbacks that will be available in free agency this offseason includes Josh McCown, Drew Stanton, Chad Henne, Ryan Fitzpatrick, Mark Sanchez, Blaine Gabbert, Brock Oswiler, and A.J. McCarron among others.
Not exactly a group that anyone would classify as glamorous.
Chance: 35 percent
Trade for a quarterback:
Minnesota has shown in the past they are not afraid to pull the trigger on a a trade for a quarterback (see Sam Bradford, Donovan McNabb, and Warren Moon). Is it possible the Vikings could opt to take this route again during the 2018 offseason?
Well, it really depends on who is going to be available.
Quarterbacks like Aaron Rodgers, Matt Ryan, or Russell Wilson are not going to be the caliber of players that Minnesota could possibly land in a trade this offseason. Acquiring quarterbacks that are in the last year of their current contract like Alex Smith, Tyrod Taylor, or Nick Foles is likely what the Vikings best options will be if they look to make a trade.
Next: More than 15 Vikings will be free-agents in 2018
If Minnesota does make a trade for a veteran quarterback this offseason, look for them to select a signal caller within the first three rounds of the draft this year as well.