In addition to finding a starting quarterback, the Minnesota Vikings also have to figure out who will be their backup for next season.
There has been a whole lot of quarterback talk since the offseason began this year for the Minnesota Vikings. But it has mainly been about who the Vikings’ starting signal caller will be in 2018.
As last season clearly proved, Minnesota is going to need a solid backup quarterback for next year as well.
Could the Vikings find their backup through free agency or the draft? Perhaps their second-string quarterback for 2018 is a guy already on the roster by the name of Kyle Sloter.
Whoever it ends up being, Minnesota has to choose a player that they would be comfortable with starting a few games if needed next season.
So who are some of the possible candidates to be the Vikings’ backup quarterback for 2018?
Josh McCown:
After spending 2017 with the New York Jets, the 38-year-old McCown probably is not looking to be a starter anywhere next season. If he gets any offers at all this offseason, they will likely be from teams like the Vikings that are looking for a backup quarterback.
McCown has a connection to Minnesota since he has worked with the team’s offensive coordinator, John DeFilippo, when the two were in Oakland and Cleveland. The quarterback is familiar with what DeFilippo wants out of his players and he would be useful in helping implement the new offense this year.
It would not be the scariest thing in the world if McCown had to play in a few games for the Vikings in 2018 either. In 13 starts last season with the Jets, the quarterback completed 67 percent of his passes for 2,926 yards, 18 touchdowns, and nine interceptions.
Kyle Sloter:
Not much is known about Mr. Sloter other than the fact that the Vikings really like him. Not only did Minnesota sign the undrafted rookie to a two-year contract last year, but they made sure to keep him on the active roster all season long so that no other teams could potentially steal him away.
It definitely sounds like Sloter will at least get a shot to compete to be Minnesota’s backup in 2018. Depending on who else the Vikings bring in this offseason, the young quarterback may end up being the team’s best option.
At 6-foot-4, 218 pounds, Sloter definitely has the prototype size of an NFL signal caller. This offseason, he’ll get to prove if he’s capable of becoming something more than just a prototype.
Chase Daniel:
Daniel has actually been in the NFL since 2009, yet not a whole lot of people really even know who he is. That may have to do with him only having two career starts in nine seasons.
Daniel was most recently with the New Orleans Saints in 2017, but the year before that he was with the Philadelphia Eagles and John Defilippo.
The Eagles are a team that actually saw potential in Daniel when they signed him to a three-year contract in 2016 worth $21 million. But Carson Wentz clearly became Philadelphia’s top guy under center and the team released Daniel just one year into his deal.
Could Daniel reunite with DeFilippo in Minnesota?
EJ Manuel:
Drafted in the first-round by the Buffalo Bills back in 2013, Manuel’s time in the NFL has probably not gone as well as he once hoped. It’s possible his career in the NFL could now just be him continuing to be a solid backup (similar to what Charlie Batch became after he got out of Detroit).
Manuel spent the 2017 season with the Oakland Raiders. His offensive coordinator was Todd Downing, who was just added to the Vikings’ coaching staff as a senior offensive assistant.
The two also worked together in 2014, when Downing was the quarterbacks coach for the Bills.
Given his familiarity with Minnesota’s new offensive coach, Manuel could be an option the Vikings consider to be their backup next season.
Rookie Backup:
No matter who the Vikings decide to be their starter this offseason, there’s a pretty good chance that they will select a quarterback at some point during the 2018 NFL Draft.
During what round exactly will likely depend on who Minnesota has chosen to be their starter.
If the Vikings end up landing Kirk Cousins this year, the team would likely wait until at least the fourth or fifth round to draft a quarterback. However, if Minnesota brings back Teddy Bridgewater or Case Keenum for 2018, the team selecting a signal caller in the first or second round of the draft would not come as complete shock.
Next: Which QBs are not coming to Minnesota in 2018?
Either way, expect the Vikings to take a quarterback at some point in this year’s draft and probably give the rookie a shot to compete for the backup job during training camp.