The Minnesota Vikings drafted a quarterback in the seventh round of the 2020 NFL Draft by selecting Iowa passer Nate Stanley.
The Minnesota Vikings added a lot of players to their roster over the course of the 2020 NFL Draft, with many of those individuals coming in Day 3 where some of the more obscure prospects hoped to get their name called.
Minnesota owned pick No. 244 overall in the seventh round and made the selection to add more depth and competition to their roster. The selected player was Iowa Hawkeyes quarterback Nate Stanley.
Stanley spent four years at Iowa, playing in 44 total games. The starter the final three years with the Hawkeyes, his experience should be considered a major strength but there is still a lot else for fans to love about this pick.
A quarterback who makes good decisions, Nate Stanley finished his NCAA career with 68 touchdowns compared to 23 interceptions while seeing his yards per pass attempt increase with each passing season.
He threw for at least 2400 yards in each of his seasons as a starter for the Hawkeyes, but could use to improve upon his completion percentage of 58.3. However, using a seventh-round pick minimizes any gamble the team is taking on the passer and would even allow him to gain experience on their practice squad if he is not ready for the 53-man roster.
Minnesota can’t feel confident with their quarterback situation past Kirk Cousins. Sean Mannion hasn’t proven himself to be a competent backup who can step in and win a game, so perhaps the Vikings want to look for an inexpensive option to develop and hopefully step into that role for the purple and gold.
Congratulations to Iowa Hawkeyes quarterback Nate Stanley for being a seventh round selection of the Minnesota Vikings and joining Kirk Cousins and Sean Mannion as the team’s quarterbacks heading into the 2020 NFL season.