The Minnesota Vikings are the NFL’s last undefeated team with a 6-0 record. But while they have a strong chance to make the playoffs, the team’s quarterback future remains unresolved. With no quarterback under contract for next season, speculation will continue about the Vikings’ next signal caller, and they could take Dante Moore in the 2027 draft.
Moore’s 2026 season ended on Monday when Oregon Ducks head coach Dan Lanning announced he would not return after suffering a concussion in a Sept. 26 win over the USC Trojans. He would have been a top-five pick if he'd declared for last year’s draft, but a disappointing senior season has ESPN's Mel Kiper ranking him as the No. 25 prospect for the 2027 draft, with a realistic chance he’ll go in the middle to late first round.
Vikings fans may be skittish about taking a young signal caller after failing to develop J.J. McCarthy. But for a team on the verge of another quarterback-room overhaul, Moore makes a lot of sense and is a name for fans to watch.
Dante Moore’s setback could become the Minnesota Vikings’ opportunity
Coming into the year, Moore was one of the nation's top quarterback prospects. He led the Ducks to a 13-2 record and finished with 3,565 passing yards, 30 touchdowns and 10 interceptions with a 71.8 percent completion rate. But instead of declaring for the 2026 draft, where he was projected to go behind top pick Fernando Mendoza, he decided to return to school for another year.
That gamble backfired for Moore. Moore’s completed 69.7 percent of his passes for 926 yards, nine touchdowns, and no interceptions in the first four games, but it didn’t lead to on-field success as the Ducks went 3-1, avoiding a near upset at home to the Boise State Broncos, falling to the Oklahoma State Cowboys the next week, and blowing out the Portland State Vikings of the FCS 84-0 in Week 3.
Moore started the following week against the Trojans, but a hit from linebacker Desman Stephens II knocked him out of the game and onto a stretcher. With Oregon virtually eliminated from contention for the College Football Playoff after a 21-10 loss to the Illinois Fighting Illini last week, it made little sense for him to return to the field, and while Lanning didn’t say it, it’s assumed Moore will prepare for next spring’s draft.
Because he decided to return to school, Moore’s profile is complicated. But his talent is not a question. Todd McShay of The Ringer gave Moore a positive review in his scouting report and noted several strengths that sound tailor-made for O’Connell’s offense.
“While he doesn’t possess the elite arm talent of Matthew Stafford, Josh Allen, Patrick Mahomes, or Justin Herbert, Moore generates more than enough velocity to attack every area of the field,” McShay wrote. “He drives deep outs with confidence and effortlessly pushes the ball vertically. His anticipation, timing, and placement more than compensate for his lack of truly elite arm strength. He’s also highly effective throwing on the move, particularly when rolling to his right.”
Another characteristic that could appeal to the Vikings is Moore’s maturity. After beginning his career with the UCLA Bruins, Moore transferred to Oregon to sit behind Dillon Gabriel for a year. But his former head coach, Chip Kelly, still praised his character after a 2023 loss to Utah.
“One of the things with Dante is that he’s a really mature kid,” Kelly said via Raymond Lucas of 247 Sports. “When you talk to him on the sidelines, he had good answers and knew what we were doing.”
McShay noted he needed to refine his game to better handle interior pressure this season, but injury kept him from getting the opportunity. That could also be an excellent “buy low” opportunity for the Vikings to solve their quarterback problems.
Dante Moore could give the Vikings another chance to develop their quarterback of the future
The Vikings currently have Kyler Murray, Carson Wentz and Max Brosmer on the roster, but none of those three options are under contract beyond this season. Murray could play his way into another deal with the Vikings over the remainder of the 2026 season, but The Athletic’s Alec Lewis noted on Tuesday that he “still appears to be acclimating to the team’s progression-based passing game.”
If Murray doesn’t pick it up, Wentz and Brosmer aren't viable starters in 2027, and with McCarthy now with the Giants, general manager Nolan Teasley and O’Connell can shape the quarterback room as they see fit.
In this event, Moore’s potential fall could lead to a mulligan for how they handled McCarthy’s development. Before trading up to select McCarthy with the 10th overall pick in the NFL Draft, the Vikings signed Sam Darnold to a one-year, $10 million contract to start while he learned the offense. Those plans were derailed not only by a torn meniscus he suffered in his first preseason game, but also by the Vikings' failed attempts to bring back Darnold and Daniel Jones, as well as by their decision to turn down Aaron Rodgers’s overtures during the 2025 offseason.
Had any of those options succeeded, McCarthy might have worked on his game behind the scenes. Instead, McCarthy was thrown into the fire as injuries and a lack of maturity shipwrecked a potential Super Bowl contender, and Murray punched his ticket to New York after beating him in a training-camp competition.
This time around, the Vikings have options. If Murray shows progress, the Vikings could sign him to a short-term deal, though Murray may look for a long-term home. Mac Jones is another option the Vikings reportedly wanted to trade for last season and could pursue next offseason as his contract with the San Francisco 49ers expires.
That move wouldn’t be inspiring, but it would look much better if the Vikings, likely to pick late in the first round, traded up to get Moore and let him develop behind Jones.
For a team that wants to win now but may want a long-term quarterback solution, this may be the best option, and it could help Moore’s rough 2026 season bring him to Minnesota.
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