In less than three weeks, everyone will get to find out if the Minnesota Vikings are able to wind up with one of the top quarterback prospects in the 2024 NFL Draft.
Former USC signal-caller Caleb Williams is expected to be selected with the No. 1 overall pick by the Chicago Bears, but after that, anything really seems possible for the Vikings at this point.
During the last few weeks, Minnesota has reportedly held private workouts with Drake Maye, J.J. McCarthy, Michael Penix Jr., and Bo Nix, according to Sports Illustrated's Albert Breer on Monday. It seems safe to assume the Vikings would like to leave Day 1 of this year's NFL Draft with one of these four passing prospects.
Minnesota Vikings trade up for QB who could get them fired in recent 2024 mock draft
If Minnesota is going to end up one of this year's top quarterback prospects, there is one who some believe the team should steer clear of. During a recent interview on WCCO radio, former ESPN NFL analyst Merril Hoge shared his opinion about which 2024 passing prospect should be avoided during the early part of the first round, and the Vikings might want to listen.
"Drake Maye is the kind of player that will get you fired. Especially if you draft him in the top five or top three, he’s going to get you fired."
Hoge is someone who correctly predicted that former NFL quarterback Johnny Manziel would be a bust in the league despite the success he had during his college career. However, the former ESPN analyst also believed in 2008 that former Louisville signal-caller Brian Brohm would turn out to be a better quarterback with the Green Bay Packers than Aaron Rodgers.
So, Hoge could potentially be right about Maye, but he could also be completely wrong. We'll all just have to wait and see how everything plays out.
Until then, we'll just continue to comb through all of the mock drafts that continue to be shared each and every day, including a recent one from The Draft Network's Damian Parson.
Parson recently shared a four-round 2024 mock draft in which he has Minnesota making a trade to move up to the No. 3 pick to select Maye. To move from pick No. 11 to No. 3 in this mock draft, the Vikings gave up the 11th, 23rd, and 108th selections (fourth round) in this year's NFL draft, along with their 2025 first-round pick to the New England Patriots.
Unlike Hoge, Parson believes Maye "has everything required to become a star signal-caller" and the former North Carolina quarterback is "a great fit for Kevin O'Connell's offense."
If Minnesota actually does end up drafting Maye later this month, will Hoge or Parson be proven right about the young quarterback when we look back at the selection in a few years?