Vikings are a 'long shot' to sign Russell Wilson, even at league minimum

Former Denver Broncos quarterback Russell Wilson is reportedly a "long shot" to end up with the Minnesota Vikings this offseason.

Now that the Russell Wilson-Denver Broncos divorce is official, there figures to be plenty of speculation over the next few months about where Wilson may end up landing. While he's nowhere near the player he was in Seattle, Wilson showed signs of improvement during his second season with the Broncos, and most NFL Insiders expect him to head into Week 1 of next season as some team's starter.

With a half-dozen or so teams looking to make a move on the veteran free-agent market this offseason, Wilson's options – while limited – are already somewhat clear. And while it doesn't hurt that Wilson will most likely only cost a team (except, uh, the Broncos) the league minimum, there figures to be one or two veterans that sign contracts before he does.

With a half-dozen or so teams looking to make a move on the veteran free-agent market this offseason, Wilson's options – while limited – are already somewhat clear. And while it doesn't hurt that Wilson will most likely only cost a team (except, uh, the Broncos) the league minimum, there figures to be one or two veterans that sign contracts before he does.

And plus, it seems like most teams will wait until after the NFL Draft to make that decision, which means that there's still a good 8-10 weeks before Wilson may end up on a roster. There is, however, some intel already out there that the Minnesota Vikings won't even be in the conversation.

Chances of Russell Wilson ending up with the Minnesota Vikings next season are 'minimal'

According to a recent article in The Athletic, a Wilson-Vikings pairing next season is unrealistic. In the piece, writer Alec Lewis goes through each of Wilson's potential options. When it comes to the Vikings, Lewis lays out the scenario in no uncertain terms:

"This is a major long shot. First, the Vikings would have to fail to come to terms with free-agent quarterback Kirk Cousins. Then, they would have to deem Wilson a better option than another QB on the market who might fit better in head coach Kevin O’Connell’s system. O’Connell wants his offense to live in a structured and timing-based passing game.

...Wilson, meanwhile, fits best these days in a freewheeling, play-extending operation. Wilson does make sense in that he’s experienced, and he has won, and the Vikings will value those two characteristics. His price tag also gives this a chance — albeit a minimal one."

Without definitively claiming that it's not going to happen, this is about as confident of a 'no' as you can get. Re-signing Kirk Cousins is obviously the Vikings' first priority, and even if that fails to happen, there seem to be more than a few backup plans that don't involve Wilson. It's hard to believe too many Vikings fans will be overly bummed to hear that it won't happen, especially with how many other slightly-more-intriguing options Minnesota has at their disposal.