When news broke that rookie quarterback JJ McCarthy, the 10th overall pick in the 2024 NFL draft, would be out indefinitely with a torn meniscus, it left fans of the Philadelphia Eagles with one thought, and one thought alone: Howie Roseman, get on the phone and offer up Kenny Pickett.
Now granted, a torn meniscus isn't a career-ending injury and, at most, will keep the Michigan signal-caller out of action for this his rookie season, and the Vikings were likely going to start Sam Darnold anyway until McCarthy was ready to roll this fall, but considering the Vikings are a team clearly looking to win now, are they willing to risk another year on a QB known more for “seeing ghosts” than anything he's accomplished on the field as a pro?
Originally drafted with the 20th overall pick in the 2022 NFL draft, Pickett was actually compared positively to Kirk Cousins coming out of the University of Pittsburgh, who, funny enough, is probably the best quarterback in the franchise as employed in, what, this century? Like Cousins, Pickett is more game manager than gunslinger, and while he isn't exactly a gamechanger capable of elevating an offense above the sums of its parts, he can run what's there effectively, which, considering the collection of players Minnesota has assembled – minus, for a time, Jordan Addison, who just suffered an ankle injury – features a pretty high ceiling.
Place Pickett in Kevin O'Connell's offense, which has been humming along in Minnesota for years now with Cousins under center, and surely the Vikings would at least be able to push the Green Bay Packers and the Detroit Lions for the top spot in the NFC East, right? Even with Caleb Williams-mania going strong in Chicago?
Unfortunately for Eagles fans, Pickett probably won't be the apple of the Vikings' eye, as they already have Darnold, and trading a quality draft pick for the Pitt product feels somewhat redundant, considering they already have McCarthy locked up. Still, the Eagles acquired Pickett because he's cheap for the next two years, and if the Vikings believe he could be a backup to McCarthy in 2025 – should he not turn into the Gopher State Tom Brady this fall – who knows, maybe Roseman and Minnesota GM Kwesi Adofo-Mensah could get a deal done.
Unlikely? Sure, but stranger things have happened, like the Vikings trading a first and (conditional) fourth-round pick to the Eagles for Sam Bradford in 2016 despite the former first-overall pick out of Oklahoma has shown little to prove to anyone that he could stay healthy enough to be a franchise quarterback long-term.
Kellen Moore appears happy with Tanner McKee and Kenny Pickett
While Eagles fans have largely made their pick for QB2 after the first two preseason games, with McKee's poise making him a favorite over the more check-down-heavy former Pitt product, the actual Philadelphia coaching staff appears far less sold on one player versus the other.
Need proof? Well, look no further than offensive coordinator Kellen Moore's comments on the development of McKee ahead of preseason Week 2, where he complimented all three of his reserve quarterbacks, including Will Grier, who has largely been an afterthought in this competition despite being the most well-traveled signal-caller of the three.
“Tanner? Tanner has done a nice job. [QB] Kenny Pickett and Tanner, we like both these guys and they are doing an excellent job. We are continuing to give those guys as many opportunities as we can within practice and preseason. Obviously, the lens gets magnified sometimes in preseason games, but these guys are getting lots of work. We love both these guys,” Moore told reporters.
“[QB] Will [Grier] is here, as well. He's played a bunch of football in this league. He's smart. So we feel fortunate to have the four guys that we have.”
Is McKee a better quarterback than Pickett? Debateable, he certainly looks more comfortable leading the Eagles' offense, and while this is the preseason, if someone has to play extensive snaps for Philadelphia this fall, most fans would rather see McKee earn the looks instead of the former first-round pick.
Then again, Pickett does have 24 starts on his resume and has thrown 446 more NFL passes than McKee is a pro and, thus, might make Moore and company more comfortable should his number be called than a wildcard like the Stanford product. While keeping Grier could help to ease that issue somewhat, as he has been in the NFL since 2019, keeping Pickett around could as well, which, considering the Eagles traded legit draft capital to bring him to town, is probably the most likely outcome.
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