The Minnesota Vikings have traded for quarterback Josh Dobbs from the Arizona Cardinals, according to Ian Rapoport.
The Cardinals will send a 7th-round pick along with Josh Dobbs to the Vikings for a 6th-round pick in a swap, according to Adam Schefter.
The Cardinals originally acquired Dobbs from the Cleveland Browns before the start of the season for a 2024 5th-round pick. Vikings starting quarterback Kirk Cousins suffered a season-ending torn Achilles injury in Week 8, leading to the acquisition of Dobbs, who will likely backup Jaren Hall in Week 9 against the Atlanta Falcons with such little time to prepare.
Who wins the trade between the Vikings and Cardinals for Josh Dobbs? Let's take a look at it from both sides.
Vikings: Keeping the boat afloat with a serviceable QB
With a 4-4 record in the NFC North, and with Justin Jefferson potentially coming back soon, the Vikings weren't quite ready to pull the plug on the season after losing Kirk Cousins to injury. While it's going to be an uphill battle to the playoffs without Cousins, starting rookie Jaren Hall, a 5th-round rookie from BYU, would have made it incredibly difficult. Hall only completed 54.2 percent of his passes this preseason, and head coach Kevin O'Connell likely wanted a more reliable veteran option.
Hall could still get his chance in Week 9, but Dobbs has already shown that he can come into a new situation and have some success out of the gates. Arizona was surprisingly competitive to start the year, and although Dobbs's play wasn't spectacular, he proved he was capable of making plays with his legs while taking pretty good care of the ball, as he had zero interceptions through his first four games.
The Vikings are a pass-first team, and a late-round pick swap is a small price to pay to keep the system chugging along. Minnesota doesn't want to stunt Jordan Addison's development with incompetent quarterback play, as he's been incredible the last two weeks along with T.J. Hockenson. Making the playoffs doesn't have to be out of the question, especially with a relatively light schedule ahead, and Dobbs is likely a pretty substantial improvement over Hall or Nick Mullens, who should be available to play soon as well.
The cost to acquire Dobbs is mostly inconsequential, but the bigger question is this: should the Vikings have tried to acquire a future franchise quarterback at the deadline instead of a stopgap? Cousins is headed to free agency and coming off major surgery, and Minnesota likely won't pick high enough to get a shot at one of the top QB prospects in the draft. You have to wonder if the Vikings at least asked about Kyler Murray instead, who is nearing his return from an ACL injury and may not be in the long-term plans for the Cardinals.
Getting Dobbs kicks the QB can down the road, and keeps the Vikings afloat. If Hall hasn't shown legitimate QB1 potential in practice, it's the right decision for the time being.
Grade: A-
Cardinals: That's not how flipping works
It's understandable why the Cardinals would want to get something in return for Josh Dobbs. Kyler Murray should be returning soon, and getting a look at rookie Clayton Tune is prudent for the long-term plans in Arizona. Dobbs was a great stopgap option, but he's no longer needed in Arizona.
But with all that said, shouldn't the Cardinals have been able to leverage the Vikings into offering at least a 5th-round pick back in return? After all, that's what Arizona paid for 8 games of Dobbs to be the starter. Minnesota is getting Dobbs for exactly the same length, but with much bigger stakes at hand. Dobbs definitely didn't decrease his value around the league with his serviceable play, so getting a worse pick than the one you spent two months ago doesn't make a whole lot of sense.
That's not how trades always work in the NFL, of course, and something is better than nothing. It's not like Arizona had more time to negotiate with the deadline coming in just a few hours, but you have to wonder if Arizona would have held out just a little longer if Minnesota would have budged and upped the ante.
It's not the end of the world, but flipping quarterbacks probably should have resulted in a net draft pick gain for the Cardinals instead of a net loss. Dobbs did his job, and Arizona got what they needed for the first 8 weeks, but in the grand scheme of things for the Cardinals, nothing really improved long-term from this experience.
Grade: C
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