The Minnesota Vikings have a lot of questions to answer in the 2024 offseason. Their starting quarterback for the past six seasons, Kirk Cousins, is poised to become a free agent. After ending the 2022 season with a 13-4 record despite a negative point differential, the Vikings fell back to earth in 2023.
They ended the season with a 7-10 record and a -18 point differential. Not only that, but Minnesota saw their division foes in the Green Bay Packers and Detroit Lions both win playoff games and the Chicago Bears land the number one overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft.
The time might be now for the Vikings to take a step back and look to rebuild. That would put a big emphasis on the upcoming draft for them. Landing players like Michael Penix Jr. and Jalen McMillan would help with that if that's the path the Vikings choose.
Michael Penix Jr., Quarterback
The evaluation on Michael Penix Jr. is all over the place. Some regard him as a first-round pick and perhaps a top ten selection given the position he plays and how well he has performed at Washington.
Others have him outside the first round altogether. Penix ranked 46th overall on ESPN's big board.
There are some reasons as to why his ranking is so low. Teams could be wary of Penix Jr.'s age; he will be 24 years old about two weeks after the NFL Draft concludes. He's also suffered two ACL tears in his career.
That may be losing the forest for the trees, however. Michael Penix Jr. is a baller. He managed to rack up 9,544 passing yards in his final two seasons while still completing 65% of his passes. He also became the first college quarterback to throw for at least 4,500 yards in back-to-back seasons since some guy named Patrick Mahomes did it.
Penix Jr. also showed up in big moments. Eight of Washington's 14 wins came in one-score games, and he made plays to help win them. The biggest of those came in Washington's regular-season win over the Oregon Ducks, where Penix Jr.'s late touchdown pass to Rome Odunze gave the Huskies a lead they would never relinquish.
Penix Jr. is not a perfect prospect. But the Vikings are in a position where drafting a potential quarterback of the future would really do them well. Jared Goff may not be a great quarterback, but the Lions have done a lot of winning with him at the helm there.
Jordan Love has already established himself as the new franchise quarterback in Green Bay. It seems like Caleb Williams is on his way to Chicago. The Vikings have to keep up somehow. Penix Jr. could be the guy to help them do that.
Jalen McMillan, Wide Receiver
If the Vikings draft Penix Jr., who not draft one of his former teammates too? Jalen McMillan could've entered the 2023 NFL Draft and been a day two pick, but he opted to return to Washington for one more run.
Unfortunately for him, injuries held him back in 2023. A year after going for 79 receptions, 1,098 yards and nine touchdowns, McMillan's numbers dipped to just 45 receptions, 559 yards, and five touchdowns.
But there's a role for McMillan to play in Minnesota. Yes, they already have Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison in tow. But McMillan spent the majority of his time in Seattle in the slot. And he dominated there.
Meanwhile, KJ Osborn, Minnesota's current slot receiver, is slated to become a free agent and averaged just 1.02 yards per route run according to playerprofiler.com. In 2022, that number was just 1.19. He was outside of the top 80 among wide receivers in that stat in each of the past two seasons.
The Vikings could use an upgrade at that spot. Jalen McMillan could be that and has familiarity with Michael Penix Jr. This would be a great haul for the Vikings in the 2024 Draft.
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