The Minnesota Vikings will get the 2023 NFL season underway in Week 1 when they host the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on the league’s opening Sunday. There are several Vikings trades that the team could make before then. They could look to improve their running back group or add depth to the defensive line. But the best move Minnesota can make is all about the future, and that is why San Francisco 49ers quarterback Trey Lance is the player to target for a last-minute Vikings before Week 1 of the new season.

The Vikings must trade for QB Trey Lance before Week 1 of the upcoming season

NFL coaches are responsible for winning on Sundays and over the course of a 17-week NFL season. General managers are tasked with helping them do that, but also keeping an eye on the future so that a team can win season after season.

Former general manager Rick Spielman failed in this mission at the quarterback position for years, bringing in aging veterans and career backups time after time, like Gus Frerotte, Brett Favre, Teddy Bridgewater, Case Keenum, and even Kirk Cousins.

Some of these signal-callers have had success and have even been pretty food for the Vikes, but they are also a big part of the reason the franchise hasn’t been to a Super Bowl in over 45 years.

Now that Kwesi Adofo-Mensah is in charge, getting a QB to succeed Cousins — and in turn keep Justin Jefferson happy and in Minnesota — is one of his top priorities. Adofo-Mensah has already gotten rid of Spielman’s last attempt at a developmental quarterback in Kellen Mond, and in two drafts, 25-year-old Jaren Hall out of BYU is the only QB the team has taken.

And the biggest catch-22 here is that as long as the Vikings have Cousins and Jefferson, the team will likely never be bad enough to get the high draft pick it needs to find a franchise signal-caller.

Unless that is, a top-3 pick falls out of favor and into your lap.

That’s precisely what could be happening for the Vikings ahead of Week 1 of the 2023 season, with a Trey Lance trade now available.

Lance is out in San Francisco and should be available for a relatively cut-rate price. After the young QB’s demotion to third string, keeping him around would create a distraction that a contender like the 49ers doesn’t need.

Quarterback obviously isn’t a pressing need for the Vikings ahead of Week 1 of the new season. Still, when an opportunity presents itself, the franchise needs to pounce.

If the Vikings do trade for Lance, they are getting a talented but raw signal-caller who needs a lot of work. Lance played at a small college (North Dakota State) against inferior competition with much better teammates in a simple offense. He also only played a handful of games under these conditions as COVID shut down FCS football for much longer than FBS leagues.

Lance is not ready now. He needs time to sit and learn and build up his confidence under a coach who can develop QBs and a veteran QB who can mentor him. Kyle Shanahan and Jimmy Garoppolo were not those guys in San Francisco.

However, Kevin O’Connell and Kirk Cousins could be those guys for Trey Lance, which is why the Vikings should make this trade now.