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Head coach Kevin O’Connell of the Minnesota Vikings.

The Minnesota Vikings made the best of a tough situation under center by drafting rookie QB J.J. McCarthy and signing free agent Sam Darnold this offseason, though each outcome fell short of ideal.

Minnesota is built to win now on offense with the likes of Justin Jefferson, Jordan Addison and T.J. Hockenson approaching or having just entered their respective primes. That reality makes the Vikings an interesting candidate for a player like Dak Prescott of the Dallas Cowboys a year from now should the limited contract extension talks between the two sides fall apart completely.

Prescott is entering the final season of a four-year, $160 million deal in 2024 and has a projected market value of $55.1 million annually.

Making a play for a big-name free agent isn’t commonplace one year after drafting a quarterback in the top 10, but opportunities to land a three-time Pro Bowler like Prescott who finished second in MVP voting last year are rare and demand drastic action. According to former NFL general manager and current ESPN analyst Mike Tannenbaum, the Vikings and the rest of the league will have that opportunity come next March.

“There’s a better chance, in my opinion, that Shedeur Sanders could be quarterback [for the Cowboys] next year than Dak Prescott at this point,” Tannenbaum said on the Friday, August 30 edition of “Get Up.”

Dak Prescott, Cowboys Owner Jerry Jones at Odds in Media

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QB Dak Prescott of the Dallas Cowboys.

Tannenbaum’s reasoning came after Cowboys owner Jerry Jones made some eyebrow-raising comments about why no deal is in place as his franchise quarterback barrels toward unrestricted free agency.

“You could easily say, if you haven’t seen it by now, you haven’t seen it,” Jones said, per Jon Machota of The Athletic, after a reporter asked the Dallas owner on Wednesday what more he needed to see from Prescott to give him a new mega-deal.

Media members then inquired with Jones as to an alternate plan should the team fail to reach an agreement with Prescott.

“I quit a long time ago getting bent out of shape about having anybody under contract or not. There are all kinds of things other than a contract that could change the outcome of him being under contract — injury, level of play,” Jones continued. “The whole thing has a lot of moving parts. Now, I can live with that … because we play a game that it can change on the next play.”

Prescott responded to Jones’ comments the following day with a dismissal, more or less.

“I stopped, honestly, listening to things [Jones] says to the media a long time ago,” Prescott said, per Machota. “It doesn’t really hold weight with me.”

Vikings Committed Only to J.J. McCarthy’s Rookie Contract Following 2024 Season

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Minnesota Vikings quarterback J.J. McCarthy.

McCarthy was the fifth QB off the board at No. 10, and Minnesota had to trade up to ensure it secured him. Now, he’s out for the year with a surgically-repaired meniscus.

Insider Judd Zulgad of Vikings Wire reported following the draft that Minnesota actually liked a different quarterback more.

“I’ve heard rumblings on [Michael] Penix, that the Vikings did love him and they liked his arm,” Zulgad said on July 12. “And they liked him more than McCarthy.”

Following McCarthy’s injury, Darnold is now the clear QB1 in Minnesota and playing on a one-year deal. He was one of the second-tier members of the 2024 free agent quarterback class below options like Kirk Cousins and Baker Mayfield — established starters with playoff experience on their resumés.

Darnold’s contract ends after the 2024 campaign, and McCarthy will enter 2025 with zero regular season experience. If Prescott is available, the Vikings could — and probably should — make a run at a quarterback whose services teams across the league will desire.

McCarthy will still have three years remaining on his $22 million rookie contract with a player option for Year 5 in 2028. As such, Minnesota wouldn’t need to give up on him necessarily, even if the team went all-in on a monster contract offer for Prescott.

Roughly $5.5 million annually (the value of McCarthy’s deal) is a sizable amount to pay for a backup QB, but it’s not unheard of — particularly under the unique circumstances that the Vikings may face come next spring.