Let's take for granted we can believe some of what we've been told where it pertains to the QB position:

1.  "NFL Teams fails young QBs more than young QBs fail NFL Teams" - KOC
2.  KOC had severe reservations over whether JJM was ready to take over.
3.  Kwesi ultimately was the fall guy for the Darnold/QB situation

What this tells me is ownership has been embarrassed by Darnold/Seattle's success.  They will insist on a better situation at QB next season.  Finally, they also won't want to be embarrassed twice by creating their own "Darnold" and watch him have success further down the line.

I can't see a scenario where the Vikings punt on JJM completely...unless there is more going on behind the scenes than we know.  But I also think ownership will demand more out of the QB position than we got last year.  This means REAL competition needs to be brought in for JJ.  That being said, you have to be careful the kind of competition you bring in.  If you are bringing in a 26-28 year old that's costing you a decent amount of draft capital/salary, you're essentially saying you're moving on completely from JJM.  There's no QB in that realm that's going to be a "2 Year fix" (Murray/Willis/Jones?

So that means you need to move to an older vet.  I'm not even entertaining the idea of Geno Smith because he was actively AWFUL this year or Derek Carr because he hasn't touched a football in two years.  The Aaron Rodgers ship has sailed as I think he'll go with McCarthy in Pittsburgh for another year if he does decide to play.

That leaves realistically one QB that can make you competitive and not be tied to them outside of 2 years.....and that is one Kirk Daniel Cousins.  He knows the system inside and out, could literally hit the ground running and would provide ACTUAL competition for JJM.  If JJ miraculously blossoms over the course of the offseason and beats out Cousins, best of both worlds....you have your young Franchise QB and the best possible back up you could ask for that can run the entire playbook if JJ gets hurt.  If Cousins beats out JJ, you have an entire season to evaluate a non injured JJ behind the scenes to see if he can be your guy down the line.

If you determine it's not going to work with JJ after the season, in that scenario, you'd presumably have control of Cousins for the next 1-2 years to draft and groom his replacement from the 2027 draft class.

Heard some Viking fans on twitter bitching about Donovan Jackson while praising Grey Zabel. Both rookies, Zabel was taken 18th overall and Jackson 25th. Jackson missed three games due to injury, so this isn't one-to-one. Still, it's hard to make the argument that Zabel had a far better year than Jackson. 

Overall PFF grade
Zabel 57.3
Jackson 59.4

Run blocking
Zabel 56.3
Jackson 57.2

Pass blocking
Zabel 58.6
Jackson 65.7

Penalties
Zabel 6
Jackson 4

Sacks, hits, hurries, pressures
Zabel 6, 2, 5, 26, 33
Jackson 4, 2, 5, 19, 26

Crap games (pass blocking grades under 50)
Zabel 6
Jackson 2

https://youtu.be/W8WmG9vbF2I?si=yUlzCwMaNk5GrWMx

Good listen and conversation by Judd and Chip (25:45) on the Wilfs, the "Competitive Rebuild," Ryan Poles, and what will and will not win you playoff games. It's what I've been echoing on here for years about the Wilfs and their failed philosophy of thinking we are a playoff team every year.

Absolutely brutal watch.

That is all.

Feb. 17–Mar. 3: Franchise/Transition Tag Designation Period.

Feb. 23–Mar. 2: NFL Scouting Combine, Indianapolis, IN.

Mar. 9–11: Legal Negotiation Period for Free Agents.
Mar. 11: 2026 League Year & Free Agency begins (4 p.m. ET).

Mar. 29–Apr. 1: Annual League Meeting, Phoenix, AZ.

Apr. 23–25: 2026 NFL Draft, Pittsburgh, PA.

May 1: Deadline for 5th-Year Options on 2023 1st-Round Picks.
May 19–20: Spring League Meeting.

July 15: Deadline for Franchise-Tagged Players to Sign Extensions.

Sept. 10: 2026 NFL Regular Season Kickoff.

I think game will be close till half then Seattle will pull away. 
34-20

Darnold winning a Superbowl for another team in his first attempt j seems like the next chapter of the wilfs wilfing.

In my advanced age, I've really gotten into the Greatful Dead the last few years. Was lucky enough to have seen Dead and Company at the Sphere in Vegas last year and it was the greatest live event I've ever been to. Feel very fortunate to have seen Bobby play live before his unfortunate passing. Anyway, was just curious if there were any other Deadheads on the board and if you've ever seen them live at any point, what was your experience? I was a teenager when Jerry died, but oh what an experience that would have been to see them at any point from that 79 to 92ish time frame.

First-time eligible players for 2027 include:

QB Ben Roethlisberger
TE Rob Gronkowski 
WR Antonio Brown
CB Richard Sherman
RB Adrian Peterson

Feeling old yet?