Minnesota Vikings columnist shares bizarre rumor, sends fans into a fury

When the Minnesota Vikings selected quarterback J.J. McCarthy with the 10th overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, it was believed they had found their quarterback of the future. That might not be the case according to Pioneer Press columnist Charley Walters .

He contends that a poor season could end up prompting the Vikings to take a quarterback in the first round of next April's NFL Draft and relates it to how the Dallas Cowboys selected Troy Aikman and Steve Walsh with first-round picks.

McCarthy is out for the season after surgery last month to repair a torn meniscus in his right knee. Should the Vikings suffer a disheartening season, which appears likely, and end up with a top-five pick in next spring’s draft, it wouldn’t be a shock if they were to choose another quarterback of the future.

The Vikings took McCarthy with the No. 10 pick in April’s draft. Georgia’s Carson Beck is considered the top QB in next year’s draft, probably a top-five pick.

When Jimmy Johnson was in Dallas, he had Troy Aikman as his quarterback. But he also spent a first-round pick in the 1989 supplemental draft to take Steve Walsh from Miami via St. Paul. Once Aikman won the starting job, the Cowboys traded Walsh to the New Orleans Saints for first-, second- and third-round draft picks.

Nothing is certain.

There are no indications the Vikings would take another quarterback

Needless to say, fans are not taking this well on social media, especially after McCarthy thrived during the offsesaon

The heavy amount of reckless speculation from Walters here is fascinating. He frames it like he's heard things, but then is framed like he's speculating about the idea.

Yes, the Cowboys ended up taking two quarterbacks in the 1989 offseason. It made a lot of sense for a Cowboys team that was in a bad place. They were coming off of a 1-15 seasons and had just fired legendary head coach Tom Landry.

The Vikings are in quite a different position than the 1989 Cowboys. They have a lot of building blocks at premium position and the right leadership with head coach Kevin O'Connell and general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah steering the ship.

Furthermore, Walters says that McCarthy's season-ending injury means that nothing is certain, despite O'Connell saying that he's seen enough.

"Our fan base and everyone should be excited about the fact that we've got our young franchise quarterback in the building. J.J.'s confirmed to me and a lot of our coaches and players that we've got the right guy in the building for the future."

These quotes from O'Connell don't scream that the Vikings would consider taking another quarterback. It might be different if O'Connell didn't see anything from McCarthy during the offseason and training camp, but McCarthy flashed in a major way, including a 188-yard and two-touchdown performance against the Las Vegas Raiders in week one of the preseason.

This isn't likely to happen and isn't something worth considering unless McCarthy's knee takes a turn for the worse.

Related: "We're always trying to learn" Vikings HC Kevin O'Connell and GM Kwesi Adofo-Mensah open up about 2022 NFL Draft and beyond