Justin Herbert to the Minnesota Vikings is a trade idea that lives on whiteboards. PFF’s Bradley Locker put it on his anyway, pairing the Los Angeles Chargers quarterback with Minnesota in his 10 fairy-tale trades ahead of the Nov. 10 deadline and pitching a team whose defense has a Super Bowl case on a long-term answer under center.
PFF labels these fairy-tale trades, and none of them come from reporting. They’re talking points, and Locker calls every player on the list very unlikely to be traded. When ESPN’s Adam Schefter raised a Herbert trade with someone in the Chargers organization, that person cut him off. “Let me be very clear about this. We have never even discussed that idea,” the source said, per Schefter’s Oct. 13 post.
Why Herbert would make sense in Minnesota
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Minnesota’s need is real. Kyler Murray, who signed for the minimum after Arizona released him in March, has completed 69 of 101 passes for 662 yards with two touchdown passes and two interceptions in a season interrupted by a Week 1 concussion. The Vikings rank 26th in offensive EPA per play, per Locker, and Murray has been the least of their reasons for winning. Vikings coach Kevin O’Connell likes the recent trend. “We’ve really seen him click into a comfort [level] playing the position,” he said after the New Orleans win.
Herbert would be a bet on O’Connell’s history with quarterbacks more than on this season’s tape. His 42.1 passing grade ranks last among 35 qualifying quarterbacks, according to PFF, and he has five touchdown passes, eight interceptions and 21 sacks for a 0-6 team. That slump is a big reason the Chargers’ quarterback problem is sinking their season. Minnesota has also tried before, checking on Herbert ahead of the 2024 draft before the Chargers quickly shut it down.
The contract is the other wall. Herbert signed a five-year, $262.5 million extension in 2023, and a trade this season would leave the Chargers with $72.8 million in dead money, according to Over the Cap. Minnesota would take on cap hits of $58.3 million in 2027 and $71.1 million in 2028, and a league executive floated three first-round picks as a price to Schefter. Some have pushed for a slew of draft picks too. For fans packing U.S. Bank Stadium, pairing an elite defense with a franchise quarterback is the dream, and it only becomes real if Los Angeles changes its stance before Nov. 10.
More on the Minnesota Vikings
- Offensive line is the biggest issue for the Vikings as they prepare for Phase 2 of the season
- Unpredictable: Josh Metellus, Harrison Smith and Blake Cashman have made the Vikings D nearly impossible to decipher
- Jordan Mason’s Return Eases Vikings’ Need for a Running Back Trade
- If the Vikings truly want to win, they will make a major splash at the trade deadline
