If the Vikings want to get a quarterback in the first round of this year’s draft they’ll have to either trade up, hope one of the top four QB prospects drop, or, according to Daniel Jeremiah, draft Hendon Hooker 23rd overall.
In his latest mock draft, Jeremiah shocked the football world by predicting the Vikings take the 25-year-old Tennessee quarterback with their first-round pick.
“The Vikings have been doing their homework on this quarterback class. Hooker is well-liked around the league and he could sit for a year behind Kirk Cousins before taking over and ushering in a new era for Kevin O’Connell,” Jeremiah explained.
Hooker threw for 3,135 yards, 27 touchdowns and two interceptions before tearing his ACL in a 63-38 loss to South Carolina in November. Tennessee finished the season 11-2 and ranked sixth in the nation.
Sitting Hooker behind Cousins for a year not only burns one of his rookie-QB contract years, but also means he wouldn’t be making his first NFL start until he’s 26 years old. For reference, Lamar Jackson is just a year and six days older than Hooker and already has an NFL MVP under his belt.
The Vikings continually being linked with quarterbacks seemingly points to the Vikings doing their due diligence in looking for Cousins’s replacement sooner than later.
ESPN’s Mel Kiper has the Vikings taking TCU wide receiver Quentin Johnston in his latest mock draft.
“At receiver, though, with Adam Thielen gone, I love the idea of Johnston playing on the other side of Justin Jefferson, helping take defensive backs away. The 6-foot-3 Johnston will be an immediate red zone threat in the NFL, and his skills after the catch mean he will break a bunch of tackles and score long touchdowns. I know K.J. Osborn has earned a bigger role in the Minnesota offense, but there’s room for Johnston too.”
Kiper had the Vikings taking cornerback in his previous two mock drafts.
Johnston was third in the Big 12 with 1,069 receiving yards last season.
