Now just over a month out from the start of the new league year, some major dominoes are set to fall that could change the NFL landscape in 2025. Some of the biggest cards are being held by GM Kwesi Adofo-Mensah and the Minnesota Vikings , whose upcoming decision at quarterback will have a ripple effect in free agency — both internally and externally. While most expect Sam Darnold’s whirlwind 2024 season to be his last with Minnesota , some NFL analysts strongly believe that he could actually be the Vikings’ guy .
But could he be their guy to the point where former No. 10 overall draft pick J.J.
McCarthy becomes expendable? The Bleacher Report scouting department recently broke down potential trade assets, targets and packages for all 32 NFL teams, and the B/R staff proposed a blockbuster between the Vikings and Las Vegas Raiders — tabbing McCarthy as the new franchise quarterback of the Raiders. Here was the site’s full trade proposal: Hypothetical Trade We'd Love to See: 2025 first-round pick (No. 6 overall) for QB J.
J. McCarthy and 2025 The Vikings have the lowest investment in this year's draft with just four total picks and two in the top 100. They could change that quickly if they were willing to trade McCarthy.
The Michigan quarterback might have been the top quarterback prospect in this class, and he was only 21 when he was drafted. In this deal, the Raiders could simply use their sixth overall selection to draft a quarterback who may be better than any pass.