This was Ben Goessling's live report on the first round of the NFL Draft from Vikings headquarters at the TCO Performance Center in Eagan. To read Ben's final report on the Vikings' moves in the first round, Go here.
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JJ McCarthy is the highest paid quarterback in Vikings history. The Vikings had a pass rusher in the first round for the first time since 2005.
The Vikings traded one spot in the first round of the NFL draft on Thursday night, selecting McCarthy with the 10th overall pick they received from the Jets. McCarthy, who won a national championship his senior year at Michigan, was drafted one spot higher than the Vikings' pick Daunte Culpepper in 1999.
The Vikings were the only team to trade up in the top 10 picks. They did it again later in the first round, moving up from No. 23 to No. 17 for Alabama pass rusher Dallas Turner, who became the first pass rusher they drafted in the first round since Erasmus James in 2005. To get Turner, the Vikings sent the pick The 167th year, plus third- and fourth-place finishes in 2025, are headed to Jacksonville.
The Vikings currently have no picks Friday in the second and third rounds, which begin at 6 p.m. Central time. They have five picks on Saturday.
Here's how the night played:
10:40 p.m.: A rare double for the Vikings
This is only the fourth time in the Super Bowl era that the Vikings have taken at least two players in the top 20 in the NFL Draft. The others were 2005 (Troy Williamson, Erasmus James), 1994 (Dewayne Washington, Todd Stussy), and 1967 (Clint Jones, Gene Washington, Alan Page).
9:55 p.m.: JJ McCarthy 'wanted to be a Minnesota Viking'
JJ McCarthy was selected 10th overall, the highest-ranking quarterback in Vikings history.
“I know JJ McCarthy really wanted to be a Minnesota Viking,” head coach Kevin O'Connell said. “Hopefully, as excited as our fans are, they know that JJ McCarthy really wanted to be a Minnesota Viking, and he can't wait to get here and get to work.”
Five things to know about JJ McCarthy
9:30 p.m.: Vikings “over the moon” with picks
The Vikings made two trades to advance in the first round of the NFL draft on Thursday, securing both a new quarterback and an edge rusher for the rebuilt defense. The Vikings moved up one spot, to 10th from 11th, to draft Michigan quarterback JJ McCarthy, then moved from 23rd to 17th to grab Alabama edge rusher Dallas Turner.
“Obviously there are a lot of things out of our control,” Vikings general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah said. “So we wanted to make sure we were prepared for all scenarios.” “We've been very happy with what's happened. We've been able to add a key piece of the franchise in a quarterback who has a lot of potential, a lot of ability, who has won at a high level in a lot of different places. An impulsive player, who impacts the game, who is in Reality only scratches the surface, we think, of his range of abilities: One of the best defensive players on our team, I can't believe we got both in the same draft.
Adofo-Mensah said he spoke to McCarthy via Zoom the day Michigan's team received its championship rings.
“He's wearing all his rings [from high school and college] “One day a year and he only had a free thumb,” Adofo-Mensah said of McCarthy.
“But as we were talking, he said, 'Is there a reason you can't recruit me?' And I said, 'Honestly, from a talent standpoint, no, you're just kind of an unknown because you played in a super-heavy offense and different things like that, so there's some conjecture, but it's from where we are.' “You've seen, we believe you can do anything.”
9:07 p.m.: Vikings trade up again, trade Dallas Turner for 17th overall pick
This time, the Vikings moved up with the No. 17 overall pick for Alabama edge rusher Dallas Turner, who was often projected to be a top-10 pick. Turner has been compared to former Vikings edge rusher Danielle Hunter.
Turner (6-foot-3, 247 pounds) led all rushers in the scouting group with a 4.46-second 40-yard dash. The freakishly athletic pass rusher had 14.5 tackles for loss and 10 sacks last season for the Crimson Tide.
The Vikings traded to the Jacksonville Jaguars, moving up six spots from 23rd overall. They packaged their remaining fifth-round pick (No. 167 overall), a 2025 third-round pick and a 2025 fourth-round pick with the No. 23 pick.
The Vikings have five picks remaining in the draft, but are not scheduled to be on the clock again until Saturday's final rounds. They're next again with the 108th pick in the fourth round, as well as two picks in the sixth round (No. 177, No. 203) and two picks in the seventh round (No. 230 and No. 232). –Andrew Kramer
Five things to know about Dallas Turner
8:19 p.m.: The Vikings draft Michigan QB JJ McCarthy
JJ McCarthy is the highest paid quarterback in Vikings history.
The team selected Michigan QB 10th overall on Thursday night, after trading one spot with the Jets to ensure they would prevent another team from jumping ahead of them. McCarthy was drafted one spot ahead of Daunte Culpepper, who went 11th overall in 1999.
He is the fifth quarterback taken in the draft, and will likely sit behind Sam Darnold at the start of the season while the Vikings give him time to learn their offense. But he will be the player Kevin O'Connell tries to develop into the next franchise QB for the Vikings.
The Vikings held a private workout with McCarthy after his pro day in March, and McCarthy met with O'Connell and quarterbacks coach Josh McCown at the NFL combine in Indianapolis.
When I asked McCarthy afterward about his meeting with the Vikings, here's what he said: “Coach O'Connell led the whole thing. Everything they talked about about wanting to get out of the quarterback position aligned with what I wanted. Just being able to get on the board with them, watch their plays, was “It's special.”
Get your JJ-to-JJ memes ready.
Read La Velle E. Neal III's Vikings draft report.
8:15 p.m.: The Vikings trade up to No. 10
The Vikings have been considering a trade in the draft for the quarterback since last year. While the move they made Thursday night wasn't as dramatic as they were thought to be thinking, it means they will likely soon have the first top-10 QB in franchise history.
The team acquired the 10th overall pick from the Jets in the draft in exchange for picks 129 and 157. The Vikings will also receive the 203rd pick from New York.
The move came after four QBs — Caleb Williams, Jayden Daniels, Drake Maye and Michael Penix — were selected in the first eight picks. It puts the Vikings in a position to make either JJ McCarthy or Bo Nix the highest drafted QB in franchise history.
The Vikings explored moving up in the 2023 draft for the quarterback, but ultimately stayed put to select USC receiver Jordan Addison 23rd overall, sources said. With the 2024 class expected to have plenty of depth at the quarterback position, the Vikings decided to wait until this year.
8:05 p.m.: Penix-to-Falcons in a stunning first game of the draft
Kirk Cousins left the Vikings to join the Falcons, on a four-year deal that ostensibly guaranteed him more security than he thought he would get in Minnesota. He got amazing news Thursday night.
The Falcons made Washington's Michael Penix Jr. the fourth quarterback selected in the first eight picks, drafting a passer who will sit behind Cousins for now but could be his successor. Cousins' deal includes two guaranteed years, and a 2026 roster bonus that becomes guaranteed in 2025, so he's effectively tied to Atlanta for three years. But if Penix is ready to play sooner than that, things could get interesting for the Vikings' former QB, who will now be dealing with a scenario he may have thought he was avoiding in Minnesota.
Just before the casting, Cousins' agent, Mike McCartney, tweeted: “About to be shocked.” actually.
7:55 p.m.: Giants pass on QB, select receiver at No. 6
The pre-draft chatter about the Giants taking a quarterback at No. 6 turned out to be just that. They took LSU receiver Malik Nabers with their first-round pick, replacing Michigan QB JJ McCarthy. The Vikings are now just four options away, with McCarthy, Michael Penix Jr. and Bo Nix all still available.
The Giants took Alabama's J.C. Latham in the seventh, putting the Falcons on the clock ahead of the Bears, Jets and Vikings. If the Broncos are in the market for a quarterback, they could try to jump ahead of the Vikings. Otherwise, the Vikings could select several remaining quarterbacks at No. 11. They could also tackle another position at No. 11, if they feel good enough about their options at No. 23 to do something there or move from there to No. 23. QB.
We will see very soon how they play it.
7:47 p.m.: Joe Alt from Totino Grace, by Chargers
Forty years after Kansas City selected Alt 21st overall, the Chiefs Hall of Famer celebrated with family and friends at 7 Vines Vineyard and Winery in Dellwood Thursday night as the Los Angeles Chargers used the fifth overall pick on John's most mountainous son, Joe, a a. The former Totino-Grace High School star and two-time All-American from Notre Dame.
Joe was the first offensive lineman and second outside linebacker to be selected. He also became the third Minnesotan to be drafted in the top 10 in the past 20 years, joining Holy Angels receiver Larry Fitzgerald Jr., the third overall pick of the Cardinals in 2004, and Marshall quarterback Trey Lance, the third overall pick of the 49ers. In 2021.– Mark Craig
Read more about Alt here.
7:32 p.m.: Patriots hold on to No. 3, draft Drake May
The Patriots selected North Carolina quarterback Drake Maye with the third overall pick, with player sources saying the Vikings hope to draft in the first round. Now, we'll see if the Vikings try to make a big move for one of the other quarterbacks in the draft.
They were thought to be trying to move up to third to select Maye, although the Patriots' hefty asking price made that difficult to accomplish. The Vikings could still make a move for Michigan quarterback JJ McCarthy, or see if McCarthy, Washington's Michael Penix Jr. or Oregon's Bo Nix falls far enough away to be their option closer to the No. 11 overall pick, since they wouldn't have a choice. . To give up as much as you can in a trade.
7:27 p.m.: Caleb Williams and Jayden Daniels lead 1, 2
As expected, the Bears selected USC quarterback Caleb Williams with the No. 1 overall pick and the Leaders followed by taking LSU QB Jayden Daniels No. 2.
Patriots around the clock. What will they do? Keep it or trade it? Will the Vikings make a big move to this spot?
6:15 p.m.: Vikings QB poll results
On April 8, the Star Tribune asked readers to vote on which quarterback they wanted the Vikings to draft. While you still have about an hour to vote, here's a quick look at the results:
5:15 p.m.: Vikings first round preview
The Vikings have nine picks in the 2024 draft, including two in the first round Thursday night, when they could trade for a quarterback while looking for a long-term solution at the position. They've been planning for tonight practically since head coach Kevin O'Connell and general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah arrived in Minnesota in 2022. They scouted the 2024 draft class for two years, let Kirk Cousins leave in free agency, and took the No. 23 pick from Houston to go with Their 11th overall pick and placed at least six quarterbacks through a pre-draft process designed by O'Connell.
Thursday could be the end of that process, especially if the Vikings move up one spot from No. 11 to take the highest-ranking quarterback in franchise history.
The Vikings have drafted a QB in the first round just four times. One could make an argument, as Michael Rand of the Star Tribune did today, that the team is poised to make the most important draft pick in its history.
The Vikings will look for upgrades on defense, especially at defensive line and cornerback. They could also get additional help on the offensive line, or depth at their skill positions. But the first order of business is figuring out their future at QB.
