Carson Wentz posted an 8.9 passer rating in Monday night’s 23-6 loss to Buffalo, and the Minnesota Vikings have until Tuesday’s 4 p.m. ET trade deadline to find someone better. Kirk Cousins is the answer, and the Vikings will have to overpay the Las Vegas Raiders to get him.

Wentz completed 8 of 25 passes for 81 yards with 2 interceptions and a lost fumble. That rating was the lowest by any passer with at least 25 attempts since Sam Darnold’s 3.6 against New England in 2019, and the Darnold name stings in Minnesota. The Vikings let him walk to hand the job to J.J. McCarthy, then watched Darnold win Super Bowl 60 with Seattle on the back of a dominant defense.

Vikings QB Trade Options: Why Kirk Cousins Fits Best

McCarthy is a Giant now, traded in September for a 2027 fifth-round pick. Kyler Murray went 5-1 as the starter before a Grade 2 hamstring injury left him week to week, and Minnesota fell to 6-2 on Monday. Prior to the injury, Murray ranked 27th out of 35 qualified quarterbacks in PFN’s QB Impact metric.

Minnesota’s ask is modest: a quarterback who protects the ball, stays on schedule, and keeps the defense rested. The model is Brock Purdy, efficient snap to snap with enough juice to make a play when the game demands one.

PFN’s estimated trade values rank the plausible targets as Daniel Jones (200), Cousins (125), Mac Jones (31), and Tua Tagovailoa (10). Jones spent late 2024 on Minnesota’s practice squad, so the scheme is familiar. A first-round offer might have tempted a 2-7 Colts team that sent its own 2027 first to the Jets for Sauce Gardner, but Indianapolis told Jones on Saturday it won’t trade him.

Jones fits the profile best, which is why San Francisco asked for a second-round pick or more for Purdy’s backup this spring and found no takers. Tagovailoa is the long shot. Atlanta agreed to a one-year minimum deal with him in March, three days before Minnesota gave Murray the same terms. Drew Lock would have made sense, but he’s starting in Seattle while Darnold heals.

That leaves Cousins, who knows Kevin O’Connell’s offense better than any quarterback on the market. O’Connell coached him in Washington in 2017 and again in Minnesota, where the 2022 Vikings went 13-4 with a defense that ranked 26th in PFN’s Defense Impact metric. Cousins has 20 touchdown passes, second in the league. His 3 interceptions against San Francisco on Sunday are a real concern, and even that line clears the bar Wentz set Monday by a wide margin.

How the Vikings Can Pry Kirk Cousins From the Raiders

Las Vegas has little reason to sell. The Raiders are 4-5, one game out of the AFC’s final wild-card spot, and Cousins has started every game while No. 1 pick Fernando Mendoza waits. ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported the team fielded no calls on Cousins over the weekend, and PFN’s trade deadline model gives him a 0.2% chance of being moved.

Cousins knows the decision isn’t his. “I’ll let the decision-makers make the decisions and react accordingly,” he said after Sunday’s loss. O’Connell deferred to general manager Nolan Teasley after Monday’s game but said the staff would “get right to work on any potential moves that can be there.”

Minnesota’s best bargaining chip is a $10 million bill. Cousins’ Raiders deal pays a $1.3 million base salary in 2026 and a fully guaranteed $10 million roster bonus in March 2027, and that guarantee leaves with him in a trade. A buyer owes only $650,000 of 2026 salary, so absorbing the March money is the first piece of the offer.

Then, Minnesota could overpay on picks. Reported estimates of Cousins’ value run from a fifth-round pick to a third. Minnesota should offer a 2027 second-rounder plus a future pick that rises if the Vikings reach the NFC Championship Game, then send Wentz back as Mendoza’s veteran backup.

Quarterback trades at the deadline are rare for good reason. A 6-2 team that sits one quarterback away from contention is the exception, and nobody in Minnesota will remember the price if Cousins brings home a Super Bowl. The Vikings have until 4 p.m. ET to make Las Vegas an offer it can’t refuse.