Update (Nov. 10, 2026, 12 p.m. ET): The Vikings have begun making calls around the league about trading for a quarterback before the 4 p.m. ET deadline, NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport and ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported. No deal had been reported as of noon ET.
The phrase “Kirk Cousins Vikings” was not supposed to be a live search term in November 2026. Cousins left Minnesota after the 2023 season, spent a year in Atlanta and signed with the Las Vegas Raiders in April. Then Carson Wentz threw for 81 yards on Monday Night Football, Kyler Murray stayed on the sideline with a strained hamstring, and by Tuesday morning the idea of a reunion was all over NFL trade-deadline coverage.
Searches for “vikings trade,” “max brosmer” and “is kyler murray injured” all climbed on Google Trends in the U.S. over the last 24 hours, alongside more than a million searches tied to the Bills-Vikings game itself. Fans are asking the same question the Vikings’ front office has to answer before 4 p.m. ET on Tuesday: is there a quarterback out there who makes a 6-2 team with an elite defense better right now?
Let’s sort out what’s confirmed, what’s only been reported and what a Cousins deal would actually cost Minnesota.
Why Kirk Cousins and the Vikings are trending
The trigger was Monday night. Wentz, starting in place of Murray, completed 8 of 25 passes for 81 yards with two interceptions and a lost fumble in a 23-6 loss to Buffalo. He went 1 of 8 in the second half before Max Brosmer replaced him in the fourth quarter. Minnesota finished with 178 total yards and went 0 for 7 on third down. Our full Bills vs. Vikings recap has the details.
During the broadcast, NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport said the Vikings are “going to explore their options” at quarterback, according to Yahoo Sports. He named two players: Cousins and the Colts’ Daniel Jones. Rapoport described them as options that could be had for draft-pick compensation that would not cripple Minnesota, Heavy reported.
By Tuesday morning the noise had grown. NFL insider Jordan Schultz reported that the belief around the league is that the Vikings will try to make a trade, Bring Me The News reported. NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo had said Minnesota was expected to enter the quarterback market if Wentz struggled, and he struggled.
That combination of a bad national-TV performance, an injured starter and a familiar name on another roster is exactly what sends a search term spiking.
The quarterback room Minnesota has right now
The Vikings have three quarterbacks on the roster:
| Quarterback | Status | 2026 note |
|---|---|---|
| Kyler Murray | Hamstring strain, week-to-week | Signed a one-year deal; named starter in August |
| Carson Wentz | Started Week 9 | 8 of 25, 81 yards, 2 INT vs. Buffalo |
| Max Brosmer | Backup | 6 of 7, 58 yards in relief Monday |
Head coach Kevin O’Connell said on Nov. 5 that Murray has a hamstring strain and is considered week-to-week, according to NBC Sports. The Ringer’s Tom Pelissero later reported it as a Grade 2 strain, per NBC Sports’ fantasy news feed. Minnesota has not placed Murray on injured reserve, and Heavy noted his next chance to play is Sunday at Green Bay.
That is why “max brosmer” is trending too. Brosmer, who played college football at New Hampshire and Minnesota before joining the Vikings in 2025, started for the Vikings late in 2025 when injuries hit. His first NFL start was a 26-0 loss to Seattle in which he threw four interceptions, according to his Wikipedia profile. He is the emergency answer, not a long-term one.
Murray’s own season has been uneven. Before he got hurt, NFL.com noted the Vikings ranked 29th in yards per game, 31st in passing and 27th in scoring with Murray handling most of the snaps. So the question in Minnesota isn’t only who starts Sunday. It is whether this offense can carry a defense that has been one of the best in the league.
What Kirk Cousins has done in Las Vegas
If Minnesota wanted proof that Cousins still has something left at 38, his 2026 season offers it.
Through nine games he has thrown for 2,340 yards with 20 touchdowns and eight interceptions, Bleacher Report reported. Before Week 9, Rotoballer listed him third in the league in passing yards and second in touchdown passes. He started the season 3-0 and led a 38-33 comeback win over the Jets in Week 8 with three touchdown passes and a rushing score, according to KSNV.
There are warning signs, though. Cousins entered Week 9 with five interceptions and left San Francisco with eight after a three-pick day in a 38-17 loss to the 49ers. The Raiders have lost five of six since the 3-0 start and sit at 4-5, CBS Sports noted.
The fit is the main selling point. Cousins played for the Vikings from 2018 through 2023 and spent two of those seasons with O’Connell as his head coach and play-caller. He already knows the system, the terminology and Justin Jefferson. A quarterback acquired at the deadline has little time to learn a playbook, so that familiarity matters more than it would in March.
What a Cousins trade would cost the Vikings
The draft-pick price is not expected to be high. One league source told Yahoo’s Jori Epstein that Cousins would cost a third-round pick, according to Bring Me The News. Two other sources put the range between a fourth and a fifth, possibly with conditions attached.
The contract is the more complicated piece. Cousins signed a two-year deal with the Raiders in April. Pelissero has reported that the contract includes a $10 million guaranteed option bonus due in March, per Bring Me The News. Any team that trades for him has to plan for that decision after the season.
The Athletic’s Alec Lewis described Cousins as “gettable at a price,” Bring Me The News reported. He also raised the obvious question: would Minnesota really go back to a 38-year-old it moved on from after 2023?
Why the reunion may not happen
Every report pushing the Cousins idea comes with a counterweight.
The Raiders say he isn’t available. ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported Sunday that Las Vegas had not received trade inquiries on Cousins and was not interested in moving him, according to Yahoo Sports. Even Rapoport acknowledged the Raiders had shown no sign they would trade him.
Las Vegas has a rookie waiting. Fernando Mendoza, the No. 1 pick in the 2026 draft, has been Cousins’ backup all season. Pelissero reported the Raiders have no urgent need to trade Cousins but also believe Mendoza is ready, Bring Me The News reported. At 4-5, that is the one argument for Las Vegas to listen.
Minnesota’s own signals are mixed. Before Monday’s game, Pelissero reported the Vikings had not seriously discussed trading for a quarterback, including a Cousins reunion, per Bring Me The News. The Star Tribune’s Ben Goessling wrote over the weekend that a Cousins deal seemed unlikely. ESPN’s Dan Graziano said Monday he didn’t buy the talk of a Vikings quarterback trade, Yahoo Sports reported.
The other names are off the board. Pelissero reported the Colts told Jones on Saturday they would not trade him before the deadline. Yahoo Sports also listed Geno Smith of the Jets as a third name tied to Minnesota, but no report has moved that idea forward.
What a Cousins trade would mean for Justin Jefferson
Jefferson’s name is trending for a related reason. He had five catches for 33 yards in the Week 8 loss to Detroit and showed visible frustration on the sideline. He said afterward that the frustration came from wanting to win, not from wanting more targets, according to RG.org. On Monday, an early Wentz throw to him became a backward pass that Buffalo recovered.
Jefferson spent his first four NFL seasons catching passes from Cousins. A reunion would give the Vikings a quarterback who knows exactly where Jefferson will be on every route. No wonder Vikings fans keep searching for the deal, even with every insider hedging.
What happens if the Vikings don’t trade for a quarterback
If 4 p.m. ET passes without a move, Minnesota’s path is narrow. Murray’s hamstring would decide the Week 11 starter at Green Bay. If he can’t go, it is Wentz again, or possibly Brosmer if Wentz’s apparent lower leg issue from Monday lingers.
The stakes are real. The Vikings fell out of first place in the NFC North with Monday’s loss. Chicago is 7-2 and on a bye, Detroit is 6-2, and Green Bay is 6-3 coming off a 45-point game in New England. Our Week 10 power rankings have Minnesota at No. 10, with the defense doing most of the work.
There is also the free-agent route. Teams can still sign unattached quarterbacks after the deadline, though that market rarely offers a starter.
Bottom line on Kirk Cousins and the Vikings
The pitch for a reunion goes like this: Cousins is playing well, he knows O’Connell’s offense, and Minnesota has a playoff-caliber defense waiting on a quarterback. The pushback is just as easy to lay out: the Raiders have said he isn’t for sale, his contract carries a big March decision, and the Vikings’ own reporting beat has been split on whether Minnesota is serious.
Searches will keep climbing until 4 p.m. ET either way. If a deal happens, FieldPylon will update this story and our NFL trade deadline tracker. For the wider picture of Minnesota’s options, see our breakdown of the Vikings quarterback situation.
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