This 2024 Super Bowl QB is a potential Vikings target if Kirk Cousins leaves in free agency, per report

The Minnesota Vikings are interested in re-signing Kirk Cousins ahead of 2024 free agency. But if the quarterback lands elsewhere, they’re likely to pursue a “more economical veteran,” according to NFL Media, including a specific player in Super Bowl LVIII.

Current San Francisco 49ers backup Sam Darnold is one of the Vikings’ possible targets, per Tom Pelissero, with Minnesota “examining all” contingency plans for a post-Cousins QB room. The hope, Pelissero noted Sunday, would be for Darnold or another free agent to “become this year’s Baker Mayfield, while also buying them time to maybe also develop a rookie quarterback.”

Darnold, a former No. 3 overall draft pick, has played minimally as Brock Purdy’s backup with the 49ers, but he started 55 games for the New York Jets and Carolina Panthers from 2018-2022.

Cousins, meanwhile, has expressed an interest in returning for a seventh season as the Vikings’ starter, fresh off a hot start to the 2023 campaign. But the four-time Pro Bowler, who suffered a season-ending Achilles tear in October, has also left the door open for his latest free agency tour. His contract officially expires in March after he and the Vikings failed to strike an extension the year prior.

The Vikings also own the No. 11 overall pick in April’s 2024 NFL Draft, where they could target a QB.