The Vikings are trading quarterback Sam Howell and a 2026 sixth-round pick to the Eagles, per Tom Pelissero and Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network. In exchange, Minnesota will receive a fifth- and seventh-round selection in 2026, and ESPN’s Adam Schefter was the primary to report that the team can be signing veteran passer Carson Wentz to switch Howell and to serve because the backup for J.J. McCarthy.
Wentz, 32, visited the Vikings yesterday, and the summit clearly went well. McCarthy, in fact, missed his entire rookie season in 2024 because of injury, though the club’s faith in his ability to operate because the starting QB in 2025 never wavered. Sam Darnold and Daniel Jones were due to this fact allowed to go away in free agency, and Minnesota acquired Howell during April’s draft with the expectation that he would slot in behind McCarthy on the depth chart.
Howell played well within the club’s first preseason contest this summer, but he struggled in his second outing, completing one in every of five passes for 13 yards and an interception. He sat out the preseason finale on Friday as Brett Rypien and 2025 UDFA Max Brosmer shared the snaps under center.
Along with adding a more experienced and completed voice in Wentz — who’s aware of HC Kevin O’Connell‘s offensive system — today’s transaction adds a bit more draft capital to the Vikings’ stockpile (just because the recent Harrison Phillips swap did). As multiple pundits, including ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler, were quick to indicate within the immediate aftermath of the Howell report, Minnesota is available in the market for a large receiver, and the Phillips and Howell trades could help facilitate a WR addition. Longtime Viking and current Panther Adam Thielen stays a goal, but Fowler notes the club has multiple lines of inquiry open. Plus, in response to Alec Lewis of The Athletic, Minnesota has been pleased with Brosmer and appears perfectly content to have him because the No. 3 QB.
Howell, meanwhile, continues a nomadic journey that is rare for such a young player. The Commanders’ 2022 draftee, who will turn 25 next month, began all 17 games for Washington in 2023, and he finished with a 4-13 record. The club was unafraid to let him air it out, as he led the NFL with 612 pass attempts, which led to a league-worst 21 interceptions. He was traded to Seattle in April 2024, but he saw limited motion because the backup to Geno Smith. Including today’s deal, the UNC product has been traded 3 times within the span of 18 months.
Still, the Eagles needed some cover for their very own QB room, as Jalen Hurts‘ presumptive backup, Tanner McKee, is coping with a finger injury that has jeopardized his Week 1 availability. Albert Breer of SI.com notes Philadelphia stays high on McKee, and it doesn’t sound as if his ailment is a long-term one. Nonetheless, Howell will offer an upgrade over sixth-round rookie Kyle McCord, each because the QB2 within the event McKee will not be able to go in the beginning of the season and because the QB3 over the course of the campaign (or, the Eagles could theoretically attempt to trade McKee; per Breer, there was outside interest within the 25-year-old signal-caller, which echoes his recent report on the matter).
Assuming a McKee trade doesn’t come to fruition, Jeff McLane of the Philadelphia Inquirer believes McCord shall be waived, though the Eagles could attempt to stash him on the practice squad if he clears waivers. Offseason trade acquisition Dorian Thompson-Robinson can be on the Eagles’ roster in the intervening time, but today’s news obviously doesn’t bode well for his future in Philly.
McLane adds that the team has waived/injured DB Lewis Cine, who, according Zach Berman of The Athletic, was on crutches following Friday’s preseason game, when he recorded a diving interception.