NFL Rumors: Aaron Rodgers' former rival considered trading up "very high" to land Bryce Young in 2023 Draft
Bryce Young was selected number one overall by the Carolina Panthers. Had he not been, things would have been very interesting at the draft.
Given that the Houston Texans selected C.J. Stroud next, they likely would have wanted Young if he fell. Another NFC team might have made them an offer they couldn't refuse, though.
According to reports, the Minnesota Vikings had been aggressively making calls in the event that Young slipped past Carolina. If he had, they likely would have sent everything they had to Houston.
Update: The #Vikings had made calls to NFL teams about trading up "very high" in 2023 Draft in attempts to get QB Bryce Young, per @TomPelissero
Ultimately the #Panthers took Young 1st overall so it didn't matter. But worth noting the Vikings had no interest in picking Will… twitter.com/i/web/status/1… https://t.co/5NDqky4zZR
According to BroBible, Tom Pelissero confirmed that the team was looking at moving all the way up:
“They were making calls about moving up very high in the draft, but my understanding is that was for one player, and that was Bryce Young, who ended up going No. 1, and so there went any possibility for Minnesota to go get him.”
Minnesota is clearly looking into life after Kirk Cousins and were prepared to risk it all to land Young to be the future. Ultimately, he was the only quarterback they were interested in as they didn't trade up for C.J. Stroud or Anthony Richardson. They also passed on Will Levis as he dropped to their original pick.
Cousins is 34 and the Vikings must begin looking at some sort of transition. Evidently, the front office has already considered that and was looking at the top prospect from the most recent draft class.
Will Bryce Young be a day one starter?
Carolina Panthers GM Scott Fitterer made waves when announced that Andy Dalton was presently the starting quarterback. This is not uncommon as many teams don't name their rookie quarterbacks the starter immediately and some don't even allow them to start the first couple of games.
This is exactly what the Chicago Bears did with Justin Fields. Dalton, who is now in Carolina, was the original starter for the Bears in Fields' rookie season. Fields eventually took over, though.
The same will happen with Bryce Young, although it's possible he earns the job in the pre-season. He could be a day one starter, but he'll be the starter eventually regardless.