4 fantasy QBs who could save Justin Jefferson after Kick Cousins' injury

The big storyline in Week 8 was Kirk Cousin likely suffering a season-ending Achilles injury, according to ESPN's Adam Schefter. This is awful news for a quarterback who was playing very well and most weeks was finishing in the Top 10 in fantasy football among quarterbacks.

The Vikings are going to have to make some big decisions ahead of Tuesday's NFL trade deadline. After starting the season 0-3, the Vikings as a team were playing much better and won four of their past five games.

If the Vikings believe they can continue making a push for the playoffs, they are going to have to bring in another quarterback, either through a trade or free agency. This would be great news for anyone who has Justin Jefferson, who is currently on injured reserve but could return as early as Week 10.

These are four quarterbacks the Minnesota Vikings could bring in to save Justin Jefferson's season in fantasy football.

Case Keenum

The Minnesota Vikings should know this quarterback very well as Case Keenum started 14 games for the Vikings in 2017 and was the starting quarterback for their last playoff appearance as a franchise. That season, Keenum would throw for over 3,500 passing yards with 22 touchdowns and only seven interceptions.

Keenum currently is the backup quarterback for the Houston Texans and was signed as a free agent to be the veteran presence at the position. However, C.J. Stroud has been playing great football and the Texans still have Davis Mills on their roster to be the backup moving forward.

There is also a connection between head coach Kevin O'Connell and Keenum as both were with Washington in 2019 when O'Connell was the offensive coordinator. Keenum started eight games that season and once again had a positive touchdown to interception ratio with 11 passing touchdowns and five interceptions.

It seems like this is the most logical quarterback that the Vikings could trade for and fill the need to run this offense but more importantly get the football to Justin Jefferson.

Ryan Tannehill

On Sunday, the Tennessee Titans were without Ryan Tannehill due to an injury and for the first time this season got a chance to see what Will Levis could do as the starter. It was a remarkable performance that no one probably saw coming as he completed 19 of 29 passes for 238 passing yards with four touchdowns and no turnovers.

It is hard to imagine a scenario where the Titans go back to Tannehill as their starter and probably will give Levis a chance to show he can be the franchise quarterback past this season. If the Titans are ready to turn the offense over to the rookie, Tannehill could be moved before Tuesday.

Tannehill hasn't had the best performance to date this season with 1,128 passing yards with two passing touchdowns but six interceptions. However, the Titans don't have playmakers the Vikings do in terms of Justin Jefferson, Jordan Addison, and T.J. Hockenson. A change of scenery could be just enough to get Ryan Tannehill playing like he did a few years ago.

Jacoby Brissett

Jacoby Brissett is a veteran journeyman quarterback who is currently with the Washington Commanders. He was signed during the offseason as a free agent as a backup plan if Sam Howell struggles however that has not been the case and the Commanders might look to trade Brissett.

Prior to joining Washington, Brissett spent one year with the Cleveland Browns (2022) and Miami Dolphins (2021) after four seasons with the Indianapolis Colts. He has started 48 games over his career and has 48 passing touchdowns to 23 interceptions. This past season with the Browns, he started 11 games and has 12 touchdowns to only six interceptions.

This is a trade that likely wouldn't cost much in terms of draft capital and would give the Minnesota Vikings a veteran quarterback who can manage the offense. However, for Brissett it would give him arguably the most talented wide receiver he had a chance to play with in Jefferson and probably would target him often which would have him still remain one of the best wide receivers in fantasy football.

Carson Wentz

If the Minnesota Vikings can't work out a trade for any of those three and have to go the route of free agent quarterbacks, Carson Wentz is going to be their best option. The former first round pick has yet to sign with a team this season after playing eight games for the Washington Commanders last year.

He began last season with a strong start with back to back games throwing for over 300 yards and had seven passing touchdowns but did have three interceptions. However, he struggled as the season went along he couldn't continue playing at that level and in the final six games had three passing touchdowns and six interceptions.

Wentz is the youngest of the quarterbacks on this list at 30 years old and probably has the highest potential. However, he is probably the biggest risk as he has struggled to protect the football at times.

After Keenum, the quarterback that probably makes the most sense would be Wentz as it won't cost the Minnesota Vikings anything outside of a contract to bring him in. He also is the quarterback best equipped to keep Jefferson as a Top 5 wide receiver for the rest of the season considering his skill set.