While most analysts are expecting the Minnesota Vikings to trade up in the draft for a quarterback, ESPN's Mike Tannenbaum took a different route to get them a signal-caller.

In his mock draft posted on Tuesday, the former NFL general manager projected the Vikings will trade the No. 11 pick to the Arizona Cardinals for Kyler Murray and the 66th pick in the 2024 draft.

Tannenbaum's scenario has the Cardinals using the fourth pick to take Michigan quarterback J.J. McCarthy as Murray's successor:

"So here's my proposition to clear some cap space for the Cards, officially start the McCarthy era in Arizona and fix the Vikings' QB issue. In my mind, the No. 11 pick for Murray straight up is too rich, and No. 23—Minnesota's other first-rounder—on its own is not enough. So I'm attaching that third-rounder to the No. 11 pick to level this out. It's similar to what the Cardinals did during the 2022 draft, when they traded their first-round pick (No. 23) to Baltimore for receiver Marquise Brown and a third-rounder."

Tannenbaum does specify in the intro that his mock isn't meant to be a projection of what he thinks will happen based on what teams are saying they will do, but rather what he would do if he were running the draft for each organization.

There are flaws to this proposed trade by Tannenbaum. The Vikings are $16.8 million under the cap, per Over the Cap. Murray, who is entering the first season of the five-year, $230.5 million extension he originally signed in July 2022, will account for $49.1 million against the cap next season.

Minnesota could restructure Murray's contract to bring that number down, but that would also involve pushing more money into the future. The front office seems to be at a point where it wants to reset the quarterback clock; otherwise it would've made a stronger push to keep Kirk Cousins.

The Vikings have also made it clear they want to extend Justin Jefferson's deal. Head coach Kevin O'Connell told reporters on Monday they are keeping their star wide receiver "in the loop" on their quarterback plans this offseason.

Jefferson could be looking at an extension that makes him the highest-paid non-quarterback in the NFL. At the very least, he will likely end up with a deal that pays him at least $30 million annually.

There's also no reason for the Cardinals to move on from Murray right now. He played well last season after returning from the torn ACL he suffered late in the 2022 season. The 26-year-old threw for 1,799 yards, ran for 244 yards and accounted for 13 touchdowns in eight games.

Arizona has $29.1 million in cap space even with Murray's contract on the books. Unless the organization falls in love with McCarthy or another top quarterback who might be available at No. 4 overall, it doesn't seem like a separation is happening soon.

It's absolutely an interesting proposal from Tannenbaum, but one that doesn't make much sense for either team if you think about it for long.