MINNEAPOLIS — The Vikings are deep into their reconnaissance work on quarterbacks in the draft class with the mission of identifying The Guy.

The two quarterbacks most often linked to the Vikings by various mocketeers are North Carolina's Drake Maye and Michigan's J.J. McCarthy.

One man has firsthand knowledge of both.

As Gophers defensive coordinator last season, Joe Rossi faced Maye and McCarthy in a span of a month, which meant he studied hours of video of them and crafted game plans with their different skill sets in mind.

Rossi left to become defensive coordinator at Michigan State after the season. He took a break from spring practice this past week to share his insights into the two quarterbacks.

First up, Maye.

"I think he's super talented," Rossi said. "He's got very good arm talent. I thought he was accurate. He goes through his progressions really well. And he's more mobile than you think.

"If things aren't open, he'll move in the pocket to throw it. And then if it's still not open, he'll pull it down and run for five and run out of bounds and line up and play the next down. I appreciate that because hey, he's moving, he's extending plays, he's getting positive yardage, but then he's being smart with the ball and not taking hits."

Rossi was mindful of Maye's mobility as he constructed his game plan.

"We wanted to keep him in the pocket as much as possible when we rushed because we knew that he would get out," he said. "When he got out, he extended the play and then sometimes the coverage would break down. We wanted to [pressure] him, but we also wanted to be aware of not giving him the opportunity to get escape lanes."

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