Vikings: 3 Kirk Cousins replacements no one is talking about

Bailey Zappe set records at Western Kentucky and could be a dark-horse option for the Vikings to consider

If you’re looking for someone who filled up the stat sheet in college, then Bailey Zappe definitely deserves a look. This past season with the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers, the grad-transfer quarterback rewrote the FBS record books by setting the marks for most passing yards (5,967) and passing touchdowns (62), the latter breaking the mark Joe Burrow set two years ago — in one fewer game, no less.

The big knock on Zappe and the biggest question mark about his NFL draft stock is the level of competition he faced. He spent four seasons (throwing for over 10,000 yards) with Houston Baptist before making the move to Western Kentucky and, obviously, lighting up teams through the air in Conference-USA.

What’s good for the prolific college passer, though, is he’ll have the chance to answer those questions in the build-up to the draft as he’s accepted an invitation to the Senior Bowl and could very well have the opportunity to make some noise against some of the best experienced players in the country.

Even if he is somewhat a product of his offense, you can’t teach accuracy and mental acuity at quarterback and Zappe clearly showed both things while with the Hilltoppers this past season. Though he’s not mentioned in the top quarterback conversation for the 2022 draft, he’s someone who could make his way into the discussion as a bonafide sleeper.