Vikings Evidently Have a “Warning” about Trade
The Minnesota Vikings live in ideal territory to trade up the draftboard sometime between now and April 25th.
Vikings Evidently Have a “Warning” about Trade
The purple team has more 1st-Round draft ammunition than any quarterback-needy team after the Chicago Bears and is expected to make another trade splash. Ten days ago, general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah began rolling the trade ball, grabbing an additional 1st-Round pick from the Houston Texans while offloading two 2nd-Rounders in the deal, plus a late-round pick swap.
And more wheeling and dealing is probably on the way as Adofo-Mensah must find a successor for life after Kirk Cousins. The former Vikings quarterback joined the Atlanta Falcons’ roster during free agency’s first week.
For the next trade, though, one NFL analyst claims the Vikings’ would-be trade suitors are formulating some kind of warning. The Film Room’s Brett Kollmann tweeted last weekend, “I feel like picks 2, 3, 4, and 5 all lining up for the chance to get Minnesota’s picks should be some kind of warning sign to all of us. I don’t know what that warning is yet, but it’s there.”
In recent days, the Washington Commanders, New England Patriots, Arizona Cardinals, and Los Angeles Chargers have hinted they’re open for business via trade. Interestingly, those down-the-line comments from general managers arrived as Vikings fans wondered, “Which team will actually do business with the Vikings? Any of them?”
It may be all of them. The collective nature of teams at the top of the draft proclaiming their storefronts as open could indicate competition for the Vikings’ trade package.
Jeremy Fowler said on SportsCenter a few days ago about the Commanders, “They have been unpredictable, and I’ve talked to a team source who said they are still open with a thorough process. They have not made a firm determination on which direction they’re going. Everybody around the league expects Chicago at 1 to take Caleb Williams of course. So, Washington’s going to go into next week with a contingent going to the Pro Days of both Jayden Daniels at LSU, Drake Maye at UNC. They’re going to shake that out, see what they like.”
Patriots head coach Jerod Mayo added about his team’s plans, “Obviously, quarterback is definitely a priority. With that being said, we’re still open to any type of deals that come our way. We’re open to trading the pick. … If someone offers a bag — a lot of first-round picks — we’ll have that conversation.”
Also, asked by reporters if he’d be willing to trade down from Arizona’s No. 4 spot, general manager Monti Ossenfort didn’t hold back. “There will be a big neon sign that says ‘open.’ I don’t like it blinking — that kind of messes with my eyes — but we’ll always have the conversation. We may not get to the point where the deal makes sense, whether it’s at 4 or anywhere we’re picking, but we’re always going to have the conversation,” the executive replied.
Everyone is saying they’re open to trading their mighty Top 5 picks.
Per Kollmann, that’s a warning — or code — to somebody. It might just be that all these teams want a piece of the Vikings’ draft capital.
Dustin Baker is a political scientist who graduated from the University of Minnesota in 2007. Subscribe to his daily YouTube Channel, VikesNow. He hosts a podcast with Bryant McKinnie, which airs every Wednesday with Raun Sawh and Sal Spice. His Vikings obsession dates back to 1996. Listed guilty pleasures: Peanut Butter Ice Cream, ‘The Sopranos,’ Basset Hounds, and The Doors (the band).
All statistics provided by Pro Football Reference / Stathead; all contractual information provided by OverTheCap.com.
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