NFL Analyst Predicts Doomsday Scenario for Vikings
Dustin Baker
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The rumors rise; they cool off. This week, according to one FS1 NFL analyst, trade theories involving Justin Jefferson have returned.
NFL Analyst Predicts Doomsday Scenario for Vikings
The Minnesota Vikings and Justin Jefferson have worked to finalize an extension for over a year, but as of April 3rd, no deal has come to fruition. The delay has caused many to speculate about a trade as the eventual outcome, though every leader in the Vikings’ orbit has insisted otherwise.
This time, Craig Carton created the trade hubbub. On The Carton Show this week, he said about a would-be Jefferson trade, “Money’s better than championships all day, every day. That being said, you gotta trade him because if he’s turned down a contract that would make him the first- or second-highest-paid wide receiver in the history of the NFL, he’s telling you ‘I’m not re-signing here!’ So you better get value for him while you can.”
Jefferson is expected to become the highest-paid wide receiver in history soon, and most fans believe he is waiting to see the franchise’s quarterback plan after Kirk Cousins left via free agency three weeks ago.
“Justin Jefferson is the most likely to be dealt, if not by the draft, then by the trade deadline this upcoming season because Minnesota’s not gonna be a good football team,” Morton added.
According to the team’s head coach, Kevin O’Connell, a long-term deal remains the foremost priority. “We absolutely wanted to and continue to want to get something done,” O’Connell told reporters at the end of March.
O’Connell added, “Justin’s a major, major priority for the Minnesota Vikings because of what he means to me as the head coach, the play caller. But also our fanbase, the Twin Cities. The impact he’s really had on our league is really not lost on me for one moment.”
Meanwhile, one of the team’s owners, Mark Wilf, echoed O’Connell’s sentiment. He said, “Jefferson is a unique talent. Best in the game, and we’re excited he’s a Minnesota Viking. And not only is he a great player, he’s become a great leader of our locker room, and he’s great in the community. So the thrills he gives the fans on the field and just the way he carries himself, we’re looking forward to some real positive conversations.”
Without an extension, NFL-themed media has speculated trade theories involving Jefferson, off-the-wall ideas often connecting the 24-year-old to the Cincinnati Bengals and Arizona Cardinals, for example. But no Vikings leader has even hinted trading Jefferson was remotely an option.
“Again, right now, we’re focused on getting that guy Jefferson on our field with the purple, and he looks great in purple. And we’re going to do our best to keep it that way,” Wilf concluded about Jefferson’s extension.
Jefferson said at the Super Bowl’s radio row in February about his future in Minnesota, “I want to break the bank, and I want to be a part of an organization that wants me and really gives me what I deserve. I feel like eventually, the Vikings will do what they need to do to have me in the building but I don’t really know at this moment. Only time will tell. I feel like I have the right people in my circle to negotiate and to do what’s right, and I feel like this whole process of how we handle things, I feel like we did a great job with it.”
He also added on the same day, “I’m definitely grateful for what Minnesota has done for me. I definitely wouldn’t be in this situation if they didn’t pick me, to be the fifth receiver taken. With everything that has happened and everything I have gave to the organization, of course, I want to stay.”
And three weeks ago, The Athletic’s Dianna Russini tweeted, “The Vikings came close to extending WR Justin Jefferson last offseason. In Indy, GM Kwesi Adofo-Mensah aggressively rejected the idea of trading the star. Kirk Cousins’ departure hasn’t changed things. The Vikings have no plans to trade Jefferson, sources tell me and Alec Lewis.”
But according to fringe theories like Carton’s, a trade is still evidently the probable solution.
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 MIN 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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