4 Trade Styles the Vikings Can Execute in Draft

Dustin Baker   |  

Apr 9, 2025

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In just over two weeks, the Minnesota Vikings will be on the clock at pick No. 24 to draft a rookie in Round 1.

4 Trade Styles the Vikings Can Execute in Draft

General manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah has just four draft picks in 2025, spending most of the class via trades last year to find outside linebacker Dallas Turner.

And because the young executive loves to barter with other general managers, most purple fans expect Adofo-Mensah to trade back on draft night, a mission to find more picks in the draft’s early-to-middle rounds.

So, these are the four trade styles he could employ.

The Slight Shimmy Trade

Minnesota might even trade twice before choosing a rookie. In that scenario, he’d likely use the slight shimmy trade to start the process.

Here’s how it might look. The Philadelphia Eagles, the club that won the Super Bowl and pick 32nd, are the example:

Candidates to pick at No. 32:

• Emeka Egbuka (WR, Ohio State)
• Maxwell Hairston (CB, Kentucky)
• Derrick Harmon (DT, Oregon)
• Donovan Jackson (iOL, Ohio State)
• Walter Nolen (DT, Ole Miss)
• Shavon Revel Jr. (CB, East Carolina)
• Grey Zabel (iOL, North Dakota State)

The Early Round 2 Shimmy

If one believes that Minnesota will immediately trade into Round 2 — but not that far — a possible trade with the New York Giants, for instance, could resemble this:

The candidate pool at No. 34:

• Trey Amos (CB, Ole Miss)
• Emeka Egbuka (WR, Ohio State)
• Maxwell Hairston (CB, Kentucky)
• Donovan Jackson (iOL, Ohio State)
• Shavon Revel Jr. (CB, East Carolina)
• Azaraeye’h Thomas (CB, Florida State)
• Grey Zabel (iOL, North Dakota State)

Mid Round 2 Shimmy

Suppose Minnesota loves the middle of Round 2. There’s a path for that, as well, with the Seattle Seahawks, as an example:

The candidate pool at Nos. 50 and 52:

• Darius Alexander (DT, Toledo)
• Quinshon Judkins (RB, Ohio State)
• Benjamin Morrison (CB, Notre Dame)
• Azaraeye’h Thomas (CB, Florida State)
• Xavier Watts (S, Notre Dame)
• Tyleik Williams (DT, Ohio State)

The Way Down Shimmy

Finally, the back-of-Round-2 option — which could make some fans groan. The Buffalo Bills would make sense as a dance partner:

The late-Round-2 draft options:

• Elijah Arroyo (TE, Miami)
• Darius Alexander (DT, Toledo)
• Alfred Collins (DT, Texas)
• Quinshon Judkins (RB, Ohio State)
• Benjamin Morrison (CB, Notre Dame)
• Jonah Savaiinaea (iOL, Arizona)
• Xavier Watts (S, Notre Dame)

Kyle Joudry of PurplePTSD.com, a partner site of VikingsTerritory, recently described Minnesota’s trade stakes: “There’s no way to perfectly predict what kind of pick haul Kwesi Adofo-Mensah could demand for the 24th spot. The further a team moves back, the more that can be demanded. Plus, the specific player who is being targeted — a receiver, edge rusher, corner, or especially a quarterback — can prompt a team to surrender more draft capital than seems reasonable (see Turner, Dallas).”

“But while there’s some inevitable uncertainty as we look toward the future, the past two years have provided a pair of examples that help to guide our expectations.”

Thankfully, Minnesota doesn’t have dire roster holes, thanks to a productive free-agency period in March.

“In 2024, dropping back five draft spots meant gaining a 3rd, a reasonably valuable pick; in 2023, dropping down a single spot meant gaining a 5th and a 7th. Pretty tidy work, especially if the team still lands the player who was going to get scooped up all along,” Joudry added.

Any Vikings draft trades would likely shake out on April 24th, the event’s first night. It’s in Green Bay, Wisconsin.

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