The Minnesota Vikings are scheduled to boast about $60 million in cap space this offseason, a number that dwindled last week after the club signed over a dozen players to future deals.
Vikings Free Agency: Pro Bowl WR Could Be Available
It’s the most for a Vikings budget in years, so dreaming big about possible free-agent fits is fair game.
Conveniently, Los Angeles Rams wide receiver Cooper Kupp could hit the open market, a man with ties to Vikings head coach Kevin O’Connell. In 2020 and 2021, O’Connell offensively coordinated Kupp and the Rams, even winning a Super Bowl in 2021, the springboard event that propelled O’Connell to Minnesota.
Kupp is under contract with the 2025 Rams. But that may not come to fruition. “Who knows what’s going to happen. That’s out of my control. And we will see what it’s going to be. … I don’t have any clarity on what that’s going to look like or anything like that. So yeah, obviously would love to be in L.A., but I don’t know what that’s going to look like,” Kupp told ESPN this week after his team lost in the Divisional Round to the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday.
The Rams could trade Kupp this offseason — probably for a late-round pick — and save about $30 million in cap space. A roster cut before June 1st would incur a $22 dead cap hit, with $7.5 in cap relief. After June 1st, the details are more favorable, costing Los Angeles about $15 million in dead cap, with $15 million in savings.
Kupp’s future easily could’ve been a nothingburger this offseason if he said, “I plan to play out my contract in Los Angeles.”
But he didn’t say. He knows something’s up.
How would he fit with the Vikings? Simple — an outstanding WR3. Minnesota auditioned Jailor Nailor for the role this season, and he flashed in spots. However, 414 receiving yards from a WR3, Nailor’s 2024 stat line, isn’t glorious, especially for a team that didn’t have tight end T.J. Hockenson for 7 games.
Kupp, at age 32, would represent a serious upgrade. The ties to O’Connell obviously do not hurt the Kupp-to-Vikings theory.
Minnesota’s 2025 WR room could look something like this:
- Justin Jefferson
- Jordan Addison
- Cooper Kupp
- Jalen Nailor
- Brandon Powell
It’s worth noting that Kupp’s teammate, Tutu Atwell, is scheduled to hit free agency, though he’s nowhere near the commodity that Kupp would bring to the table in Minnesota.
“There’s all these things you’re weathering through offensively, things that I feel like, man, we should be better than the product we’re putting out there in terms of the production and the points that are being scored. And then just for me personally feeling like, man, there’s things, I’m watching film, feeling good about football and playing, but production-wise, it’s not showing up. And a lot of stuff’s outside of my control. And it is frustrating,” Kupp also told ESPN.
Kupp posted 67 receptions for 710 yards and 6 touchdowns in 2024, which screams WR3 on a WR-deep team like the Vikings.
If not Kupp, Minnesota will also have fancy WR3 options in free agency, including players like Amari Cooper and Stefon Diggs.
Kupp won the NFL’s Offensive Player of the Year award in 2021.
Dustin Baker is a political scientist who graduated from the University of Minnesota in 2007. Subscribe to his daily YouTube Channel, VikesNow. The show features guests, analysis, and opinion on all things related to the purple team, with 4-7 episodes per week. His MIN obsession dates back to 1996. Listed guilty pleasures: Peanut Butter Ice Cream, ‘The Sopranos,’ Basset Hounds, and The Doors (the band). He follows the NBA as closely as the NFL.
All statistics provided by Pro Football Reference / Stathead; all contractual information provided by OverTheCap.com.