Purple Rumor Mill: The Sweet Compensatory Picks, Tyler Lockett, Kiper’s Mock
VikingsTerritory’s Purple Rumor Mill is a two-day chronicle each week. All the week’s Vikings rumors are lassoed and plopped in two spots — articles on Saturday and Sunday — for review. Today is the March 22nd edition.
Vikings Rumors: The Sweet Compensatory Picks, Tyler Lockett, Kiper’s Mock
Remember — rumors are rumors. What you read on weekends in these pieces is what the world is talking about pertaining to the purple team, not necessarily items that will come to fruition.
Here’s the first batch of the week. All past rumors can be read here.
Rumor: The Vikings are now likely to get two extra compensatory picks in 2026.
OverTheCap.com’s Nick Korte tweeted after Cam Robinson (OT) signed this week with the Houston Texans: “And there’s that extra 2026 compensatory pick that the Vikings could have been waiting for. Because Cam Robinson got enough to secure a 5th round valued contract, it also places this comp pick firmly as a 4th or 5th, depending on Daniel Jones’s snaps.”
Zone Coverage’s Nick Olson added, “Likely just a 5th round comp pick, but the net result is it should allow the Vikings to receive a 4th round comp pick from Daniel Jones (which was previously canceled out). So that leaves MN with now an expected compensatory 3rd (from Darnold) and 4th (from Jones) in 2026.”
So, what’s the verdict? The difference between a 2026 4th-Rounder and 5th-Rounder may depend on Daniel Jones’ snaps in Indianapolis. He signed with the Colts this offseason and is on deck to compete with the big-armed Anthony Richardson for a starter’s job.
And that’s in addition to the 3rd-Rounder Minnesota will receive for Sam Darnold’s free-agent exit.
Rumor: Tyler Lockett is in play for a WR3 role in Minnesota.
The Seattle Seahawks recently dropped Lockett, and he’s free to sign anywhere in the sport. And according to KSTP’s Darren Wolfson on SKOR North’s Mackey & Judd Show, the Vikings have “some interest in Lockett.”
Wolfson also stated, “I remember in the moment, somebody said, ‘Hey, the Vikings like him but Pete Carroll loves him that much more. So, it always seemed like he was going to Vegas bound.”
Therefore, if Lockett doesn’t immediately join his old ball coach in Las Vegas, along with quarterback Geno Smith, he could activate the Vikings’ free-agent radar.
However, Minnesota netted a semi-big fish this week with speedy wideout Rondale Moore. That may disqualify Lockett from joining the 2025 roster.
Rumor: Minnesota could land Texas CB Jahade Barron in the draft, says Mel Kiper.
Kiper connected Minnesota to Barron at No. 24 in his latest post-free agency mock draft and wrote, “Minnesota made some big splashes in free agency as it tries to take the NFC North from the Lions. Among them were deals to re-sign Byron Murphy Jr. and bring in Isaiah Rodgers, but I’m not sure the Vikings should — or will — be done adding to the cornerback room.”
“Barron, meanwhile, picked off five passes last season, showing his ball skills. He ran a 4.39 at the combine, showing his speed. And he played more than 600 snaps at both slot corner and outside corner over the past two seasons, showing his versatility. I really like this fit.”
It’s unclear if Barron will fall all the way to No. 24 — the Green Bay Packers could swipe him at No. 23 — but Barron as a Viking would be universally praised.
At the top of the ticket in Kiper’s mock, Miami’s Cam Ward (QB, Miami) went to the Tennessee Titans, Abdul Carter (EDGE, Penn State) to the Cleveland Browns, and Shedeur Sanders (QB, Colorado) landed with the New York Giants.
The NFL draft is less than five weeks away, and Minnesota is scheduled to pick four times, the fewest in the NFL this go-round.
One Vikings Player Won the Month of March
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.
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