The Jonathan Greenard Trade and The NFL Domino that May Need to Fall
Losing Jonathan Greenard would sting. He’s a legit EDGE1, someone who offers far more than just sacks (as important as those are). Does he actually get moved out via trade? If so, when? In all likelihood, Minnesota’s leadership won’t be keen about the situation dragging on, so a resolution may be coming soon.
Keep an eye on the status of Trey Hendrickson.
The former Bengal is among the NFL’s foremost edge rushers. Sitting atop the pile are Myles Garrett alongside Micah Parsons. There’s then a step down into elite players who aren’t at the level of those two, a collection of talent consisting of Danielle Hunter, Aidan Hutchinson, and others (Hendrickson among them). A team missing on the veteran in free agency may ignite more interest in Minnesota’s trade option.
Jonathan Greenard, Trey Hendrickson, and the NFL Dominos
Over on Pro Football Talk, Mike Florio takes on the Hendrickson silence.
“A multi-year deal remains possible,” Florio writes of the Hendrickson situation. “Multiple teams may have something on the table, waiting for Hendrickson to take it. At some point, those teams may move on to other options. At some point, Hendrickson may have to take a one-year deal for the best possible number and hope to do it again next year — ideally with a no-tag clause in the deal.”
No doubt, there are a pile of teams that want Hendrickson. Why wouldn’t they?
He’s a star edge rusher who is coming off a modest 2025. His seven games resulted in 16 tackles, 3 tackles for loss, 4 sacks, and 8 quarterback hits. Looking to the year before, though, involves seeing a different situation. The edge rusher finished off as a first-team All Pro and as the runner-up for the Defensive Player of the Year award. His 17.5 sacks had 36 quarterback hits standing behind them. Likewise, the 19 tackles for loss are very impressive.
Soon enough, he’s going to get paid. Notably, only a single team is going to be paying him.
Whoever misses on Hendrickson is likely to still desire help at pass rusher. The NFL’s available options go beyond Trey Hendrickson and Jonathan Greenard, but those two veterans are respected for a reason: both are excellent.
Last season, Mr. Greenard was like a goal scorer who kept hitting the post. With great consistency, Greenard was getting to dangerous spots on the ice to unleash a wicked shot. He should have scored way more goals but was unusually unlucky. Very small chance, folks, that he remains so snakebitten.
The Vikings are far more dangerous when he’s on the field. Keeping him — even if there needs to be a pay raise — is the best path forward for competing next year.
Dallas Turner would slot into the Greenard opening if a trade occurs. The third-year player isn’t lacking for potential. In time, perhaps, he’ll be a very good player, but he isn’t there yet. So far, his game is closer to Leonard Floyd than it is to Greenard, Hunter, or Andrew Van Ginkel.
Minnesota recently brought Bo Richter back to solidify the edge rusher depth. Rallying around Van Ginkel, Turner, and Richter isn’t the worst outcome in the world. After all, Eric Wilson can play edge, so that helps, too. Plus, a draft pick has the potential to get sunk into a young fella to chase down quarterbacks.
At the end of the day, the Vikings will reasonably require a valuable draft pick(s) to move out Jonathan Greenard. Seeing Trey Hendrickson get wiped off the board could be the precursor to a team beefing up the trade offer.
A trade with the pass rusher would put another $12.25 million in cap space back into mix for the Vikings.
Editor’s Note: Information from Pro Football Reference and Over the Cap helped with this piece.
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