Vikings Players Who Could Be Traded on Draft Weekend
The Minnesota Vikings probably won’t trade quite as often with former general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah not attached to the franchise — he traded like a fiend — but the possibility of an upcoming deal cannot be ruled out during April’s draft. The following is a list of the Vikings players most likely to be dealt.
Minnesota has a few names worth watching once the board starts moving in Pittsburgh.
The group is mainly comprised of big names, and they’re ranked in ascending order of likelihood (No. 1 = players most likely to be moved via trade).
Four Vikings Whose Names Could Surface during Draft Weekend for Trades
The Vikings’ 2026 trade candidate board.
Theo Jackson (S)
Is a Jackson trade overly likely? No — mainly because the market for him may be slim. He’s rather anonymous in broad NFL terms.
However, assume momentarily that all the mock drafts in the digital stratosphere right now are correct, and Minnesota drafts safety Dillon Thieneman of Oregon in Round 1. The club would have Thieneman, Josh Metellus, Jay Ward, possibly Harrison Smith, and Jackson in its roster orbit. Jackson could become expendable, and sending him to a new team for a 6th- or 7th-Round pick would make sense.
Jackson is decently productive, and his contract is affordable.
Jordan Addison (WR)
Addison is quasi-tradeable for two reasons: a) He’ll request a giant contract extension within the next year b) His list of off-the-field antics is too long.
Since the Vikings drafted him in 2023, these incidents have followed the 24-year-old:
- Arrested in 2023 for driving 140 MPH in a 55 MPH zone; later classified as a misdemeanor.
- Arrested for intoxication while asleep on a Los Angeles freeway in 2024; later pled guilty to a “wet reckless” charge and served a three-game suspension
- Benched by the Vikings for a quarter because of skipping a team walkthrough in London in 2025
- Arrested in 2026 for trespassing at a casino; charger later dropped
It never ends. There’s a world where Minnesota cuts bait before the extension bill is due, trading Addison to a WR-needy team in the draft for a 2nd- or 3rd-Round pick.
J.J. McCarthy (QB)
So far this offseason, Minnesota has fired the guy who drafted McCarthy, signed his direct QB1 replacement in Kyler Murray, and re-upped with Carson Wentz, who figures to vie for the Vikings’ QB2 job. The offseason has been horrible for McCarthy. Truly horrible.
Some have suggested that McCarthy was an “Adofo-Mensah draft pick,” insinuating that Kevin O’Connell merely settled for McCarthy and preferred a quarterback like Sam Darnold, Daniel Jones, Aaron Rodgers, or Drake Maye. If those theories are true, Minnesota could prematurely end the McCarthy era, dangling him in front of the team like the Arizona Cardinals or Pittsburgh Steelers for the equivalent of a 4th-Round pick.
The Vikings don’t have to trade McCarthy; he’s still only 23. But the signs suggest they’re no longer high on his future. If they loved him, Murray would not be a thing as the prospective QB1.
Jonathan Greenard (OLB)
This one is for all the marbles — because it sadly feels realistic.
Micah Parsons earns $47 million per season in Green Bay. Aidan Hutchinson brings home $45 million annually in Detroit. Greenard? $19 million in Minnesota. He wants a raise. If the Vikings are unable to afford a huge raise — probably in the neighborhood of $35 million each year — for the guy who logged 3 sacks in 12 games last year, well, he’ll have to be traded.
SI.com‘s Jonathan Harrison downplayed the possibility of a Greenard trade this week, explaining, “Another reason why the Vikings are likely to be a little harder to negotiate with on trading Greenard is the addition of Kyler Murray. By landing Murray, the Vikings see themselves as a contender in the NFC. Why would they then go and trade away one of their best defensive talents?”
“For a team looking to compete at the top of the conference, dealing a star pass rusher wouldn’t make a lot of sense. So, the Vikings would certainly need to be blown away by an offer for Greenard, now more than ever, after signing Murray.”
The Philadelphia Eagles and Indianapolis Colts have bubbled to the surface as the most logical trade partners. Curiously, no deal has been reached, even as the smoke of a trade has billowed for two weeks.
If Greenard is traded in the end, it may be during the draft — at which point Minnesota might have to draft another EDGE rusher.
Most believe the Vikings are asking for a 2nd-Rounder to pry Greenard loose.
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