Category: Offseason

Vikings go offensive lineman, then corner in Draft Wire mock draft

The latest mock draft from Draft Wire has been released. Do you like the Vikings’ picks?

Draft Wire has released its latest mock draft, and it speculated that the Vikings will add a tackle in the first round, and a cornerback in the second.

Houston offensive tackle Josh Jones was projected to go to the Vikings at pick No. 25. With the following pick, Minnesota selected Jaylon Johnson, a cornerback out of Utah. Both those positions might lack depth due to free agency and the Vikings shoring up the salary cap situation, so both those moves seem possible.

The Vikings drafted TCU defensive linemen Ross Blacklock with their next pick in the mock draft at pick No. 89. With the 122nd pick in the draft, Draft Wire predicted that the Vikings went with Boise State wide receiver John Hightower. Read more about Hightower here.

LSU’s Joe Burrow was the first overall pick, followed by Ohio State’s Chase Young in the mock draft. The Lions selected Ohio State’s Jeff Okudah with the third pick.

Read the rest of Draft Wire’s mock draft.

A look back at Everson Griffen’s resurgent year

If Everson Griffen doesn’t re-sign with the Vikings, he will always be remembered for his sack prowess and his comeback season.

Everson Griffen reportedly voided the remainder of his contract with the Vikings, and he will enter free agency, according to reports.

Griffen could re-sign with the team, but if he’s played his final snaps with the Vikings, he will be remembered as a player who persevered through adversity.

Griffen’s 2018-19 season was unfortunately marred by personal issues related to his mental health. Griffen missed five weeks of the regular season in 2018-19, and he suffered a down year in terms of stats because of it. The defensive end finished with 5.5 sacks.

But Griffen would be back. He went on to play every game of 2019-2020, besides Week 17 when the Vikings played their reserves. He finished with eight sacks. He also had 11 tackles for loss, compared to five the previous year. He even had an interception this season against the Eagles, the second of his career.

Griffen has spent all 10 of his seasons with the Vikings so far. He has 74.5 career sacks, and has made four Pro Bowls. Griffen went through a tough mental health incident, but he showed that he can still produce. He can still re-sign with Minnesota, but if this is the end of his playing days with the team, he will be remembered fondly by fans.

Vikings select DT Neville Gallimore in Bleacher Report mock draft

And with the 25th overall pick, Bleacher Report thinks the Vikings take Oklahoma DT Neville Gallimore.

The Vikings might have an opening at defensive tackle next season, and a recent Bleacher Report mock draft has the team taking a defensive tackle in the first round.

Oklahoma’s Neville Gallimore was chosen by Bleacher Report to go to Minnesota with the No. 25 overall pick in the first round of the draft. 

This would make sense considering that Linval Joseph might end up getting cut due to the salary cap situation. I think he’s a guy the Vikings should try to keep around, though, so maybe restructuring the deal or an extension is in play. Then, it would still make sense because having those two as the Vikings starting defensive tackles could plug up holes and create pressure.

No surprises here: Bleacher Report said LSU’s Joe Burrow will go to the Bengals at No. 1 in that same mock draft. Ohio State’s Chase Young was the next pick in the mock, going to the Redskins.

Let’s say the Vikings trade Stefon Diggs. Here’s what they might get

If the Vikings are forced to trade Stefon Diggs, what can they expect to get back for him?

Stefon Diggs has been acting suspicious on social media, which has created some doubt as to whether Diggs will stay in Minnesota for the entirety of his contract.

His contract runs until 2023. The Vikings save $5.5 million if they trade him before June 1, but still have to pay $9 million of his contract in dead money — and that’s just for next season, Over The Cap reported.

However, if Diggs hypothetically forced the team’s hand, they could probably get a pretty big haul in a trade. A lot of teams are looking for a wideout with the big-play ability Diggs has at times.

I think the Vikings could easily get a first-round pick, possibly even two in some contexts. Just one first round pick would likely have to be paired with a pretty big name from the opposing team if the trade was to be worth it for the Vikings.  And Minnesota could very well need a cornerback next season.

The Patriots’ Stephon Gilmore proved to be a shut-down corner last season and the Vikings would only owe him just over $3.3 million in 2020 if a trade was to be made before June 1, per Over The Cap.

However, Gilmore alone would not warrant a trade for Diggs, unless the Vikings lose leverage in the deal for whatever reason. I also think New England would have to throw in another player, or possibly another pick in addition to a first rounder, if they wanted to land Diggs.

Another option would be to trade just for picks. The Vikings might be content with their place in the 2020 draft at No. 25, but if they wanted to get a pick that was better, trading Diggs would obviously help. He could possibly command two first round picks and maybe even a third or fourth rounder, too.

In my opinion, it’s not the best idea. The Vikings are trading a known, quality player, in hopes of drafting a player of a similar caliber. I think you can’t do it if that’s all you’re getting, but it’s still a possibility if the Vikings are blown away by one of deals. Here’s to hoping Diggs doesn’t publicly declare he wants out or anything crazy like that.

What the Vikings can do about the Kirk Cousins contract

It’s time to talk about the Kirk Cousins contract.

Kirk Cousins disappointed many in his first year with the Vikings, but he bounced back in his next season and had some undeniably good games.

From lighting up the defenses of Detroit and Philadelphia in consecutive weeks to showing poise in the playoff victory over the Saints, Cousins proved that he was a quarterback capable of living up to a large contract.

The question for the Vikings, however, still remains after another season: is Cousins the guy to bring a Super Bowl to Minnesota?

The bar for this team is very high and the toll Cousins’ contract takes — in terms of signing talent around him — is astronomical. Cousins had a good season, but $31 million, the total in dead money this season if the Vikings cut him, is a lot, and there’s no money to be saved, so that’s basically not an option.

One possibility might be an extension that brings the Vikings back to the negotiation table with Cousins. He could sign a short-term deal that could free up cap space for other players, and also guarantee him more years of job security with a Super Bowl contender.

It might be hard to get Cousins to agree to that, but the perception of him is that he can only take a team so far (usually an early playoff exit), so maybe taking less money is ideal for his legacy.

Putting other good players around him not only gives Cousins a chance to prove the naysayers wrong, but also, if he was to win a championship, raises his earning potential in future seasons. The Vikings would likely want him as their starting quarterback down the road, and if not, I’m sure teams would take a flyer on him.

That might be ideal for Minnesota, considering this other option: trading him.

That contract is still an albatross. Teams that saw the year Cousins had last season might want to take a chance, but he would be owed $29.5 million (if he’s traded before June 1) by a team that wants him, barring any change in the deal, according to Over the Cap. Another factor is Cousins’ no-trade clause. If you were Cousins, why would you wave that clause just to go play for the Chargers or some other team? Among the teams that would want him, the Vikings are probably his best bet to contend given he knows what the offense is capable of and that the defense is solid.

Cousins is clearly a good quarterback. Jimmy Garoppolo proved that with a good defense behind you, a game-manager can at least take a team to the Super Bowl. Will Cousins be enough for Minnesota to end the championship drought, or do the Vikings need to cut their ties down the road in order to take the next step? We’re going to have to see.

What the Vikings can do with Everson Griffen reportedly entering free agency

Everson Griffen will reportedly void his contract and enter free agency. Here’s what the Vikings could do going forward.

Everson Griffen reportedly voided his contract with the Vikings on Thursday and is now set to become a free agent.

The move cleared $13 million in cap space and resulted in just $800,000 in dead money. It’s almost a certainty that the Vikings will continue to reduce spending. The team can definitely cut players or restructure other contracts to make more room in the cap, but can they re-sign Griffen to a more team-friendly deal and keep him on?

Though it seems ideal for the Vikings, this move doesn’t seem likely to happen.

Griffen had a promising season in 2019-20: eight sacks and an interception. Griffen’s resume on top of a comeback season will garner some interest in the free agency market, and I don’t think the Vikings can financially match some of the teams that will want the defensive end. If they can, though, I think they should definitely do it. The combo of Griffen and Danielle Hunter on the ends has proven to be tough for opposing teams to stop.

Cutting Xavier Rhodes saves the Vikings a little over $8 million and leaves $4.8 million in dead money, according to Over The Cap. Cutting Riley Reiff saves $8.8 million and makes $4.4 million in dead money. Those moves could possibly be enough to re-sign Griffen if he really likes the situational fit of Minnesota. However, the free agency market is looming, and there will likely be some interested teams.

Stefon Diggs continues to post cryptic Tweets

Stefon Diggs keeps posting vague statements on Twitter. Should Vikings fans be worried?

In September, the Bears stymied the Vikings offense in a 16-6 victory and Stefon Diggs seemed like he had enough.

After the game, the Vikings wideout left before talking to media. On top of that, he missed a practice shortly after.  Asked about his frustrations with Minnesota’s offense and whether he wanted to be traded, Diggs said “there’s truth to all rumors,” per NFL.com.

Though the team’s performance didn’t always lead to Diggs’ happiness, Minnesota clearly turned a corner after that game, finishing 10-6 in the regular season after a 2-2 start.

But now that the season is over, are we to believe that the wide receiver is content on staying or is he on the move? In addition to taking down Instagram pictures of him in a Vikings uniform, Diggs posted a series of tweets recently that have led some Vikings fans to believe that he might want out.

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It’s hard to glean anything from these tweets in my opinion. Some of the more cryptic ones could be about aspects of his personal life.

The Kawhi Leonard GIF he posted might be about the D’Angelo Russell trade. Leonard is a player famous for moving to another team and finding success, so maybe that’s what the GIF is about, if I’m being overly optimistic.

One thing is for certain, though: the tweets gave Vikings fans pause, and it gave fans around the league hope that a star wide receiver might be on the way.

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