When the Minnesota Vikings acquired the Houston Texans’ first-round pick in March, everyone immediately assumed it was to have the ammo for a trade up. The quarterback class was seen as top-heavy, and getting into the top four viewed as necessary to land a top prospect.
Peter Schrager of NFL Media is second-guessing whether that pick (No. 11 overall) would be enticing enough for a team to trade back.
While appearing on “The Dan Patrick Show” to discuss his latest mock draft, Schrager mentioned that trading back to 11th overall would “cross you off” from many of the top offensive weapons. Teams like the Arizona Cardinals, Los Angeles Chargers, and New England Patriots all need top offensive talent added during next week’s draft.
They also happen to be in the draft spots where the Vikings would need to trade up.
Minnesota very well could find themselves being unable to trade up if none of those teams is willing to fall that far back. Schrager had the Vikings settling for Terrion Arnold, who is a top defensive prospect, instead of trading up. Vikings fans have to be prepared for that. Despite GM Kwesi Adofo-Mensah’s best efforts, they may not be able to trade up.
That doesn’t mean they can’t ace the first round, either. They could easily come away with two plug-and-play starters at Nos. 11 and 23. The sky won’t fall, Chicken Little.