Just Say Nocho

Jason Cole of Yahoo! Sports has fired up the speculation cannon and shot out the names of ten players he thinks might be traded before the deadline. Just to spice things up more, Cole throws out teams he thinks might be interested in the various players. Naturally, given the Vikings‘ offensive struggles, Cole has linked the team with nearly every ball-catcher he thinks might be available. The list of wide-outs includes Roy Williams of the Lions, a guy widely believed to be on his way out of town. Cole quotes an unnamed executive as saying, “I think [Williams] will play harder for some other team.” The Jaguars, Buccaneers and Cowboys are listed alongside the Vikes as potential Williams buyers.

Intriguing? I have to admit – yes. Roy Williams is a terrific talent who would look fabulous lining up opposite Bernard Berrian. He’s precisely the kind of large target the Vikes need to help their redzone offense. Problem is, there’s no way the Lions are trading this guy inside the division. Sorry, ain’t gonna happen. If he is traded, I believe it will be to the Cowboys.

But Williams isn’t the only receiver served up as potential trade bait by Cole. He also thinks Chad Ocho Cinco could go. And yes, the Vikings pop up there too. Unfortunately, Ocho Cinco isn’t nearly as good a receiver as Chad Johnson, the guy Ocho Cinco was before he flipped out and legally adopted a dumb joke as a moniker. Johnson I might consider trading for, even despite his personality issues.  Ocho Cinco?  I wouldn’t give you Bobby Wade for him straight up.

That brings us to the third name on Cole’s Vikings hit list, and it is in some ways the most intriguing name of all:  Tony Gonzalez.  The Chiefs are hideous, and just as they dumped Jared Allen, they may also be prepared to cut loose arguably the best offensive player in their history.  The Vikings were happy to take Jared off Kansas City’s hands – and why the hell wouldn’t they be equally amenable to picking up Gonzalez?  Especially now with Gus Frerotte at the helm, instead of Tarvaris Jackson who couldn’t find a tight end with a guide dog and a cane.  Williams would be nice, but I believe Gonzalez would be even nicer.  Wanna talk about a redzone threat?  This offense, with Gonzalez, might even achieve legitimacy.  Unfortunately, I don’t believe Brad Childress is at all interested in a primarily pass-catching tight end like Gonzalez.  He likes the Visanthe Shiancoe type of tight end, a guy who’s a blocker first.  In the end, I doubt any of the three guys listed by Cole will wind up in Purple this year.  The Vikings made their moves in the off-season and will likely not be players in the days leading up to the trade deadline.