The Vikings should put Andrew Sendejo on the trading block

The veteran safety for the Minnesota Vikings is becoming more of a liability for the team this season and he could end up ruining their championship goals.

As time was winding down in the fourth quarter of their matchup against the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday, the Minnesota Vikings were hoping their nine-point lead would be enough to come away with a win.

With less than a minute and a half remaining in the game, the Eagles’ offense was faced with a 2nd and 10 from the Vikings 15-yard line. Philadelphia quarterback Carson Wentz fired a pass into the end zone toward tight end Zach Ertz, but Minnesota linebacker Ben Gedeon was able to get a hand on the ball and force an incompletion.

However, a flag was thrown on the play after Vikings safety Andrew Sendejo delivered a totally unnecessary helmet-to-helmet hit to Ertz at the end of the throw. Whether the helmet-to-helmet contact was intentional or not, that’s something that is going to draw a flag almost every time in the NFL today.

So instead of the Eagles facing a 3rd and 10 from the Minnesota 15-yard line, Sendejo’s penalty made it 1st and goal for Philadelphia from the Vikings seven-yard line.

On the Eagles’ first play after the penalty, Wentz was able to connect with Ertz for an easy touchdown and Minnesota’s lead was cut to two points with just over a minute remaining in the game.

Luckily for the Vikings, wide receiver Adam Thielen was able to recover an onside kick attempt by Philadelphia and Minnesota was able to hold on for a victory. If not for Thielen, then Sendejo’s boneheaded penalty could have possibly cost the Vikings the win.

Sunday’s game would not have been the first time the Minnesota safety made a dumb decision that negatively impacted his team.

Whether it has been missed tackles (against Cam Newton last season), getting burned in coverage, or delivering dumb helmet-to-helmet hits that result in suspensions, Sendejo has been quite the liability for the Vikings during his time with the team.

It appeared that the safety was turning the corner last season as some of his past mistakes were not as frequent as normal. But some of Sendejo’s bad habits are back this year and he’s going to end up costing Minnesota a few wins if something doesn’t change sooner than later.

Perhaps the Vikings could find a way to ship the safety elsewhere before this season’s trade deadline on October 30?

Now, some may be wondering what Minnesota could even get in return for Sendejo in a trade. But who cares?

Minnesota Vikings

Even if the best offer the Vikings can find is just a sixth-round draft pick, then that is a deal they should take.

Minnesota has a capable replacement behind Sendejo right now in veteran safety George Iloka. The Vikings attempted to sign Iloka back in 2016 and if that actually ended up working out, he would have replaced Sendejo as a starter on Minnesota’s defense.

Sendejo’s current contract also makes it easier for the Vikings to potentially trade him to another team this season.

He’s getting paid $3.5 million this year and in 2019, the veteran safety can be cut without a team enduring any sort of cap hit. A potential trade partner might be more willing to take a chance on Sendejo this year knowing that they don’t have to keep him around next season if he ends up not being a fit.

If Minnesota can find a way to trade the safety before the deadline at the end of October, it is something they need to strongly consider. If not, Sendejo might end up being the one to derail the team’s championship aspirations they have for this season.