Could the Minnesota Vikings be interested in dealing for the All-Pro cornerback who reportedly wants to be traded out of Arizona?
Under head coach Mike Zimmer, the secondary for the Minnesota Vikings has developed into one of the best in the NFL. Despite this, the Vikings still went out and used their 2018 first-round draft pick on UCF cornerback Mike Hughes because Zimmer believes he can never have enough good corners.
If this is truly what Minnesota’s head coach believes, then it’s possible that he may be interested in adding another talented defensive back to his roster in the near future.
On Monday, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported that Arizona Cardinals cornerback Patrick Peterson has requested to be traded before the league’s 2018 trade deadline on October 30.
When asked about the report later in the day, Cardinals head coach Steve Wilks said that the team has no plans of trading Peterson right now and that the corner has said nothing to him about wanting out of Arizona.
Considering that acquiring the All-Pro corner this season would also mean enduring a cap hit of around $11 million, there are only a few teams that can really afford him right now. Of the franchises that can currently afford Peterson, possible landing spots could include the Cleveland Browns, Houston Texans, New York Jets, and Tennessee Titans.
The corner’s current contract also has him signed until 2021 with cap hits of $11.9 million in 2019 and $13.2 million in 2020.
So is there any chance that the Vikings could find a way to trade for Peterson? Realistically, the corner becoming a member of Minnesota’s roster by this season’s trade deadline doesn’t seem likely.
The Vikings currently have around $1.25 million in cap space and they would have to make some pretty big roster moves in order to afford Peterson’s current contract.
With Trae Waynes and Xavier Rhodes still playing this year, trading for the Cardinals cornerback in the middle of the season just doesn’t make a whole ton of sense for Minnesota.
In the recent past, the Vikings have become known for their impressive mastery of the salary cap. But even for Minnesota’s impressive front office, trying to find a way to trade for Peterson right now just seems to be too difficult of a task to accomplish.