6 most disappointing trades in Minnesota Vikings history
By Adam Patrick
Trade for Yannick Ngakoue in 2020
During the early portion of the Vikings’ 2020 training camp, defensive end Danielle Hunter suffered a neck injury that prevented him from practicing. Minnesota remained optimistic about Hunter’s injury, but it ultimately wound up keeping him off the field for the entire 2020 season.
Before the Vikings even realized their top pass rusher was lost for the entire year, the team made a trade to try and make sure they still had at least one top-notch defensive end out on the field for the 2020 season.
Minnesota sent a 2022 fifth-round pick and a 2021 second-round selection to the Jacksonville Jaguars for young pass-rusher Yannick Ngakoue.
Ngakoue actually ended up leading the Vikings in sacks last year with five, but it wasn’t anything to brag about since he was only on the team’s roster for six games.
He wasn’t fitting well in Minnesota’s defense and the team didn’t think they could sign him to a long-term deal after the season, so the Vikings traded him to the Baltimore Ravens in exchange for a 2021 third-round selection and a fifth-round pick in the 2022 draft.