Vikings linked to trading for veteran wide receiver before the deadline

The Minnesota Vikings are reportedly looking to make a move before the trade deadline and Houston Texans receiver Brandin Cooks could be a target.

This season’s trade deadline is approaching, and the Minnesota Vikings are not letting the clock strike midnight without getting their name in the market. After making trades on both draft day, and cut day during the preseason, the Vikings now look to the trade deadline to possibly make one last move in 2022.

Minnesota’s latest interest revolves around adding a veteran wide receiver, with Brandin Cooks of the Houston Texans being named as a potential trade candidate. KSTP’s Darren Wolfson had the following to say on SKOR North’s “Mackey & Judd podcast on Thursday.

"[The Vikings] seem to be on the lookout for a receiving target that can stretch the field. Whether that’s down the middle, or on the outside. It could be somebody like a KJ Hamler, like a Brandin Cooks."

Wolfson added that Denzel Mims, who’s been named a trade target for the Vikings, is no longer as tangible of a target due to the New York Jets’ share of injuries.

What adding Houston Texans WR Brandin Cooks would mean for the Minnesota Vikings

If the Vikings could obtain Cooks, the veteran would immediately fit the role Wolfson reported the team is looking for. Cooks can be the guy to stretch the field on the outside, on a much smaller scale than current Minnesota wide receiver Justin Jefferson is doing.

The Vikings and Texans are not shy about completing trade deals either, as the franchises completed a trade for defensive tackle Ross Blacklock this past August.

With rumors and reports of the team targeting a wideout, Cooks fits the bill of a veteran that make a late-season impact on the right team. It’s clear Houston will miss out on the playoffs, and Minnesota most likely will at least grab a wild card spot.

Similar to Cooks’ career, that scenario could move the veteran from a team he was no longer needed on to a new franchise that looks to use his services in hopes of a deep playoff run.