4 other trades the Vikings could have made before the 2022 deadline
By Randy Smith
Chase Claypool – WR
The Lions and Vikings weren’t the only NFC North teams working on trades during the deadline, as the Chicago Bears acquired former Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Chase Claypool. Claypool, a second-round pick in the 2020 Draft, goes from rookie Kenny Pickett as his quarterback to hoping to serve as a weapon to Justin Fields.
If the Vikings wanted to stay within the wide receiver realm, they could have considered adding Claypool as a big-bodied target to complement the speed of Justin Jefferson and route running abilities of Adam Theilen.
However, the price to pay for Claypool might have been too high for any other interested teams besides Chicago. The Bears are in the middle of a rebuild, having traded linebackers Roquan Smith and Robert Quinn away only to bring in Claypool.
Claypool is a talented player, no doubt, but they’re bringing in one player while giving two up. Time will tell how that approach works out for Chicago.
If giving up a bit more in draft capital than they did for T.J. Hockenson, and wide receiver instead of the tight end was the pass catcher the Vikings were looking for, Claypool was available.
An all-out approach, presumably associated with a move to make to obtain him, is closer to the thinking of going after Hockenson while also filling an injury at tight end, which ultimately added context to the trade.