The Minnesota Vikings are undefeated, but that doesn’t mean they’re flawless.
One of the Vikings’ biggest worries is at the running back position, where Aaron Jones has been playing through injury, and Jordan Mason could return from a fractured thumb for Sunday’s game against the Indianapolis Colts; many are wondering if they could make a trade for Colts star running back Jonathan Taylor ahead of the Nov. 10 trade deadline.
Taylor hasn’t been himself this season, averaging a career-low 4.0 yards per carry and scoring seven touchdowns in Indianapolis’s first six games.
But after the Colts fired general manager Chris Ballard this week, Taylor could be an intriguing trade target if the Colts want to reallocate their assets for the next GM.
It has Vikings fans dreaming big ahead of the deadline, but with 1,673 career carries and even more as a star at the University of Wisconsin, it sparks debate over whether it’s worth it.
If Minnesota is on the fence, Christian McCaffrey’s trade to the San Francisco 49ers could be an important data point and one that could convince GM Nolan Teasley to pull the trigger.
Vikings should look at Christian McCaffrey as a reason to trade for Jonathan Taylor
The Vikings' running back room could welcome a back like Taylor. In his seventh season in the NFL, Taylor has been a big play waiting to happen, posting four 1,000-yard seasons and leading the NFL in rushing in 2021 with 1,811 yards.
But he’s also led the NFL in carries twice and ranks second in rushing attempts behind Derrick Henry since entering the league in 2020.
With an additional 926 rushing attempts in three collegiate seasons with the Badgers and 202 career receptions, that’s a lot of touches for a player at a position where the cliff comes quickly. But there’s a chance that Taylor could be worth it, much like McCaffrey was for the 49ers.
McCaffrey was a similar star in his first six seasons with the Carolina Panthers, running for over 1,000 yards three times and even recording 1,005 receiving yards during the 2019 campaign.
But after missing a combined 23 games during the 2020 and 2021 seasons, the Panthers looked to move McCaffrey in an effort to stockpile draft capital to find a franchise quarterback.
In the end, San Francisco gave up second-, third-, and fourth-round picks in 2023 and a fifth-round pick in 2024 to acquire McCaffrey.
While Carolina used the second-round pick to trade up for Bryce Young, the 49ers came out the clear winner, adding a key weapon to their offense.
McCaffrey quickly made an impact in San Francisco and led the NFL with 1,459 yards rushing in 2023.
While he dealt with injuries during the 2024 season, McCaffrey has been mostly reliable for the 49ers since, totaling 3,959 rushing yards, 2,288 receiving yards, and 55 total touchdowns over the past five seasons.
Even at age 30, McCaffrey is still a productive running back with 350 yards, seven touchdowns, and a 57.1 percent success rate over his first six games, and it’s an interesting data point the Vikings could use to jump-start their running game.
Jonathan Taylor could be the missing piece for the Vikings’ championship push
The Vikings haven’t been keen on taking a big swing on the running back position in the past.
After releasing Dalvin Cook following the 2022 season, Minnesota turned to cheap solutions like Alexander Mattison and Jones while adding failed draft projects like DeWayne McBride and Ty Chandler.
The situation was so dire that the Vikings traded for Cam Akers in back-to-back seasons, and while they traded for Jordan Mason, he may never reach a superstar level of production.
With Mason returning, Minnesota could lean on him and Jones and hope that 2026 sixth-round pick Demond Claiborne is ready to contribute later in the season.
But while Taylor feels like overkill for the Vikings’ current depth issues, he’d also be a multi-year solution that could add another threat to O’Connell’s offense, which already includes Justin Jefferson, Jordan Addison, and T.J. Hockenson.
Signed through the 2028 season, adding Taylor also sounds like a solid idea. But it comes with some drawbacks, as another piece that would have to be integrated into a season where the offense has also felt unstable.
It would also ignore other needs elsewhere, including depth along the offensive line, and with just $6.0 million in cap space (h/t Over The Cap), the Vikings may need to move someone like Mason to fit Taylor’s $16.1 million cap hit onto the roster.
Even with those obstacles, it may be worth the gymnastics. McCaffrey is one example of a back who has sustained a heavy workload, but so has Derrick Henry, who has had a successful second act with the Baltimore Ravens after departing the Tennessee Titans.
If the Vikings want to trade for Taylor, the reasoning is there. And it might be the move that puts Minnesota’s running game over the top this season and potentially for years to come.
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