There are predictions, and then there are the most outrageous ones that will never materialize. The Minnesota Vikings find themselves in a wild scenario where star receiver Justin Jefferson isn't on the team anymore.
CBS Sports writer Cody Benjamin created five of the craziest trades that could be made if it matched what the NBA has done. Benjamin's scenario with the Vikings is truly insane, with the Vikings getting the most compensation out of it, but losing one of the most important players in franchise history.
- Bengals get: WR Justin Jefferson (Vikings), DE Julian Okwara (Browns)
- Vikings get: WR Tee Higgins (Bengals), CB Greg Newsome II (Browns), 2026 first-round pick (Bengals), 2026 third-round pick (Lions)
- Lions get: EDGE Trey Hendrickson (Bengals)
- Browns get: 2026 fourth-round pick (Lions)
"This might be the most outlandish of the bunch, if only because Jefferson is as close to untouchable as anyone in the NFL. The Vikings have rightly and swiftly extinguished any and all speculation regarding the wideout's trade availability in the past, and "Jets" has done the same."
Would a Justin Jefferson trade like this ever benefit the Minnesota Vikings?
Look, the answer to this insane question is no. Jefferson is a once-in-a-generation athlete and is well on his way to shattering NFL receiving records. Letting him walk at this point in his career would probably cost a lot of people in Minnesota their jobs.
Just for the sake of this situation, let's play along with it.
Starting with Newsome, this would be a nice piece to a defense that was near the bottom in pass defense in 2024. In his four NFL seasons, he has never allowed a completion percentage of over 62.9% in a single season and has intercepted all three of his career passes in the last two years. Not a crazy starter, but someone who can step up in the nickel corner position and play well.
Higgins is no Jefferson and will never be, but he makes for a solid starting receiver. He's racked up over 1,000 yards twice in his five years in the league and would give the Vikings the size needed in the red zone. For Higgins to join, it would require him or Jordan Addison to become the number one receiver, and neither guy has shown that part of themselves.
The last part of the Vikings' side of the transaction is a first-round and third-round pick. Minnesota's new first-round pick comes from the Bengals, which could be decent as it might be a mid-round pick. It would help the Vikings either restock on draft picks they haven't had for the last couple of years or make a trade-up in the first round for a game-changing player.
Cincinnati getting Jefferson and Ja'Marr Chase is a cheat code that would never be allowed to happen. It would cost the Bengals a functional defense, but their pass offense would rank among the best in NFL history with Joe Burrow slinging the ball to Chase and Jefferson.
What's worse about this trade is that even if the Vikings get the Lions' third-round pick, Detroit still gets better with one of the best pass rushers in the NFL. Hendrickson would get to terrorize J.J. McCarthy twice a year, and no one in Minnesota wants to see that.
Overall, if fans ignored the Jefferson part, this isn't the worst trade in the world, but it's still crazy to even have him in the conversation. It would have to take something terrible for Jefferson to be sent packing from Minnesota. This will never happen in a million years.