Startling rumor casts doubt on Vikings future with Justin Jefferson

Following the decision by the Minnesota Vikings to select former Michigan quarterback J.J. McCarthy with the No. 10 pick in the first round of the 2024 NFL Draft on Thursday, many are looking forward to the connection the young passer is going to potentially build with superstar wide receiver Justin Jefferson.

Apparently, however, the Vikings might have other things in mind for the future of their wide receiver room, at least according to a rumor that was shared by ProFootballTalk's Mike Florio on Friday.

According to Florio, Minnesota reportedly attempted to trade up in the first round on Thursday to acquire the No. 5 pick from the Los Angeles Chargers. However, the intentions behind the potential deal weren't for the Vikings to select a quarterback. Instead, according to Florio, Minnesota wanted to draft former LSU wide receiver Malik Nabers.

What does the rumor about Malik Nabers say about the future of Justin Jefferson with the Minnesota Vikings?

Heading into this year's NFL Draft, many have assumed that the terms of a contract extension have essentially already been agreed to by Jefferson and the Vikings. But with this rumor popping up on Friday from Florio, perhaps the All-Pro wide receiver signing an extension with Minnesota isn't such a done deal after all?

Aside from the concerns that the rumor is now going to create about Jefferson's future with the Vikings, trading up to select Nabers wouldn't have really made a ton of sense for Minnesota.

In order to move up from pick No. 11 to pick No. 5, the Vikings probably would have had to give up multiple first-round selections to the Chargers, at the very least, and potentially another mid-round pick or two. Then, with that fifth overall selection, Minnesota was going to pick Nabers while also having Jefferson and Jordan Addison on their roster?

If this actually happened, it might have beat out the Atlanta Falcons' decision to select Michael Penix Jr. as the most confusing pick from the first round of this year's NFL Draft.

Luckily, the Vikings didn't trade up with Los Angeles, and they didn't select Nabers. Instead, Minnesota sweat it out and left the opening round on Thursday with McCarthy and former Alabama pass rusher Dallas Turner.

Vikings fans have a lot to be excited about after what their favorite team did in the first round of the 2024 draft, and when Minnesota eventually signs Jefferson to an extension later this year (hopefully), the fan base will be full of even more excitement.

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