Sitting at 5-2, with a ton of football left to be played, the Minnesota Vikings are currently exploring opportunities to improve their football team for 2024 and beyond.
That being said, the Vikings cannot afford to stay silent before this season's trade deadline on Tuesday, November 5, even if it means they end up being sellers. Sometimes, striking when a player's value is at its highest can help improve a team in the long run.
Let's explore a few reasons why Minnesota should be buyers or sellers before this year's trade deadline. What do you believe the Vikings should do?
Should the Minnesota Vikings be buyers or sellers before the 2024 trade deadline?
Why the Vikings should be sellers before the trade deadline
1. Vikings currently projected to only have four picks in 2025 NFL Draft
As it stands, Minnesota is expected to have at least four draft picks for 2025. One in the first round, a third-round compensatory selection, and two fifth-round picks.
In a year where many within the halls of the TCO Performance Center expect this Vikings team to enter their “Super Bowl window,” only being able to add four new players to their roster from the 2025 draft likely won't help the team improve significantly in the future.
Players like cornerback Akayleb Evans, for example, could possibly fetch Minnesota a seventh-round pick from a team looking for more help in the secondary.
Vikings edge rusher Patrick Jones II has also quietly had five sacks to start the season, and with rookie Dallas Turner waiting in the wings, it might be time to cut ties with Jones for some draft compensation in order for the team to let its 2024 first-round pick see a larger role on defense.
2. Vikings can afford to trade players with value and still make the playoffs
Not many expected Minnesota to be 5-2 through eight weeks of the season, and with three straight matchups against underwhelming AFC South teams coming up, this Vikings team can probably afford to move guys before the trade deadline to help the team for the future while still keeping their chances alive to make the playoffs this year.
A player like safety Cam Bynum, if Minnesota does not expect to re-sign him in 2025 when he becomes a free agent, is someone the team should look to deal before this season's trade deadline.
The Vikings could get a nice return for a Pro Bowl-caliber player like Bynum in the form of a fourth or even third-round draft pick, and they should still be able to play effective defense without him for the rest of the year.
Why the Vikings should be buyers before the trade deadline
1. Vikings are legitimate Super Bowl contenders, but still have holes
This season, Minnesota has shown they can go toe-to-toe with anyone in NFL, even in the team's two losses.
However, it is clear that if the Vikings don’t address weak areas of their roster like cornerback, interior defensive line, and now with Christian Darrisaw out for the season, the left tackle position, then their chances of having playoff success this year will likely crumble.
Names like Jeffrey Simmons, Dexter Lawrence, and Jaycee Horn have been mentioned during the last few weeks as possible trade targets for Minnesota, but how realistic are they?
Whether some of the trade targets are realistic or not, if Vikings general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah believes his team has a legitimate shot to contend for a championship this season, he needs to be ready to part with Minnesota's 2025 first-round pick and potentially more.
2. Vikings project to have over $70 million in cap space in 2025
The Vikings are expected to have plenty of cash to spend for the 2025 season, according to the latest projections from OverTheCap.com, but it's important to note that this could also affect how the team handles this year's trade deadline.
Players like Simmons and Lawrence are two of the highest-paid defensive linemen in the league, making them legitimate options for Minnesota if their respective teams are willing to part ways.
Players like D.J. Reed, Will Fries, Cam Robinson, and D.J. Jones could be had on discount due to their impending free agency, but any of them could provide a big impact for the Vikings during the rest of the season.
This season's trade deadline has definitely turned into one of the most important trade deadlines in recent memory for Minnesota.