I heard it on draft night. Chris Simms heard it on draft night. Charley Walters of the St. Paul Pioneer Press recently put it in print.
The Vikings, as the rumor goes, were trying to trade up with the Chargers for the fifth overall pick in the draft, so that the Vikings could take LSU receiver Malik Nabers.
The Chargers, as I heard it, had divisions internally as to whether to trade down or to take Notre Dame tackle Joe Alt. Ultimately, coach Jim Harbaugh held firm and took Alt.
I didn’t hear what that would have meant for the Vikings and receiver Justin Jefferson. As reported by Walters, Jefferson would have been traded.
Obviously, this hasn’t been widely reported because it falls in the bucket of “things they don’t want us to know.” And also because, if true, it complicates the Vikings’ ongoing effort to re-sign Jefferson.
The Vikings insist they’ll get it done. It hasn’t gotten done. It won’t get any cheaper.
If other teams didn’t have reason to contact the Vikings about a possible deal, they do now. And the Vikings quite possibly are waiting for someone to blow them away with an offer they can’t refuse.
Will that happen? More specifically, will another team combine a massive contract offer to Jefferson with the kind of trade package that would prompt the Vikings to make a move?
Or will the Vikings try to kick the can until after the 2024 season and then tag Jefferson and, like the Ravens did with Lamar Jackson, wait for someone to sign (or not sign) the player to an offer sheet? If someone does and the Vikings don’t match, they get two first-round picks.
The Vikings can end the drama any time they want by signing Jefferson. Until that happens, there’s a chance it never will. One of the major factors will be whether someone else is ready to give Jefferson what he wants — and whether that team will give the Vikings what they need to part with the best receiver in football.
