Until the Vikings and receiver Justin Jefferson worked out a new contract, it wasn’t clear whether they would. And it prompted some teams to call about possibly trading for him.
One such team, via Adam Schefter of ESPN.com, was the 49ers.
Per the report, the 49ers “checked in” on Jefferson’s availability. The Vikings said he wasn’t.
The Jets and Colts also had “some level of interest” in trading for Jefferson, Schefter reports.
The 49ers made the call before their own contract drama played out with receiver Brandon Aiyuk, who was taken three picks after Jefferson in 2020.
The question for the Vikings was whether to pay Jefferson and, if not, whether to trade him. We actually heard scuttlebutt during the first round of the 2024 draft that the Vikings tried to move up with the Chargers to No. 5 to get receiver Malik Nabers, a move that might have been followed by Jefferson suddenly becoming available.
It’s a basic matter of roster construction and cap management. The Vikings are paying Jefferson $35 million per year in new money. They could have had Nabers in the fifth overall slot for $33 million over four years. Not per year, total.
While the Vikings and Jefferson eventually renewed their vows in June, that doesn’t mean it was always destined to happen. Jefferson wanted what he wanted, and the Vikings weren’t prepared to give it to him. Only after they changed their tune did the deal get done.
But it now is. And the 49ers will have to deal with Jefferson later today.
When the 49ers last went to Minnesota for a Monday night game in 2023, Jefferson was injured. The Vikings still somehow found a way to win, anyway.