Purple Headlines of the Week: 2023 Draft Prospect Visits, Dalvin Cook Update, Kirk Cousins Trade Back on the Table?
It was a relatively quiet week for the Vikings, but we did get a few important purple headlines as the week progressed. Among the most notable were draft prospect visits and a Dalvin Cook update. In addition, we have a few of PurplePTSD’s top think pieces for you to consider on this Easter Sunday.
The Vikings Draft Interests Become Clearer
The Minnesota Vikings have a number of needs for the 2023 NFL Draft, but they don’t have many quality selections to fill them with. They have five draft selections in total and just two that land within the top 100. Because of that, Kwesi Adofo-Mensah will have to get a bit creative and prioritize which specific needs he thinks are truly necessary to fill for 2023.
We may be getting a clearer picture as to which of those needs he truly wants to fill this year with the top-30 visits that the Vikings have handed out to this point. We’ve seen a number of wide receivers and defenders get the opportunity, including Jordan Addison, but no quarterbacks so far.
Many have speculated in the last few weeks that Minnesota could opt to take a QB in the first round of the draft. That still could be possible, but it seems less likely without a visit.
The Dalvin Cook Update
Despite suffering yet another dislocation in the shoulder last season, Cook played all 17 games for the Vikings in 2022. It was the first season of his career where he didn’t miss any time due to injury. He also recorded his fourth consecutive 1000-yard season as a result, carrying 264 times for 1173 yards and 8 touchdowns.
This offseason, Cook finally had surgery done to fix the shoulder that has caused troubles for the past few years, and we got a positive update on his recovery process this past week. Tom Pelissero sent in a tweet that the Vikings RB “was recently in Minnesota for a post-surgery checkup on his shoulder and is said to be making excellent progress, per sources. Cook played the last three seasons while protecting the injured shoulder, which is now 100% stable and stronger.”
Ever since Minnesota re-signed Alexander Mattison, and was reportedly interested in David Montgomery prior to that, speculations have been that Dalvin Cook may be out the door either via trade or cut. The surgery may have prolonged that process, but perhaps supposedly at full health, teams could now look into acquiring the veteran RB.
Kirk Cousins Trade Was Discussed at the Combine
Apparently, the big buzz at the NFL scouting combine didn’t have anything to do with the draft prospects showing off their talents on the field. Instead, it had to do with a potential trade involving Vikings starting QB Kirk Cousins. Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk reported that the Vikings QB and his status was a ‘hot topic’ during the week of the NFL scouting combine in Indianapolis.
“Apparently at the scouting combine, there was some chatter, there was some noise among people within the broader league structure, not media but people in the league, about Cousins being traded to the 49ers. That was a hot topic at one point in Indianapolis.”
A potential Cousins trade has been a topic of discussion for multiple offseasons now, but when the Vikings QB got a no-trade clause with his most recent contract extension, it seemed like those talks would eventually die out. Now, though, those rumors seem to be as much of a hot-button issue as they’ve ever been.
In Case You Missed It…
And finally, we have a few of our top pieces from this past week to include in this week’s headlines as well. In case you missed them, you can go check out some of the following links now:
- The Vikings Are Setting Up to Be Big Spenders in 2024 and Beyond
- Episode 100 of Notes from the North, featuring Arif Hasan
- 4 WR Draft Sleepers for the Vikings
- Looking back to the History of Pick #23
Enjoy the extra reading this week!
Josh Frey is a Class of 2020 graduate of The College of Idaho with a bachelor’s degree in Creative Writing. When he’s not writing about the NFL, Josh enjoys running, gaming, or rooting for the Milwaukee Brewers and Bucks. Check out his Twitter account: @Freyed_Chicken.
