At the Last Second, A $95 Million Defender Gets Tossed into Trade Rumors; Do the Vikings Pounce?
Truth be told, Minnesota’s corners are somewhere between average to above-average.
Yes, Stephon Gilmore has been doing a nice job and Byron Murphy Jr. has made several notable plays, but a high-powered offense can expose this group (see: Lions, Detroit). Tossing a high-end corner into the mix has the potential to push Brian Flores’ defense to the next level. Does a $95 million defender thus make sense for the Vikings?
Marshon Lattimore: The $95 Million Defender
The word comes courtesy of Tom Pelissero, one of the NFL’s foremost insiders (and someone who has connections aplenty to Minnesota).
Consider what he had to say as a follow-up to the news of New Orleans firing their head coach: “While the #Saints fired Dennis Allen after a seven-game losing streak, it doesn’t sound like it’ll be a firesale before tomorrow’s trade deadline. They have gotten calls and could move the likes of CB Marshon Lattimore. But a widespread selloff seems unlikely.”
In theory, inserting a new CB1 into the mix would have a domino effect that would ripple throughout the Vikings’ secondary.
Lattimore could handle the opposition’s toughest receiver, thereby allowing Gilmore to shift his focus toward the No. 2 option. Meanwhile, Murphy could function as the slot specialist while Shaq Griffin is a tip-top CB4.
Complicating matters for the Vikings is the simple fact that Mr. Lattimore has a large contract attached to his name (as the title suggests). Back in 2021, Lattimore agreed to a five-year deal that promised to kick over a staggering $95 million. Major money for a top talent.
The good news for Minnesota is simply that there’s ample cap room in the future. Per Over the Cap, the Vikings are moving into 2025 with $75 million in cap space. Keep in mind that that’s a number that’s likely to see some gains once cuts and restructures occur.
So, in theory, the Vikings could afford Marshon Lattimore and his beefy cap hit. He’s under contract for the remainder of 2024 (obviously) and then for the ’25 & ’26 seasons. Minnesota would thus roll into the offseason with Lattimore as an in-house CB solution to work alongside Akayleb Evans, Dwight McGlothern, and Mekhi Blackmon as youngsters looking to push their games to the next level.
Of course, the Pelissero tweet doesn’t establish a direct connection between the Vikings and Saints. Rather, Pelissero merely notes that there have been “calls” taking place, largely because the Saints are sitting at 2-7.
All we’re discussing, then, is some purple dot connecting. A team may be interested in moving out a top defender. The Vikings have a need for a top defender at that position and have the cap space to accommodate the player. Are discussions happening behind the scenes for Mr. Lattimore journeying over to Eagan, MN?
Minnesota has been active on the trade market. So far, running back Cam Akers and left tackle Cam Robinson have been added. Does the defense see some extra help after the offense picked up a pair of contributors?
Marshon Lattimore, 28, stands at 6’0″ and weighs 192 pounds. He got scooped up at No. 11 back in the 2017 NFL Draft and promptly won the Defensive Rookie of the Year Award. He has been to four Pro Bowls and is sitting on 15 career interceptions alongside 88 career passes defended.
In 2024, Lattimore has 30 tackles and 2 passes defended. Only 54.5% of passes into his coverage have been completed and he’s yet to give up a touchdown. PFF is giving him a healthy 69.5 grade, good for 32nd among the 110 corners who are considered. Lattimore missed the Week 9 game with a hamstring injury.
A Day 3 pick should be enough to pry away the long and strong corner.
Editor’s Note: Information from Pro Football Reference, PFF, and Over the Cap helped with this piece.
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K. Joudry is the Senior Editor for Vikings Territory and PurplePTSD. He has been covering the Vikings full time since the summer of 2021. He can be found on Twitter, as a co-host for Notes from the North, and as the proprietor at The Vikings Gazette, a humble Vikings Substack.