The Savvy Vikings Trade and The Gamble That’s Now Playing Out
Picking up left tackle Cam Robinson, a Vikings trade acquisition during the season, was a savvy move from Kwesi Adofo-Mensah.
Jacksonville was moving through a season that was going nowhere in a hurry, making them willing sellers before the deadline. Meanwhile, the Vikings lost franchise left tackle Christian Darrisaw to a season-ending injury. A deal between the two therefore made a ton of sense. Minnesota is now hoping that a certain outcome occurs.
The Savvy Vikings Trade & The Hope for Cam Robinson
Mr. Robinson isn’t returning to the Minnesota Vikings. Getting him to town involved shipping out a conditional 4th/5th in 2026, but the plan is now to move on.
Mr. Darrisaw went down in the LA Rams game from Week 8 (late October). Nothing is guaranteed when coming back from a serious injury, but there’s certainly a chance that he’s ready to roll for most (if not all) of the upcoming season. Keep in mind that Darrisaw agreed to a beefy deal before getting hurt: a four-year commitment coming in at a total of $104 million.
The commitment to Darrisaw means that Robinson isn’t going to get the paycheck he would want out of Minnesota.
Standing at 6’6″ and weighing 335 pounds, Cam Robinson possesses a great build to be an NFL left tackle. He was snagged at No. 34 back in the 2017 NFL Draft, performing well for Jacksonville across the years.
Last season, Robinson was guilty of allowing 7 sacks, 7 QB hits, and 52 pressures. Far from dominant, but the 64.7 PFF grade — alongside a 70.4 pass-blocking grade — means someone is going to sink some money into the veteran.
Meanwhile, the Vikings will be looking to recoup a compensatory selection for his departure, offsetting the cost of acquisition at the trade deadline. If the GM can thread the needle, then we’ll look back at the trade as being a pretty sharp move from Kwesi Adofo-Mensah.
Indeed, that’s the gamble Minnesota took when making that trade: yes, they were forfeiting draft capital from the 2026 draft, but there was great potential to recoup a selection when Robinson took his talents elsewhere.
Recently, there has been a decent bit of chatter about compensatory selections and the Vikings. Minnesota plays the comp picks game since it’s one way of gaining value — one of Adofo-Mensah’s favorite words: value — during free agency. The most recent update is one that’s been expected for a while: officially landing the 97th selection in the 2025 NFL Draft for losing Kirk Cousins last season.
All things considered, NFL free agency is still young. In fact, free agency hasn’t even officially started; we’re still moving through the legal tampering portion of things (free agency officially begins today at 3 p.m. CT).
The hope in Eagan, though, is that Cam Robinson will soon arrive at a meaty deal with a new team. If so, then the gamble that Adofo-Mensah took when shipping out a Day 3 pick for the left tackle will have been close to free (apart from some lost cap space).
Cam Robinson has made close to $63 million in his career. He’ll turn 30 in October, so this could be his last chance of snagging a major contract.
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 social media (Bluesky & Twitter). If you feel so inclined, subscribe to his Substack, The Vikings Gazette, for more great Vikings content.