Spielman, Vikings Trade Away Defensive End
K. Joudry
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It’s far from a massive move, but this one is intriguing. Vikings GM Rick Spielman has decided to trade depth defensive end Stephen Weatherly to the Denver Broncos. The teams are merely swapping 7th rounders. We get their 2022 7th and they get our 2023 7th. Tom Pelissero broke the news. He followed his initial tweet with some added clarification:
Perhaps that’s all this is: a good veteran gets a chance for a more significant role. Weatherly’s snaps were pretty limited in Minnesota. He lost the starting spot out of camp to D.J. Wonnum. Since that time, Everson Griffen has re-asserted himself, further minimizing Weatherly’s role. The high point of his season was in Week 2 when he played 48% of the snaps. Over the past four weeks, he has played less than 20% of the snaps.
Keep in mind that former Vikings executive George Paton is running the show in Denver, so their organization is very familiar with what Weatherly can offer. The Vikings’ decision to trade them a purple defensive end is therefore unsurprising.
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Nevertheless, it’s intriguing to think that this move might help setup another one. Like an early run to aid the play action later on, could this modest move help us make a more significant one down the road? We open one roster spot and save a few bucks. Can we use this to address a pressing need? We could certainly use some help at corner, but there are other positions of need. In the short term, it opens more opportunity for rookie DE Patrick Jones II, who is now our DE4.
Spielman won’t be shy if another trade opportunity presents itself. Stay tuned.