Over the course of the last few months, we have seen a lot of interesting NFL mock drafts for the Minnesota Vikings. Since the start of the 2024 calendar year, we have collected 609 different mock drafts and Michigan QB J.J. McCarthy leads the pack with 175 different mock drafts sending him to the Vikings.

At this point in the NFL Draft cycle, you are starting to see a lot of different mock drafts come out with some really hot takes. Each year, ESPN’s Bill Barnwell does a mock draft every year with a different twist: each pick gets traded.

The Vikings made a small trade back from 11 to 15 so that’s not really noteworthy. The second trade was, as Barnwell had the Vikings trading superstar wide receiver Justin Jefferson and the 23rd overall pick for the third overall pick. His reasoning is fascinating to think about.

Let’s be calm for a second and talk through this. I don’t think the Vikings want to trade Jefferson, and there are plenty of examples in which organizations have waited to get a deal done with a player and then eventually got them to sign on the dotted line. I also saw the Giants sign Odell Beckham Jr., insist they weren’t going to trade him months after giving him an extension and then do exactly that. At the very least, until a Jefferson deal gets done, I’m keeping an open mind about the star wideout’s future.

The Vikings would notably be holding onto the No. 11 selection as part of this trade, which would allow them to get creative in replacing Jefferson. They could move forward with Jordan Addison and T.J. Hockenson as the bulk of their receiving corps, but would they want to draft Brian Thomas Jr. there? Would they try to move up to No. 8 to grab Rome Odunze? It’s tough to look at any wide receiver and expect him to turn into Jefferson, but the Vikings could draft Drake Maye at No. 3 and then surround him with two first-round picks at wide receiver, Aaron Jones at running back and Hockenson at tight end.

This trade would value Jefferson as being worth something like the seventh overall pick in a typical draft by the Jimmy Johnson chart, or the equivalent of the pick Nos. 24 and 26. That’s probably a little lower than Vikings fans might expect, but it’s also a product of a draft class that is so wideout-heavy. At the same time, the return for the No. 3 pick might also seem a little low if it produces the equivalent of three first-round picks in the 20s for the Patriots. This deal is roughly about fair.

Now, the idea of trading Jefferson to then get a top wide receiver in the draft while securing your franchise quarterback has some merit. However, you don’t know how good that wide receiver is going to turn out and Jefferson is already the best wide receiver in the National Football League. That wouldn’t be the best option for the Vikings long-term.

We are just six days away from the NFL Draft and it can’t come soon enough.