Purple Insider - a Minnesota Vikings and NFL podcast - Vikings Free Agency: Best options remaining (Part 1)

Episode Date: March 10, 2026

Matthew Coller talks with Andrew Krammer and Manny Hill about the Vikings' lack of movement in free agency on Day 1 and the best players remaining with Andrew Krammer and Manny Hill. The Purple Insider podcast is brought to you by FanDuel. Also, check out our sponsor HIMS at https://hims.com/purpleinsider Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

everybody welcome to another episode of Purple Insider presented by Fanduil. Matthew Collar here and well, not a lot has changed since the last time that we were on the air, but in about 15 minutes, Andrew Kramer of the Star Tribune is going to check in and then Mani Hill will drop by for an hour as well and we'll take questions, comments, thoughts, and reactions to not much that has gone on with the Minnesota Vikings so far.

Now, you could make an argument that as a bunch of giant contracts are being handed out, many of which will not ultimately end up paying their dividends that the Vikings being patient with this free agency may or may not turn out to be a good idea. And also, we got the sense that this was not going to be the most exciting day, day one of free agency. But that doesn't mean nothing happened because around the NFL, there have been a lot of dominoes. that have fallen that we're going to dive into. And I have made a list of the top remaining free agents. And, well, as we speak, you never know. There could be some that sign as we're talking. So if that happens, then I guess just cross them off the list.

So I'm going to get the list out now of the best players that I think would fit for the Minnesota Vikings that are still remaining on the board. And then we'll see what happens over the next couple of hours. And we'll talk about what our expectations are here. going forward and we'll get into some of the biggest dominoes that have fallen around the league. So we'll jump right into my list. Here we go. The top remaining free agents that I think would make at least some sense for the Minnesota Vikings.

He's going to start off at the wide receiver position with Juan Jennings from the San Francisco 49ers. I do think that Jennings will probably get more money than the Vikings want to give out for a wide receiver three. I also think that he is likely looking for a job with a team that does not already have a number one and two wide receiver. But because he has mostly throughout his career had a wide receiver three job, I put Joanne Jennings at the top. Calvin Austin, the third is my number two here for the Pittsburgh Steelers. The projected contracts, at least from Daniel Popper of the Athletic, who's doing their free agency coverage, was pretty reasonable for Kelvin Austin. He played with Aaron Rogers last year.

He is more of a depth wide receiver who can step up if he needs to. So I put him on the list there. Jaquan Brisker, again, these are some guys at the top of my list that I do expect to end up getting a little bit more money than the Vikings want to hand out. But it's not a guarantee that the Vikings won't give out any money to anyone ever, but maybe are rather letting the dust. settle a little bit and playing it safer and also might need to still find out some things like is Harrison Smith coming back brisker i do think will probably be a little too expensive

but what tends to happen a lot is the guys who make it through the first day or two of free agency those prices go down quite a bit and uh you know i think that for guys like jennings and austin and Brisker, they might end up being a decent deal. So I put them on the list as not impossible for the Vikings to get. Brisker, as we know, is an impact player. He has had some injuries with Chicago, but a blitzing type of safety, high IQ safety. And Chicago doesn't seem like they are bringing him back. So let's see.

Next on the list is Deshawn Hand, a run stuffing strong defensive tackle that isn't expected to rake in a lot of cash. But when you look at where the Vikings defensive line is right now, you've got Jalen Redmond and Levi Drake Rodriguez, and then Ty Ingram Dawkins and Elijah Williams, Ingram Dawkins played a little bit last year. Williams didn't play a whole heck of a lot. They could use a veteran player to come in and help them stuff the run.

And I do not think that Hand is going to get a huge contract. However, I got to say I was a little surprised. that Kairas Tonga got $7 million per year on the open market from the Kansas City Chiefs. So I guess anybody could potentially end up getting, you know, paid here. So Deshawn Hand is next on the list. Then Nick Crossed the safety from the Colts, as Seth mentions on the younger side and still could, that's a position where guys can get better and better. If they are in the safety market, the expectations aren't super high or through the roof

of what Cross is going to get paid. Another guy who could play in the box, pass rushing type of safety on the tougher, good tackler type of side. Rashad White is my favorite option for the Vikings in terms of running back. Earlier it was mentioned that they were potentially in on Travis E.TN, which means that they're not maybe doing nothing.

They might be waiting for free agency to come to them rather than just running out and signing everything that moves. like they kind of did last year. And also, you know, some of the free agency moves that happened last year, they didn't happen right away. There were a few that happened in later on in the evening and then even into the next couple of days. Hargrave took a couple days later, I think, before he ended up signing. So Rashad White is a solid all around running back, not by any means a give him the football

and he's going to run for 80 yards like Bo Jackson and TechMobile. but is an all-around type of talent where he could catch the ball. He can block if he's needed to. And then, you know, he's going to average over four yards of carry. And I think in the right circumstances could be a very good 1-1-A to Jordan Mason depending on the circumstance. The prices for running backs have been very high so far, but there might be a steep drop-off. And we're going to look at all the signings a little bit later, kind of talk about the prices

and some of the trends and things like that and how, I mean, look, the worst teams are the ones that are spending all the money. The Raiders are going absolutely berserk, the Jets, the Titans, these teams are just going crazy in free agency. And, you know, maybe there's a little bit of, all right, if those teams are going to go wild and overspend, overspend, overspend, overspend, then let's wait and be a little more methodical about it. I don't blame them if that is the plan.

but the running backs got paid the first wave, big, big money, E-TN, and especially Kenneth Walker, got a huge deal. But then, you know, the second level of running backs, not as much. I saw Rico Dowdell sign, but I didn't see exactly what the contract was. But the next level of running backs, it seemed like there was a pretty big dip there. So I'll be curious to see what Rashad White ends up getting. Luke Fortner, the center from the New Orleans Saints. We talked about Center a little earlier in the day,

and I'm not convinced that the Vikings are going to put a lot of assets into center, but if they are, other than maybe a third round draft pick, if they are, Luke Fortner would be the guy to do it. It was very solid for New Orleans at that position last year. I will throw out Caden Ellis from the Atlanta Falcons, even though the Vikings brought back Eric Wilson, because he's kind of like Eric Wilson, a very good blitzer, an all-around type of player,

and if he slips through the cracks, I don't expect this deal to happen because they are a pretty set at linebacker, but this is a team that loves to rotate. He could play on the outside. He could play on the inside. And I just think he would be a great fit for Brian Flores. Alohi Gilman has gotten more run on this show

than probably any other show he has ever, I don't know, been talked about on for the teams that he's played for. I think he's good. He played for the Los Angeles Chargers, the Baltimore Ravens, and if you are looking for someone who is not going to get a huge deal, but also could have a pretty solid impact,

then Alohi Gilman, I think, is up there. You guys are mentioning that Johnny Munt has been released. I think that's where Kevin O'Connell looks up to the sky and just sees a Johnny Munt-shaped moon up there, like Batman, you know, in the light. That's Johnny Munt's signal up there. He should be a Viking before the end of the day. COC really does like himself some Johnny Munt, but I think they're pretty good at tight end at the moment. So Gilman is on my list.

Logan Hall is still out there, defensive tackle from Tampa Bay, who has been good in terms of stopping the run with some upside as a pass rusher. He's been improving over the years, and I think he could get better at that. Jalen Hawkins was excellent as a safety for the New England Patriots last year in route to the Super Bowl. Darnell Mooney has not been a great wide receiver since he had that little run in Chicago, but was an effective wide receiver and feels like a guy that could totally slide under the radar and still be available in like a week. Sebastian Joseph Day, former Los Angeles Ram, Tennessee Titan, defensive tackle, always kind of comes on the cheap.

And some of these guys like Joseph Day, they don't get 50 pressures, but they get like 20 or 25. And they don't play 800 snaps, but they play 500. And they're worth the signing. Emmanuel Wilson running back from Green Bay. We saw him play last year. And then Marquise Brown, who doesn't stay healthy very often and is not the player that he once was. But if you are rolling the dice for wide receivers, then he would be the type of guy that

you might be looking at, Marquise Brown. So that's my list of top remaining free agents. And I think that the Vikings would not have any of these guys turn into total game changers or reshape the face of the franchise or something like that. But they might at each of these positions be somebody that solidifies a spot and gives you average play. And I've always thought this about free agency and just in general is sometimes when a guy will leave a team, there will be like, well, you know, he wasn't a game changer anyway.

He was just average. But the difference between bad and average is very big. being bad at a position in the NFL can kill you, where being average, some of the time you can paper over if you've got a lot of talent around there. So there's some options there. I'm curious what you guys think should be the number one target for them. You don't even have to give a player.

There's my list. If you have players that you like, feel free to throw them out there. But just in terms of a free agent need, where you'd like to see them deal with some of their problems now, rather than wait all the way until the draft. And the Vikings officially got the comp pick that we all knew that they were going to get for Sam Darnold. And they get just one comp pick this year,

which is why we don't generally talk a lot about it on the show is because they announce it and, you know, it'll usually be just one or zero for the Vikings. So maybe if they turn into one of those teams that gets a bunch of compics, it'll be different. But they did get officially announced. an extra third round pick today. And as far as the moves that they've made,

there hasn't been a lot. There's a depth cornerback in James Pierre who has very nice numbers in a small sample and is going to be 30 years old. And then they're keeping their guys. And they've really just stuck to the plan that they laid out at the NFL Combine, which is Rob Brasinski said,

we're not going to restructure everything that moves. obviously they have to get, you know, cap compliant. And then they are going to keep their core. And I think when it comes to the players who left, there is a little bit, you know, if Harrison Smith ends up retiring, which we don't know what's going to happen there yet, if Harrison Smith ends up retiring,

then you are going to look around the roster and go, that's quite a few openings from last year. because you have two defensive tackle spots, starting safety spot that's incredibly vital to this defense. And on the offensive side, there's a running back spot, there's a center, there's a wide receiver three that we know they like to use quite a bit. And of course, you know, they're a team that does use multiple tight ends, but they don't use them all the time. I think that they would prefer to use a lot of 11 personnel. So there is construction to be done. day one, because I know I've already seen on the interwebs and in the comment section,

like, you know, this is pretty disappointing that they haven't at least been involved. And I don't disagree with you that I thought that there might be a little bit more action, but there's going to have to be some more action for the Vikings. Just when you look around at the entire roster, they can't go into the draft where they're at right now. they will have to start looking at, you know, other options and players. So, uh, let's get into the chat here and we'll get, uh, Andrew Kramer should be coming up shortly on the show from the Star Tribune. Folks, have you noticed that social media has now been around long enough to the point

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Brian Cook did sign with the Bengals. He was a guy that I was interested in. I thought that Cook, an excellent, excellent tackler and I think a good all-around talent on the younger side, the Bengals end up landing him. As far as Harrison Smith goes, I kind of expected that his decision would be made by now. And I wouldn't be terribly shocked if that comes fairly soon, uh, that, you know, he'll make that announcement or they'll work out another deal for a one more year. I mean, if you're Harrison Smith, it has to be entirely on just how you feel from a physical perspective. Because if he feels like physically that he can do it, then I think then he should come back and do it. And they would want to bring him back for one more.

year. Now, the money is an issue, though. In the past, especially last year, they gave him a very favorable deal because they could. And they were in a cap spot where they could. Now they're not. And they have to be a little more, you know, a little bit more strict with how much they're willing to spend if he wants to come back and play again. Now, I know that they want him to be a Viking for life. And he was huge for the defense down the stretch. And if that inspired him to come back and play, no problem with that. And having a defensive coordinator on the field at all times is very, very valuable. It's just maybe the question of how much is that ultimately going to be worth.

So let's get, let's get Andrew Kramer onto the show here. Give me one second to bring Andrew in. But so I'm very curious, though, because I would have thought that his decision would have been made by now. And we would know if we should be talking about. safeties or not. All right, Andrew Kramer Star Tribune. What is up, my friend? How are you? Hey, Matt. I'm doing well. How about you? Well, just kind of hanging out, waiting for stuff to happen. You know, the thing about today in the free agency for the Vikings is that it is very interesting with the number of questions that exist. But I think what I thought was that we would get some

answers and it feels like we have no more answers to all of the questions that we would have had going into free agency. So what has been, as you've sat in front of your computer, what has been your biggest question that you have about like what they're going to do? What's next? What is going on with this team and the roster build? Because there's a lot of space on this roster to still be managed. There is, and there's not a whole lot of money to fill those spaces, certainly, which is why I think we're seeing them slow play at the way they are.

The quarterback domino is going to be the first one to fall. The biggest question I've still got about this team is obviously who's going to fill that spot, but assuming it's going to be one of these guys with the offset language in their contract that comes on. It's going to be a situation where how frugally can they fill these holes? Who's going to start at running back for them? Who's going to be starting of whichever quarterback it's going to be? The big questions, too, around quarterback, how much do they shift the offense? They have.

If it's Kyler Murray, it might take a drastic change. So those are all questions I've got, certainly. But short term right now, it's no surprise they started off slowly with James Pierre coming across from Pittsburgh. They're going to be picky, even if reportedly they're in on Travis ETN, the way that they were today, it's not a shock. They couldn't close that deal when it gets up to $13 million the way that he got paid. So they cut Aaron Jones or are going to.

at $10 million for a reason. And I think fans should just breathe a little bit because those questions and answers, or excuse me, those answers are not going to come as fast as we want them to. So I don't want to sound like I'm trying to just spin this in a way that makes it sound better than it is when it comes to their free agent situation. But, you know, I also think that when you look at their spending for last year and there was a lot of spending that was at the highest dollar, right? Like, they didn't last year get very many good deals. And they, they did not wait and were not all that patient with letting free agency

play out and letting other teams spend the big money. They were the team that was like the Raiders are this year or the Jets are this year where they ran into free agency or they kept every single player that they wanted to keep. Is it possible for them knowing that so much of the board has come off already. Is it possible for them to make shrewd moves that ultimately end up working out better than the ones that would have been the most exciting for podcasting and writing purposes? Yeah, absolutely they can. Absolutely. Oftentimes, the winners of free agency do not be very certainly. So absolutely they can. I think this stuff gets overblown. When you see Jalen Phillips go for $30 million a year, you see Wondale Robinson go for $19 million a year.

A lot of these contracts are just getting so bloated. Yeah, the Vikings were one of the free agency winners a year ago. And look where it got them. So absolutely, yes, they're still available. One of the guys that jumps out to me is the Packer cast off at center, Elchin Jenkins. Safety, Nick Cross from the Colts would be an excellent addition to this group. There's just a ton of guys that are still out there that are going to eventually get those mid, maybe even lower upper level tier, you know, the kind of 1B contracts, not 1A contracts.

those guys are all going to come. And again, it's, it's tough to sit here and wait when the buildup is there and you see so many guys fly off. But certainly the top performers in the NFL are not necessarily the guys that signed the first day of free agents. Andrew, you're breaking up a little bit. You're breaking up a little bit on me. Would you mind popping out and then popping back in real quick? Because you're kind of every third word there. But I caught it.

I caught what he was saying. And I tend to agree with it because we can't talk out of both sides of our mouth. I mean, it's really exciting to be the, even on the media side here when the team is going crazy and the fans are getting excited and everything else when they're making a bunch of big moves. I mean, that's, that's always one of the most fun times of the year. And I know all of you were spending as much time as you possibly could today, refreshing, who's going where, who's signing with what team, who are the Vikings going to get? Is there going to be a quarterback resolution?

And that's all phenomenal stuff for the content. but oftentimes if you can be the team that waits and that is a little more on the patient side, oftentimes you can have that succeed for you. But, you know, Andrew, Jonathan Grenard, I feel like is a real linchpin to how I feel about what they're going to do this entire offseason because the moves that they've made so far were all kind of obvious. Like the defensive tackles were overpaid and I didn't think fit the best for them. so you could see why you'd move on, keeping T.J. Hawkinson, keeping Eric Wilson, this is all stuff

we would have projected. Trading Jonathan Grenard is something that I didn't really expect. And trading Jonathan Grenard, I feel like if they're going to do it, they have not. If you're just tuning in, they have not, but it's been rumored for several days now. I feel like that would be a much more of a shift toward wanting to focus on the future as opposed to, hey, we're going to get every bit out of, you know, out of this team that we can and this core. Yeah. And honestly, when it comes to Grenard, that's a spot where he's reportedly asking for a pay raise. That puts the Vikings in a bind.

When you see Jalen Phillips go for $30 million to this ceiling, that's an incredible amount of money for a guy who has not had the type of years that Jonathan Grenard has had double-digit sack seasons. So these guys flying off the charts in terms of the money that they're making at edge rusher. So Granard is putting the team a little bit in a bind. He's favors, certainly, by asking for more money right now. Why should he? He's 29 years old.

He's going to be entering the last season he has before he turns 30. And he's coming off a pretty big injury that costs him playing time and could cost him money if it happened to have been a contract year. So this is just a tough spot for the Vikings. It's a tough spot for him because he wants his and the Vikings aren't in a position to be giving out much more money than they've already been pouring over the bar to every player that wanted it recently. So I understand why they're at where they're at with him. I don't think they want to trade him by any account. It doesn't seem that that's the case.

But they also don't seem to want to pay them what other than see what the offers are. If you're happy with one, take it. If not, you have to tell John, sorry, but we might just need to see him out and then take care of you on the back end of this deal. Yeah. And I think that's a tough place to be because if you're Jonathan Grenard and you're looking around the NFL and you're seeing guys who are. at very least in a similar bucket as you now earning a lot more money.

And we could have anticipated this, that guys who are similar in terms of their production over the last few years, now getting a lot more in free agency because as opposed to a couple years ago, he was kind of an ascending player that was interesting and they grabbed onto. And then it was like, oh, okay, he's not just somebody who kind of popped in Houston. He's a legitimate star. at the same time he's not of the level of star of a Max Crosby. He's not at the same level of a star of a Nick Bosa or a Micah Parsons.

So where do you find the medium if he is kind of sticking to his guns wanting to get a new contract, but you don't really want to do it. It's a bit of a complicated situation. What do you think, though? Let me shift to the backfield because clearly from the hires on the coaching staff, they want to run the ball better. Like, KOC sees your tweets, everybody. He knows that you think that he can't run the ball well enough.

And I think it's also true that it has not been a real weapon for them being able to run the football at any point in KOC's tenure here. So they were going after E-TN. That tells us that there's interest. But the running backs have mostly come off the board here. Do you look to the draft? I saw Daniel Jeremiah floating. Hey, what if they trade it up to get, you know, Jeremiah love, which seems. the antithesis of what they're actually trying to do here and think toward the future.

But how do you get a backfield that can actually be a difference maker because whether it's Kyler or Kirk or Gino, they're not going to be able to do it themselves. Yeah, it's a tough spot because you need a veteran. And when you lose your last two or your best two past protectors from that backfield and Aaron Jones and C.J. Ham in the same off season, replacing that person or those people with rookies or a rookie is just a top pick to come in here and make that kind of. of difference. So to me, that's, that's where it's going to come from is that a veteran addition. And where are those guys? Like you said, this is not a great free agent running back class.

Certainly not like what we saw the last couple years. So I don't know if it's Rashad White, if it's Michael Carter, there's enough spread kind of option pass guys that could come in and give you a little bit of a burst, some speed. But where are you getting that pass protection that they covet so much? To me, that's going to be the biggest question mark. And I don't, I don't think you can get that from a rookie. And certainly, You're not going to get that from, yeah, you're not going to get that from a young guy coming in. We've seen that struggle too often. Yeah, that's a tough part because when I look at the guys who were exceptional in pass protection,

ETN was really the one that stood out. But then also Tyler Algier and he ends up with the Arizona Cardinals, he may have jumped a gun a little bit. I feel like he did not get a huge paycheck and he went to the Cardinals whose quarterback is now going to be either Jacoby Brissette or Gardner Minshu. I guess he'll get the ball, but I'm not, I was just really surprised that he didn't try to aim for more of a bigger role with a better team. So now there's only a couple of guys left on the board who even have any type of experience in the backfield.

That does shift me, Andrew, a little bit more toward the draft. Yeah, and that's just it. That's where you get speed. That's where you get the kind of game breaking stuff they look for. And with Frank Smith coming in, wanting to run more of the wide zone, presumably from what he's done in the past with Miami and San Francisco, you would assume that's kind of what they're going to approach. Rahim Mostert is still out there somehow. And I would assume that maybe he's a fit considering his experience, but he's not going to be a 16, 17 gig. And that's my,

maybe that's what they have to fall back on, Matt. Maybe they have to fall back on, look, we're not going to get the workhorse guy we wanted when we had Aaron Jones, when we had Dowell and Cook. Maybe they just need to fall back on finding what works in a committee, finding the schemes that your offensive line can actually run to do all those things that just to coalesce into a strong running game, that as you mentioned, has been such a struggle for offense so far. So maybe it's not going to be this one person solution. Maybe it's going to have to be kind of a committee that includes a veteran like we talk about, you know, scrap peep veteran, but then also a rookie coming in here with Jordan Mason.

Since our connection is a little bit of a struggle here as well, let me just ask you one more thing and just get your opinion because today it was a little bit odd with Tua being released by the Miami Dolphins, and then he's going to get, at least from what was reported, a June 1st designation, but by the end of the day, he's in Atlanta Falcon. So, I mean, even though there's timing with all of this stuff with Wednesday is when they can officially release Kyler Murray and so forth, and I think the same goes for Kirk and Gino Smith. I mean, it seems like there could be plenty of discussion going on. I don't know if there's a difference between what happened with Tua and what is going on with

those guys being released either. But it seems like at any time, Kyler could come out or his agent or someone. Maybe I'm wrong. Maybe there's tampering issues behind the scenes. But doesn't it feel like, wait, how did Tua just become an Atlanta Falcon?

So what do you think the timeline is here for a decision at quarterback? Yeah, my understanding is that because the dolphins announced it, because they announced that it's going to be a June 1st, post-June-first designation release with Tua that he's free to negotiate with other teams, that he's treated like anybody else. But because Kyler has guaranteed money beyond this upcoming year, he pulled after the new league year begins.

That's at least my understanding of it. I'm kind of playing a doctor on television a little bit, but that's at least how I understand it. And that's why Kyler Murray, even according to Over the Cap, which does a great job, Jason Fitzgerald, doing this stuff. He wrote that after 3 p.m. on Wednesday because of that guaranteed money in his deal. Okay, so we'll have to be near our computers at that point. Is that your pick for the Vikings?

Do you think that's what they're going to do? I think it is at this point because of the offset money, because of the just what seemed like not other great options for Kyler at this. Is Atlanta just because of the offense where you want to go, but have they shown the ability to rehabilitate a quarterback and be the best fit for you? I don't think so. I think you've got to look back at Sam Darnold. You look back at what Minnesota has done and Kevin O'Connell have done

with a veteran quarterback before. And I think if you're Kyler, and this is going to fall in his decision, why I think the Vikings go that route, because we've talked about it a lot. It's the best option. It's the best upside. It's the best, not only short-term option,

hey, what if you get surprised and it's somehow a long-term option for you as well. So, yeah, Kyle. All right, Andrew. Well, I caught 90% of that. So thank you for, thank you for popping on what to work on that for next time. We're much better.

in person. That's the doing the hard for a preview. We're definitely much better in person. But, uh, no, thank you for your time, sir. I agree that, uh, Kyler is the option that makes the most sense. But with the NFL, you never really know. And I think if you're Pittsburgh, you're just getting another receiver and maybe being like, do you like that? Is that what you, is that what you want? Is that you want another receiver, Kyler? Because the options in Pittsburgh are no better than they are here. So thank you for your time, sir. And, uh, we'll talk to you again soon. Most of the Andrew Kramer there. It's internet, man.

But look, so when it comes to the quarterback decision, clearly if you could make it out there, Andrew said that Wednesday at 3 o'clock is the time that we'll all be watching for if Kyler Murray is going to become a Minnesota Viking. I just wondered if it would kind of sneak out there. But that is the difference. Because I was curious about that earlier when Tua, like, okay, they've already announced that he's gone. and now he's in Atlanta Falcon,

but the fact that that domino has fallen, now you have Malik Willis off the board, you have not that I thought Tua was an option, but you have Atlanta off the board for competition, and you have a report that Gino Smith is most likely to go to the New York Jets, which you could say why the Jets, but he would have a chance to be the starter with the New York Jets as opposed to in a competition with J.J.

McCarthy. So that makes sense. And I appreciate Andrew clarifying that. And as far as the Jonathan Grenard thing goes, I mean, that is, I think, an entire swing type of player to how I feel about the offseason. Because if they don't trade Jonathan Grenard, I'm going to go into next year thinking, this team should be good and competitive. And when we go around the division, the Lions got a center, Cade Mays, who I think is a pretty good football player, but he's not Frank Reg now. And they've got other stuff to solve, left tackle. They've got a new offensive coordinator coming in. Their defense still needs pass rush.

They didn't get Max Crosby either. Every one of these teams, their medias and their fan bases are also talking about flawed quarterbacks with issues on offensive line or issues in the secondary or issues on the defensive line. And if we go roster for roster, if it's Kyler Murray and his best season is not that different from Jordan Love's best season. It's not that different from Jared Goffs. And I would even say this for Gino Smith too or, I mean, Kirk is a harder one to say this about

because he's got an Achilles injury that he never truly fully got back to 100%. But even 90% of Kirk Cousins is probably not as good as Goff and Caleb, in love, but at least with Gino Smith and Kyla Murray, they've played at least in the ballpark of those guys before. And then you have a good supporting cast, the best defensive coordinator in the game, and a defense that is going to be a little bit rebuilt, but it's kind of been rebuilt every year. And we didn't think it was going to be great in 2024. I remember talking about how, you know, top 10 is probably a little ambitious.

and then they squeeze the most blood out of the stone that they possibly could in 2004 and really in 2003 when they were an average defense, which was a massive jump compared to where they were when Brian Flores got there. So there should be some confidence that Flores can get the most out of whatever group that he's going to end up throwing out there. And then you kind of roll the ball out and see what happens. I think Chicago should get some benefit of the doubt, even if they had to win a lot of close games.

And Green Bay was 9-3-1 when Micah Parsons got hurt. So him coming back. But he's coming back with a lot less around him than he did before unless Green Bay's got some other moves. But the fact that Aningbarre left and the fact that they traded Rishon Gary, they've got a lot of question marks there too. So and still, how are the Detroit Lions outside of Aidan Hutchinson rushing the passer? What's their answer?

None of these teams did huge stuff that would make you go, okay, well, now they are the clear head above water, everybody else. I think with Kyler Murray or Gino Smith in the mix, but especially Kyler, because he's in his prime and does not get sacked at the same rate as Gino Smith would put them right in the discussion. Let's go back to you guys in the chat and we'll carry on until Mani Hill is exceptional. expected to pop in shortly within the next 10, 15 minutes or so. Who is Josh Johnson? Did Josh Johnson sign here? Josh Johnson is one of the great journeymen of all time. He's played for like 15 different teams.

So Wednesday. Yeah, we'll definitely do a live show on Wednesday to break it all down. Oh, the Vikings, so the Vikings are signing. are is that is that actually happening that they're signing josh johnson okay i i guess i'm going to have to go confirm that that's happening and look hey you know in the in the chat if you don't like my takes on j j j mccarthy then don't watch it's very simple and i'm perfectly comfortable with that so you don't have to waste your time if you don't want to uh if you are not interested in those opinions.

So don't waste everyone else's time by coming in here and crying about it. I'm just confirming here because I, you guys could be trolling me with Josh Johnson knowing how much I like Josh Johnson. Because he's been with so many different teams. How could you not? I'm not seeing this. Are you guys messing with me? You're not allowed to mess around on free agency day in the chat.

That's like against the rules. But, uh, I do think that if the Vikings are going to, to sign Kyler Murray that they could use another veteran quarterback as well. So let me get back to your takes. But the, the question is really, yeah, I mean, even if like, don't mess with me with a journeyman quarterback that I love Josh Johnson.

He's been with every team except the Vikings, it feels like I, I would love to have him on the team and ask him questions about the 47 different teams he's played for. Yeah. So, okay, that's all right. That's all right. Don't stop trolling. Yeah, I mean, seriously. If you're going to troll, don't do that.

Dumer K.O. says first and 2027 second for Jeremiah Love. So you're talking about the idea that Daniel Jeremiah dropped earlier today to move up in the draft from 18 into the first round or into the top 10 to draft Jeremiah Love. Now, if we were talking about just from the perspective of how fun this could be, yes. The answer would be absolutely yes. Give away that 2027 second round pick. Get up there, get Jeremiah Love and pair him with Justin Jefferson.

And you've got something crazy on your hands around Kyler Murray, who is, by the way, one of the most exciting playmaking quarterbacks in the league, even though sometimes he is not given that level of respect. from the chat, but it is true. So if you had a playmaking quarterback, an insanely gifted young running back, and the best receiver in the game, yeah, you're going to be one of the most fun offenses. Is that the proper use of the Vikings draft capital, though? That would be a lot harder to argue the answer is yes.

If they're thinking about trading away Jonathan Grenard, if they're thinking about, I mean, defensive tackles future. or cornerbacks future. Because Isaiah Rogers is a free agent after this year. Look what the corners got. I know that he's not comparable to Trent McDuffie, but the corners got freaking paid in free agency today. So, I mean, Rogers, you got to start thinking down the road

as much as just thinking about right now. A cornerback makes a lot of sense. The safety position makes a lot of sense. You have a wide receiver makes a lot of sense. So trading up that month. the 18th pick and a next year's second just for one running back who yeah look I mean he looks amazing but there's no guarantees in the NFL if you do it for a running back and it blows up in your face I mean you are in deep deep trouble but as far as entertainment value that would be

really really fun that would be really really fun if he slips now that would be something that if he slips uh maybe they're referring to johnny mont instead of Josh Johnson Yes. If he slides in the draft, there is a certain number that Jeremiah Love could get to where you would say yes. Because when I look at what's available still in the backfield, I like the idea of Rashad White and Emmanuel Wilson, as we saw, can play a little as he did for the Packers. But you're not talking about anything game changing. And the Vikings have not had a game changing running back since really 2020 Delvin Cook. the early part of the year in 2021 or 22.

No, 20, yeah, 21, he was still pretty good. And then he got hurt. He hurt his ankle against Arizona and never really had the same burst after that. Early part of 2022, there was some juice in the tank there from Delvin Cook, but not truly special, not any single time they give this man the football. He could be going 80 yards. That really ended in 2020. And that's running backs, right?

And that's why it would be extremely dangerous to try to trade up for Jeremiah Love because even somebody is freakishly talented as Delvin Cook, who probably is a first round draft pick. Had it been a different year and had he not had off field concerns, if he, I mean, if Jeremiah Love turns out to be Delvin Cook, then he's a pro bowl, like awesome football player. But even then, you could look at Cook and go, was it worth it? He was banged up a lot. He was super exciting when he was great, but he plays four games in 2017. He plays a handful of games injured in 2018. And then 19, he's incredible.

20, he's incredible. And after that, it was a little here and a little there. That's the worry about running backs as a long-term investment. As a short-term investment, you could have a really, really fun offense. And, you know, you can look at Bijan. You can look at Jemir Gibbs and say, those guys have an incredible impact on their offense. I would say that it's worth it for Jeremiah Love if he slides,

but not if you're going to be asking to trade that much up. Young cringe says, watch the Lions draft. Jeremiah loves to replace Montgomery. I don't think they'd be doing that with Jemir Gibbs there, but I think that they will get somebody. Jesse, why did Minnesota not give up a seventh for Minka Fitzpatrick? That's what the Jets got him for. Yeah, I don't know what his contract situation is, but with every free agent that we talk about, every trade option, anyone that we say, why didn't they get that guy?

Money is usually the answer to that question. So I don't know what Minka's situation is with money, but also he's a little bit on the older side. I guess Flores would have some familiarity with him. I don't know that, yeah, I mean, I don't know what the explanation would be other than they must feel like they have an option at safety or maybe he's not a great fit. I mean, if he only got a seventh in return, he also might not be the player that he used to be. And I think what you want if you're the Vikings is you want to look for players who are on the rise. you want to look for players who are ascending and who are, you know, as mentioned earlier, that Nick Cross is 24.

I think if you're signing free agents, you're not looking for guys that are on the other side of the hill. And even if you're trading a small amount of draft capital and even if it's not the most expensive thing in the world, I just don't think that that's what you're looking for. You're looking for players who might be able to be with you over multiple seasons. And Fitzpatrick has just not been the same player that he was early in his career. reminds me of Jamal Adams a little bit who was so, so good early on and then just faded and was not worth it. He was traded for a first round pick at one point, Jamal Adams, and then just faded.

So it does happen. Dennis says thoughts about vikes moving up and for love or a comparable player of need. So when it comes to everything, there's a price tag. and moving up in the moment always feels very, very good. But it's just often hard to justify. And these things have been looked at over the years. These things have been studied of how often does it work to move up? Now, if there are limits to that, if we're talking about the Texans moving up to get Will Anderson,

yeah, I'm going to say they don't have too many regrets about moving up to get Will Anderson. but do the Vikings have regrets to move up to get Dallas Turner as much as Turner has been good recently and I think can continue to ascend where he'd have to get to justify the move up is he has to get to greatness he has to get to top 15 top 20 rushers in the league to justify the draft capital that's given up so that's the same sort of story with someone like Jeremiah love where if you're going to trade up then you got a you got to get like he's got to be the best running back in the league. He's got to be a top five type of running back if you're going to move that much because

the gap between the 12th best running back and the 20th is not very much. So you would have to get incredible performance out of him. Maybe you can. But then there's also the issue of long term rookie contract. How much do you pay him at the end of the road? Usually the rookie contract is the best at where running backs are. in their careers is usually that first contract these days. And then are you going to pay?

I mean, because you've got to think long term if you're the Vikings, not just about what's going to help you next year. It really is unfortunate that there's just so few other good running back prospects that are going to be available other than Jeremiah Love. We'll bring in Mani Hill here in just a second. But I wanted to mention Biching said, love isn't slipping and under no circumstances should we trade up. We have holes everywhere. I think that's a very sensible take. That's a very sensible take. So, and I'm not, I'm not down on

Dallas Turner. Dallas Turner and what he did last year was exceptional in the second half, but only in the second half, was he really that great? And that's one half of two years for, you know, they traded away a lot of draft capital in order to get him. So I, I mean, I like that. that Daniel Jeremiah is getting excited about that idea. And it, and if, look, if they do it, we'll have a lot of fun on draft night. That's for sure. But I'm not sure that that's exactly the best possible move.