The Vikings are still in position to buy before the Nov. 10 trade deadline, even after the loss to the Lions. The bigger question is how far they’re willing to go. The offense has too many problems to ignore, and it may take more than one move to patch the leaks.
If Minnesota is going to swing big on the line, Eagles guard Landon Dickerson looks like the kind of target that makes sense. The Vikings were reportedly in on guard Quenton Nelson before backing off, and Dickerson checks a lot of the same boxes: Pro Bowl pedigree, positional flexibility and a timeline that works for the future. He’s also two years younger than Nelson.
Joe Huber has done a solid job filling in for the injured Donovan Jackson, but landing one of the league’s best guards from a team that appears to be sliding would give the Vikings offense a real jolt. There’s also a clean long-term path here, with right guard Will Fries underperforming relative to his contract and potentially movable in 2027, which could open the door to a Jackson-Dickerson interior.
Dickerson’s cost should be manageable enough for Minnesota, both in draft compensation and salary. His 2026 base salary is low, and the Vikings have an extra third-round pick from the Jonathan Greenard deal.
At running back, Jonathan Taylor is still the name that towers over the market, but the Vikings may not be willing to pay what Indianapolis wants. The reported asking price is first-round value, and that’s a steep number for a back on the wrong side of 27.
TreVeyon Henderson offers a cheaper path to adding explosiveness. New England’s second-round pick from last year piled up nearly 1,000 rushing yards, but he’s been pushed down to RB3 after uneven play and health problems. If the Patriots decide he’s not part of their future, he could become available for help at another position.
Henderson would bring the kind of big-play juice Minnesota has been missing. He had four runs of more than 40 yards in 2025 and could pair with Jordan Mason and Aaron Jones as the explosive element in the backfield.
The Vikings already tried shopping Jauan Jennings to the 49ers, so moving him to New England - where A.J. Brown, Mack Hollins and Romeo Doubs are all on ice - could work for both teams.
The one running back the Vikings should not chase if Taylor is off the table is Breece Hall. He’s become a popular fallback option, but the fit and the price don’t line up. Hall is younger, but he doesn’t have Taylor’s track record, and if Minnesota isn’t willing to meet the Colts’ asking price, it shouldn’t be interested in Hall either.
Even with the Jets insisting he isn’t available, a team offering second-round value would make things interesting. Still, Hall has only one 1,000-yard season, and he hasn’t shown the same ability to lift a struggling team the way Taylor has for Indianapolis.
Quarterback is another spot where the Vikings probably need to stay away from the temptation of a splashy trade. Kyler Murray hasn’t been good enough, missing receivers, taking bad sacks and failing to lift the offense. But bringing in an outside quarterback at the deadline doesn’t really fix the problem.
Kirk Cousins is the obvious name because he knows the system and has been playing lights-out football in 2026. The issue is that the Raiders have little reason to move him, especially for a Day 3 pick. And Minnesota would have to ask itself whether it really wants to send something like a third-rounder for a 38-year-old quarterback who would still need time to get back up to speed in Kevin O’Connell’s offense.
That kind of move feels like a nonstarter for an offense that can’t afford to wait a month for a new quarterback to settle in. Cousins could probably learn it faster than most, but if Murray gets pulled, the better answer is likely Carson Wentz. He isn’t going to transform the unit, but he does get the ball out on time and accurately, which is about as much as the Vikings can ask for right now.
In Other News...
Vikings Just Sent A Clear Trade Deadline Signal To Fans
With the NFL trade deadline approaching, the Vikings created some breathing room on their roster by moving on from a pair of depth pieces and leaving themselves a little more flexibility for whatever comes next. Minnesota waived guard Trevor Keegan and released tight end Bryson Nesbit from the practice squad, a pair of transactions that opened spots as the team continues to sort through its options.
General manager Nolan Teasley has not added anyone yet, but the timing is hard to miss with Minnesota preparing for a matchup against the Buffalo Bills and still evaluating the depth chart. Even if no deal follows right away, the roster maneuvering suggests the Vikings are keeping the door open for a deadline move if the right opportunity presents itself. [Read more 🡒]
Vikings Suddenly Have A Jake Golday Decision They Can't Ignore
The Vikings run defense has hit a rough patch at exactly the wrong time, giving up 384 rushing yards over the last two games while the missed tackles have piled up. With more physical rushing attacks on the schedule, the issue is no longer just about scheme or effort. It is becoming a personnel question, and that has put rookie linebacker Jake Golday into the conversation as a possible way to steady things.
Golday has barely been used on defense this season, but he has earned trust on special teams and has shown the kind of tackling reliability Minnesota could use more of right now. The Vikings do not need to overhaul everything to get better against the run, but they do need to find answers quickly, and giving Golday a larger defensive role is the kind of adjustment that could make sense before the next wave of tough opponents arrives. [Read more 🡒]
Raiders Suddenly Have A Kirk Cousins Decision Fans Cant Ignore
Kirk Cousins has already become part of the conversation in Las Vegas this season, not just because of what he can still do on the field, but because of the role he is playing behind the scenes. The veteran quarterback is mentoring Fernando Mendoza for the Raiders, and after the team finally got back in the win column against the Jets, his presence has only looked more valuable to a club trying to steady itself during the 2026 season.
For Minnesota fans, the timing is hard to miss. A Vikings loss has reopened the quarterback chatter around the league, with Kyler Murray's future drawing speculation and Cousins naturally surfacing as a name to watch, but the Raiders do not appear eager to make that kind of move. The bigger question now is whether Las Vegas would even consider disrupting a locker room that is leaning on Cousins in more ways than one. [Read more 🡒]