The Minnesota Vikings are coming in hot off the bye week. Sitting at 5-0, they’re currently gearing up for a physical game against the 4-1 Detroit Lions. The winner of that game will hold the lone spot atop the NFC North.
Things are going great for the team right now. Still, every team in the league has weaknesses, and there comes a time every season when contending teams across the NFL can address those needs.
The NFL trade deadline.
Although the November 5 deadline (3 p.m. CT) is still a few weeks away, things are already ramping up across the league. Just a few days ago, we saw three big trades go down.
Early Tuesday morning, the Jets acquired Davante Adams from the Las Vegas Raiders to reunite him with Aaron Rodgers. Later in the day, the Cleveland Browns traded Amari Cooper to the Buffalo Bills. Later, the Minnesota Vikings brought back Cam Akers in a trade with the Houston Texans.
The Vikings have a need on the interior defensive line that they must address by the deadline. Harrison Phillips is the only true IDL starter. Jerry Tillery, Jihad Ward, and Jonathan Bullard have been fine as rotational players. Still, if Kwesi Adofo-Mensah wants to improve the defense, he should try to make a move for a star IDL.
That star’s name is Jeffery Simmons.
Simmons is an IDL for the one-win Tennessee Titans. He’s 6’4”, 302 lbs., and runs a 4.96 40-yard dash, which is impressive for his size. His speed would bode incredibly well in a blitz-first defense.
In six NFL seasons, he’s put up 27.5 sacks, 248 total tackles (41 for a loss), 20 deflected passes, and three forced fumbles. Pairing him in the middle with Phillips would make Minnesota’s front seven the scariest in the league – as if they weren’t already terrifying.
The Vikings allow the second-least rushing yards in the NFL and have the fourth-most sacks. So, why should they trade for one of the league’s top defensive linemen?
It’s not a matter of why they should; it’s what’s the downside?
Super Bowl teams don’t aim to be the second- or fourth-best in major statistics, they try to maximize their strengths. If you can add a superstar player to a superstar defense for a fair price that doesn’t completely mortgage the team’s future, you need to go ahead and do that. The Vikings are 5-0. They should be looking to add championship-level players.
Simmons would be a valuable addition to the 2024-25 Vikings and in the future. He signed a four-year, $94 million deal in 2023, which extends through the 2027-28 season. Minnesota wouldn’t be trading for Simmons as a rental. They’d be making this move for the short- and the long-term.
With the trade deadline right on the horizon, a few other names to keep an eye on are players like DT Dexter Lawrence, CB L’Jarius Sneed, and DT DeForest Buckner. Still, Simmons is their best option.
Whether a deal will come to fruition is another story. However, this Vikings team is for real, and it would be in their best interest to add a high-level player to a roster ready to contend for the Lombardi Trophy.