Even though they’ve yet to come to terms on a long-term extension with Justin Jefferson, the Minnesota Vikings aren’t exploring the idea of trading the star receiver.
The Vikings have no plans to trade Jefferson after losing quarterback Kirk Cousins to the Atlanta Falcons in free agency, The Athletic reported Wednesday.
That stance matches what Vikings general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah said when he spoke with reporters at the NFL Scouting Combine in late February.
“That’s is not something that has once crossed my mind,” Adofo-Mensah said when asked about possibly trading Jefferson. “You’ve got a blue player, blue person. You try and keep as many of those as you can.”
Despite the recent report and the Vikings’ insistence that Jefferson isn’t available for trade, that hasn’t stopped rampant speculation that Minnesota could move on from the star receiver. After Tee Higgins reportedly requested a trade from the Cincinnati Bengals on Monday, some read into Ja’Marr Chase’s social media posts as a possible sign that the team could for Jefferson, who played with Chase and Joe Burrow at LSU.
“@JJettas2 pls answer these people lol idky they think i’m calling the shots. wyd yo ???” Chase wrote in one social media post tagging Jefferson.
“this will be a krazy story to tell,” he wrote in another.
If the speculation of the Bengals trading for Jefferson is just that, the Vikings still have to work out an extension with the star wideout. The 2022 Offensive Player of the Year is entering the final year of his rookie deal after the Vikings picked up his $19.7 million fifth-year option last season. Both sides negotiated an extension last offseason, but came up short before the self-imposed deadline at the start of the regular season.
Adofo-Mensah said the two sides got “unbelievably close” to agreeing to an extension during those talks.
“I will tell you that we’re excited to have him and continue those conversations because he’s somebody we want around for a long time,”…
Source link : https://www.foxsports.com/stories/nfl/vikings-reportedly-dont-plan-to-trade-justin-jefferson-after-kirk-cousins-departure
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Publish date : 2024-03-13 15:48:18
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