Saints to Sign Nick Easton

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Insane amount

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The Vikings wanted Easton so injury concerns are invalid.
The problem is that they were cheap.  Easton asked for along term deal last year when they gave him the 2nd round tender and before he hurt his neck.  It is the same thing Thielen did after one season of production.
Easton had just finished starting 12 games and doing relatively well, before getting a freak ankle fracture (or something).
If they had signed him to a 3 or 4 year deal (last year's likely fluff) then they definitely would have had him for a lot cheaper than some of these contracts mediocre linemen are getting this year.
The Vikings will overpay defenders and a QB, but not offensive linemen.

Not even ones they traded for and who played well.
If they want Schraeder (31 on May 1st), Wisniewski (30 on March 22nd), or Kline (30 on Dec 29) who are all cast offs then they are going to have to pay.

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I don't see any way this line will get fixed this offseason. Too many years of neglect by a GM who has proven he doesn't have the ability to put together a solid O-Line at every position. With all the defensive line talent in this draft, OLineman with 2nd round grades are getting pushed up into the first round. A lot of the guys the Vikings like that fit their scheme could very well be gone by 18. 

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Damn...this one stings. Some of the low ball numbers I'd seen fans throw around in mock offseasons were ridiculous for a 26 year old with this pass blocking grade, versatility and starting experience. $6M per is just as crazy. But the market is what it is and the Vikings have to adjust. 

I don't know how the Vikings expect to compete for players like Easton, Schraeder, etc., without any cap space. Waynes should've been traded weeks ago. I'm even questioning the wisdom of restructuring Griffen instead of just releasing him. Reminds me of an undisciplined kid who wants this, that and the other thing, but isn't willing to make the sacrifices to get there. 

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Not surprised at all. 

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Seems inevitable that the Vikings won't even have an average OL.

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@MaroonBells said:
Damn...this one stings. Some of the low ball numbers I'd seen fans throw around in mock offseasons were ridiculous for a 26 year old with this pass blocking grade, versatility and starting experience. $6M per is just as crazy. But the market is what it is and the Vikings have to adjust. 

I don't know how the Vikings expect to compete for players like Easton, Schraeder, etc., without any cap space. Waynes should've been traded weeks ago. I'm even questioning the wisdom of restructuring Griffen instead of just releasing him. Reminds me of an undisciplined kid who wants this, that and the other thing, but isn't willing to make the sacrifices to get there. 

After the Vikings re-signed Barr, they should have cut Griffen (as much as I hate to say it).  It was going to be tough to keep both and have enough cap space to address the offensive line with a quality FA player.  If the Vikings didn't want to make that decision, they should have just let Barr walk.  I said it after we re-signed Kendricks, I didn't think it made sense to pay two LBers top money when we run a 4-3 defense.  Now we're seeing the downside of that decision and the impact on our cap situation...
It's crazy to think that we still have to add a K and at least one OL.  They can still work on Rudy's deal by offering him an extension to lower his cap number, but they've backed themselves into a corner right now.  It's basically maneuver yourself in the draft to get the best offensive lineman available with your first pick and go from there.

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Seems they really misread this one bad.  I really think they had pencilled him in a one of the G spots.  They are now in scramble mode and will overpay for a POS like Compton.  This team is just never going to get it.  We could end up with a worse line than we did last year, if that is possible.  But hey we keep the gang together on D.  

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@Vikergirl said:
Seems inevitable that the Vikings won't even have an average OL.

lol average?  the real question is whether we can afford warm bodies. 

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My gut feeling is that they're really going for value here (value meaning a price that's in line with performance) and once the top guards were off the table you are looking at paying $6M for an Easton caliber player and $8M for a Griffen caliber player, Griffen is just a much better value at that point.  I think once it became clear that the difference makers on OLine were gone, we just decided that we needed to go OLine in the draft, and fill the holes on the team elsewhere.