10-07-2019, 01:43 PM
https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/2778...make-sense
Stefon Diggs, WR, Minnesota VikingsLet's finish with a big name and make something ridiculous. It was a wild week for Diggs, who missed practice in midweek with what was said at the time to be an illness. The Vikings fined him for missing practice, which should tell you what they think about the illness. He was active for Sunday's win over the Giants and suggested afterward that he wanted to stay in Minnesota, though he did follow that comment with a wink.
The chances that the Vikings trade Diggs, at least during the regular season, are slim. He's a valuable player on a team that expects to contend for a Super Bowl. Minnesota has little help at wideout behind him, so if they traded the Maryland product, they would be down to Adam Thielen and the likes of Laquon Treadwell, Olabisi Johnson and Davion Davis starting across from him. No Vikings fan wants to see more Treadwell. Minnesota would play more 12 personnel without Diggs, but it would realistically need to get a wide receiver back as part of the deal.
![[Image: oak.png?w=110&h=110&transparent=true]](https://a.espncdn.com/combiner/i?img=/i/teamlogos/nfl/500/oak.png?w=110&h=110&transparent=true)
![[Image: min.png?w=110&h=110&transparent=true]](https://a.espncdn.com/combiner/i?img=/i/teamlogos/nfl/500/min.png?w=110&h=110&transparent=true)
![[Image: mia.png?w=110&h=110&transparent=true]](https://a.espncdn.com/combiner/i?img=/i/teamlogos/nfl/500/mia.png?w=110&h=110&transparent=true)
The trade: Oakland Raiders get Diggs from the Vikings and a 2020 sixth-round pick from Dolphins
Minnesota Vikings get DeVante Parker from the Dolphins and the lesser of 2020 first-round picks from the Raiders
Miami Dolphins get 2020 fourth-round picks from both the Vikings and Dolphins
Let's start with the Vikings. Trading Diggs frees up $6 million or so in cap room, which gives them enough space to absorb the first year of Parker's two-year deal. While Parker has been frustrating in years past and probably won't ever have the breakout some were projecting for him in Miami, he has unquestioned physical talent and is the sort of wideout who can make teams pay vertically for pushing a safety into the box when the Vikings use play-action. He also has no guaranteed money left on his deal after this season.
I can't imagine the Vikings taking anything less than a first-round pick as part of the deal. The Raiders have both their own first-rounder and the first-round pick they'll receive from the Bears as part of the Khalil Mack trade. The Raiders could hold onto the better of those two picks as part of this deal, though they'll swap their fourth-round pick with a sixth-rounder from the Dolphins to help pay the freight for getting Parker to Minnesota. The Dolphins, in pick accrual mode, should be pleased with their return for a wideout who likely doesn't figure into their long-term plans.
It's too simplistic to compare Brown and Diggs; for one, Brown's behavior in the building in Oakland doesn't appear to be similar to what Diggs has done in Minnesota or even how Brown acted in Pittsburgh. When the Raiders acquired Brown, they were trading for a 31-year-old who signed a new contract upon arrival. Diggs is 25 and just over a year into a five-year extension. I can't fault the Raiders for trading for Brown, but it was a risk that obviously failed to pan out.
There's probably not a realistic chance of the Vikings trading Diggs in midseason. Then again, I didn't think that Brown or Odell Beckham Jr. were going to get traded this offseason, and both those deals happened in the same month. We are blessed to live in strange NFL times.
Stefon Diggs, WR, Minnesota VikingsLet's finish with a big name and make something ridiculous. It was a wild week for Diggs, who missed practice in midweek with what was said at the time to be an illness. The Vikings fined him for missing practice, which should tell you what they think about the illness. He was active for Sunday's win over the Giants and suggested afterward that he wanted to stay in Minnesota, though he did follow that comment with a wink.
The chances that the Vikings trade Diggs, at least during the regular season, are slim. He's a valuable player on a team that expects to contend for a Super Bowl. Minnesota has little help at wideout behind him, so if they traded the Maryland product, they would be down to Adam Thielen and the likes of Laquon Treadwell, Olabisi Johnson and Davion Davis starting across from him. No Vikings fan wants to see more Treadwell. Minnesota would play more 12 personnel without Diggs, but it would realistically need to get a wide receiver back as part of the deal.
I don't think a Diggs trade is realistic, so let's go all the way in the other direction and make a three-way swap:
The trade: Oakland Raiders get Diggs from the Vikings and a 2020 sixth-round pick from DolphinsMinnesota Vikings get DeVante Parker from the Dolphins and the lesser of 2020 first-round picks from the Raiders
Miami Dolphins get 2020 fourth-round picks from both the Vikings and Dolphins
Let's start with the Vikings. Trading Diggs frees up $6 million or so in cap room, which gives them enough space to absorb the first year of Parker's two-year deal. While Parker has been frustrating in years past and probably won't ever have the breakout some were projecting for him in Miami, he has unquestioned physical talent and is the sort of wideout who can make teams pay vertically for pushing a safety into the box when the Vikings use play-action. He also has no guaranteed money left on his deal after this season.
I can't imagine the Vikings taking anything less than a first-round pick as part of the deal. The Raiders have both their own first-rounder and the first-round pick they'll receive from the Bears as part of the Khalil Mack trade. The Raiders could hold onto the better of those two picks as part of this deal, though they'll swap their fourth-round pick with a sixth-rounder from the Dolphins to help pay the freight for getting Parker to Minnesota. The Dolphins, in pick accrual mode, should be pleased with their return for a wideout who likely doesn't figure into their long-term plans.
Would the Raiders trade significant draft capital for a disgruntled wideout who is skipping practice months after the Antonio Brown fiasco? At the very least, star tackle Trent Brown seems to think so.
Taking one risk doesn't mean you should never take a risk again, especially on a player with Diggs' upside. The Raiders need help at wide receiver, especially given that Tyrell Williams and J.J. Nelson were both unable to play against the Bears in London. With the Raiders winning and the Chiefs and Chargers both losing, Oakland now has a 23.6% shot of making the playoffs this season. I don't know if I'd sell out my future to try to make it to the postseason one last time in the Bay Area, but Diggs is a player who can theoretically help now and help after the move to Las Vegas, too.
There's probably not a realistic chance of the Vikings trading Diggs in midseason. Then again, I didn't think that Brown or Odell Beckham Jr. were going to get traded this offseason, and both those deals happened in the same month. We are blessed to live in strange NFL times.
