Going into the 2024 season, the Minnesota Vikings defense is in a good spot. They finished 13th in total defense and 17th in scoring defense last season after a disastrous 2022.
This offseason saw a significant shift for the Vikings on the defensive side of the football, especially at edge rusher. Jonathan Greenard, Andrew Van Ginkel and first-round pick Dallas Turner. They also stayed relatively pat at cornerback with only Shaquill Griffin being a high-profile signing.
Could the Vikings make a big move this offseason to acquire another player? Bleacher Report's Ryan Fowler suggests a trade for New Orleans Saints cornerback Marshon Lattimore. Could he be available? Saints general manager Mickey Loomis has said "everyone is tradable" and Fowler has it costing just a third-round and fifth-round pick.
Projected to be a league-high $88.2 million over the 2025 cap (more than double of any team in the NFL) trading Lattimore would present the Saints with much needed flexibility. A former first-rounder out of Ohio State, Lattimore has a reasonable cap hit of $14.6 million in 2024, but that figure is set to rise to $31.4 million the following season and $28.6 million in 2026.
From a roster perspective, blueprinting a deal for Lattimore now should be a far more realistic option than it was pre-draft. New Orleans traded up in the second round to select corner Kool-Aid McKinstry, a confident and fluid man corner who could be ready to start when September rolls around. And for much cheaper than what Lattimore would demand.
The rationale for the Saints makes complete sense. They need to find ways to improve and alleviate salary cap space. It also makes sense for the Vikings, especially when you look at the salary cap situation.
Minnesota has $26.3 million in 2024 cap space remaining and possesses $54.5 million in projected 2025 cap room. Meaning, the team has more than enough room to fit Lattimore's contract while maintaining assets to allocate elsewhere.
Those numbers are based on Over The Cap's projections, but my projections have the Vikings between $75-85 million. When healthy, adding Lattimore's cap hits would be well worth it.
- 2024: $1.21 million
- 2025: $20.758 million
- 2026: $21.258 million
Is this something that general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah will want to pursue? That remains to be seen, especially with his unwillingness to majorly invest in the position outside of the NFL Draft. If they choose to do that, it would signal the influence that defensive coordinator Brian Flores has. It could also transform the defense to a major player in the NFC, as Lattimore is just 28 years old.
