Recent momentum suggests the Minnesota Vikings will strike a contract extension with outside linebacker Jonathan Greenard, but that didn’t stop Bleacher Report this week from outlining a trade to the Indianapolis Colts during the NFL Draft.
The buzz points to Indianapolis, and the cost-benefit debate is real.
A few weeks ago, credible NFL reporting claimed Greenard was for sale to the highest bidder, and the buzz has remained consistent since.
A Greenard Deal Would Change Minnesota’s Pass Rush
Greenard to the Colts would leave the Vikings with a hole at OLB.
BR: Greenard to IND Makes Sense
BR’s Brent Sobleski advanced the five “most plausible” trades during this month’s draft, and the Vikings got the nod with Greenard.
He wrote about the Colts as the trade partner, “The Colts already lack a first-round pick thanks to last year’s trade deadline acquisition of cornerback Sauce Gardner. However, the market for an edge-defender isn’t nearly as robust when discussing anyone other than Crosby.”
“Jonathan Greenard is the logical target. The Vikings were looking to create salary-cap space earlier this offseason and did so by restructuring running back Aaron Jones’ contract and releasing defensive linemen Jonathan Allen and Javon Hargrave. Still, the Vikings are only $5.5 million under the salary cap before signing the incoming rookie class. In order to create some more flexibility, Greenard can be moved, with the team saving $12.3 million via trade.”
The Philadelphia Eagles, too, have been rumored as a popular destination for Greenard.
Sobleski added, “Even after re-signing wide receiver Alec Pierce and quarterback Daniel Jones, the Colts massaged the numbers to where they still have over $27 million in available cap space. They can easily take on Greenard’s remaining base salary and address a significant need, with an end who generated 12 or more sacks in two of the last three seasons.”
“Indianapolis may not have a first-round pick, but the Colts could easily flip a third- or fourth-round selection — the Dallas Cowboys traded a fourth for Rashan Gary — and possibly quarterback Anthony Richardson to get a deal done.”
The Colts’ EDGE Situation
Listen, the Colts don’t have any 1st-Round picks in the next two drafts. After trading for Gardner midseason last year, they pushed their chips into the middle of the table. Adding Greenard and not wasting time on a would-be EDGE rusher’s youthful development makes sense. Greenard is a refined product.
This is the Colts’ defensive end group entering April:
- Laiatu Latu
- Arden Key
- Micheal Clemons
- JT Tuimoloau
- Viliami Fehoko Hr.
- Durell Ncahmi
Latu and Key can faithfully start, but the drop-off is sharp after those two. With Greenard, the DE group would no longer be a weakness.
The Price for the Trade
It’s been widely reported that the Vikings want a 2nd-Rounder for Greenard — and nothing less. That might explain why no trade has materialized; Minnesota isn’t interested in taking a discount to part ways with the best player on defense.
The Colts hold the 47th pick in the draft — two spots ahead of Minnesota’s 49th pick in Round 2. If you’ve been scouting 2nd-Rounders for the Vikings at No. 49, well, a theoretical Greenard trade could give Minnesota two picks in the same territory.
And that’s really the only path to a Greenard trade that adds up for Minnesota, assuming their 2nd-Rounder-or-best stance is accurate. The 1st-Rounders are gone in Indianapolis until 2028.
Vikings Options at OLB Sans Greenard
Without Greenard, the Vikings would naturally promote third-year outside linebacker Dallas Turner to an unabashed full-time starter’s job. Truth be told, it might be time for that regardless, as Minnesota paid a hefty trade price to get Turner two years ago.
Andrew Van Ginkel would remain the other primary EDGE, but after Turner and Van Ginkel on the depth chart, concerns would emerge. The Vikings would need another pass rusher from free agency or the draft.
From free agency, the EDGE list looks like this:
- Joey Bosa
- Jadeveon Clowney
- Michael Danna
- A.J. Epenesa
- Cameron Jordan
- Leonard Floyd
- Dante Fowler Jr.
- Von Miller
- Emmanuel Ogbah
- Kyle Van Noy
- Haason Reddick
Or — interim general manager Rob Brzezinski could draft a Greenard replacement sometime in the first three rounds, which should set a course for that man to see action as a rookie. These are the draft options from an early April vantage point:
- Keldric Faulk (Auburn)
- Akheem Mesidor (Miami)
- T.J. Parker (Clemson)
- Cashius Howell (Texas A&M)
- Zion Young (Missouri)
- Malachi Lawrence (UCF)
- R Mason Thomas (Oklahoma)
- Gabe Jacas (Illinois)
- Derrick Moore (Michigan)
- Dani Dennis-Sutton (Penn State)
- Joshua Josephs (Tennessee)
- Romello Height (Texas Tech)
Otherwise, the Vikings can keep Greenard, pay him market value — probably around $30 million per year — and call it good. That might be the wisest play for a franchise that hopes to visit the playoffs in 2026.
