Remember the Lamar Jackson trade sweepstakes from a couple of offseasons ago that didn’t ultimately amount to much? That situation could be happening again, and the Minnesota Vikings would undoubtedly be a whispered destination for Jackson if so.
Minnesota’s quarterback room already has enough intrigue without another superstar trade rumor entering the picture.
SI.com‘s Jason La Canfora insinuated this week that an ugly holdout could be around the bend for Jackson and the Baltimore Ravens, setting the stage for trade talks.
The Price Tag and QB Setup Make This Rumor Hard to Believe
The Vikings’ quarterback situation is pretty well set?
La Canfora’s Intel on Jackson
One of La Canfora’s sources, an NFL agent, recently told him about Jackson’s contract situation, “A trade demand would absolutely be on the table if I was advising Lamar. I’m not coming in with it, but I’m coming in with a very firm hand, and I’m not putting up with any of their bullsh!t. And if it’s not done before training camp, we’re done talking.”
“It’s pretty simple – and Lamar did a great job with this before, although the right agent could have earned that 1.5% commission and got it done sooner. You are giving us a significant increase on the Dak Prescott deal. That’s not even a discussion. We are asking for 100% guarantees again, and not wavering … And, yes, we are absolutely willing to play that trade-demand card.”
That sure sounds like the table-setting for an ugly summer.
Fansided’s Theory on Vikings + Jackson
In the fallout of La Canfora’s intel, Fansided‘s Alicia de Artola forecasted theoretical trade landing spots for Jackson, and somewhat unsurprisingly, the Vikings made the cut.
She explained, “The Minnesota Vikings signed Kyler Murray to a one-year deal and look all set to continue their pattern of letting Kevin O’Connell work his magic on a distressed asset.”
“Murray isn’t Jackson though. Instead of restoring a piece of furniture they found in a back alley, Minnesota could try bringing in an actual star and reopening their Super Bowl window. O’Connell is too good a head coach to let the Vikings slip into one of the draft slots that could give them a franchise QB.”
Trading for Jackson this summer would be a truly bizarre outcome from a Vikings standpoint.
de Arotla added, “Going out and getting him a readymade one could actually give the team the boost they need to contend. If I’m Jackson, I’m looking at the Vikings and salivating. A QB whisperer like O’Connell?”
“A receiving corps led by Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison? Sign me up. Would the Vikings actually bite? Well, they have to actually hire a GM first, so Jackson may have to keep dreaming.”
Money Would Be Tricky
Aside from having a full quarterback room — Kyler Murray, J.J. McCarthy, Carson Wentz, and Max Brosmer — trading for Jackson would present financial hurdles for Minnesota. The Ravens would eat about $32 million in dead cap with the maneuver — pretty doable on their end — while his cap numbers look like this through the end of 2028 with his next squad:
2026: $34,390,000
2027: $84,340,000
2028: $42,470,000
Jackson would not take a discount to play for the Vikings, and in fact, would expect an extension as part of the would-be trade. And these are the same Vikings who just conducted a quiet free agency to reset their salary cap standing for 2027 and beyond.
Minnesota would essentially make a deal for a quarterback by sending multiple 1st-Round picks to the Ravens and bowing to his contract demands of $60 million+ per season. Meanwhile, it would be doing trade business with the team that recently backed out of the Maxx Crosby deal with the Las Vegas Raiders in controversial fashion.
It’s a long way of saying that Jackson to Minnesota is pretty damn unlikely.
Probably a 2027 Talker if Anything
Pretend for a moment that the Vikings have a palpable interest in Jackson. They’ll likely want to see how the affordable solutions at quarterback — Murray and McCarthy — play out in 2026. It just doesn’t add up to trade gobs of draft picks for Jackson, who will want $60 million, when Jackson-lite (Murray) is ready and waiting to lead the franchise for $1.3 million in 2026. The pay gap is too vast.
However, if one assumes that the Murray + McCarthy experiment goes pear-shaped in 2026, Minnesota would be back at square one in the 2027 offseason, examining the quarterback-rich draft class of 2027 and all trade options, including Jackson, if he’s still in the trade rumor mill.
Therefore, reasonable Jackson trade rumors regarding the Vikings should be reserved for the 2027 offseason, if at all.
