Minnesota Vikings: Do Odell Beckham Jr. trade rumors hold any merit?

With rumors surrounding Odell Beckham Jr. as a potential trade target for the Minnesota Vikings, how likely is a possible deal to happen?

After the Minnesota Vikings shipped off their star No. 1 receiver this offseason, they reportedly might be eying another star wideout as a replacement. On Wednesday, Marc Malusis of WFAN 660 in New York reported that the Vikings and Cleveland Browns were having discussions on a possible trade centered around star wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr.

Malusis said Minnesota and Cleveland were discussing a deal that would send Beckham to the Vikings in exchange for a 2020 second-round draft pick and 2020 fifth-round pick in this years NFL Draft. He noted the trade was not done but was being discussed.

A trade for Beckham would certainly be a bold move for Minnesota after it shipped out star wide receiver Stefon Diggs for a 2020 first-round draft pick and other assets earlier this offseason. The addition of Beckham would pair well alongside Vikings wideout Adam Thielen and others in Minnesota and would provide the team with an immediate new No. 1 option for quarterback Kirk Cousins and company.

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Beckham, who spent his first five seasons in the NFL with the New York Giants, was traded to Cleveland prior to the start of the 2019 campaign. In his first season with the Browns, the 27-year-old finished with 1,035 yards receiving on 74 catches and four touchdowns in all 16 regular-season games.

But drama both on and off the field, as well as his reported disinterest in remaining in Cleveland long term, has likely resulted in the Browns testing the trade market to move on from the wide receiver before the start of 2020.

Although the reported traded talks between Minnesota and Cleveland appear far from complete in any potential trade involving Beckham, could the Vikings actually end up landing the star wide receiver before the 2020 campaign kicks off?

It seems unlikely and somewhat difficult for Minnesota. Furthermore, there have been no other sources that have reported any talks between the Vikings and Browns. That may indicate that there is nothing to see here.

But could certainly be done if the trade talks heat up. The first snag from the perspective of the Vikings is their current cap situation, which was already in a tough position entering the offseason. Minnesota currently has a little over $12 million in cap space available. Beckham’s contract for the upcoming year stands at $14.25 million, which would mean the Vikings would have to make another move to bring the wide receiver to Minnesota.

The Vikings could try and find a trade partner for safety Anthony Harris, who was franchise tagged this offseason, which would free up some space to make a trade for Beckham possible.

Another snag that could hold up a deal of this sort would be the personality of Beckham and the baggage he brings to the locker room. Minnesota shipped off Diggs this offseason, who has shown some similar drama-filled issues that Beckham holds, which could be enough reason for the Vikings to not ultimately pull the trigger on a trade.

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Minnesota also appears to be committed to Dalvin Cook and the running game moving forward, which likely wouldn’t be appealing to Beckham who often demands the ball in the passing attack.

Those reasons alone could be enough for the Vikings to ultimately back out of any potential deal involving Beckham, although there is no denying he could help Minnesota in 2020 and beyond and it is an intriguing thought to see No. 13 in purple and gold this season. But despite all of this, there simply may be nothing to it at all. It’s something still to monitor for the Vikings but, until someone else brings it up, it’s hard to believe there is any validity to these rumors right now.

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