The Minnesota Vikings enter the 2025 offseason facing significant questions in their secondary, particularly at cornerback. The Vikings might be wise to explore trade options, and Cleveland Browns corner Greg Newsome could be a fit.
Newsome was the No. 26 overall pick of the 2021 draft. He will count $13.4 million against the cap on the fifth-year option of a four-year, $12.7 million contract.
The Browns’ looming salary cap concerns could incentivize a trade.
“The Cleveland Browns are a mess where the salary cap is concerned, and only the New Orleans Saints are further in the red. Multiple difficult decisions need to be made,” Bleacher Report’s Gary Davenport wrote on February 27.
“That cap situation has led to young cornerback Greg Newsome II being mentioned in trade rumors.”
This Heavy Sports trade pitch would send a Day 3 pick to the Browns for Newsome.
Vikings get:
- Greg Newsome
Browns get:
- 2025 fifth-round pick (No. 140 via CLE)
This deal aims to capitalize on the disappointing campaign that Newsome had in 2024 and the need for a new contract after a potential trade. Davenport considered the corner an “underrated defensive star.”
The Vikings acquired the Browns’ pick in the trade sending Za’Darius Smith to Cleveland in 2023.
“The team acquiring him could reduce the cap hit with an extension. The Vikings have the cap space to eat the bigger number and need cornerback help as badly as any team in the league,” Davenport wrote. “If Minnesota has any confidence Newsome can regain his 2023 form, his minimal cost in a deal is well worth the risk.”
Newsome recorded career lows with 27 total tackles and 5 pass deflections. He has also dealt with durability issues throughout his career. That is a potential red flag in a trade given what the Vikings navigated this past season.
Vikings’ Top-3 CBs Set for Free Agency
The Vikings were forced to retool on the fly last offseason after Khyree Jackson, their 2024 fourth-round pick, died in a car crash and Mekhi Blackmon, their 2023 third-round pick, suffered a season-ending knee injury.
The Vikings managed, but Byron Murphy, Shaquill Griffin, and Stephon Gilmore are all free agents.
Murphy should have suitors in free agency.
That could still leave a potential void opposite Murphy, with Blackmon unproven as a starter after missing all of last season and limited options behind them. None of the Vikings corners under contract for 2025 played in a game for them during the 2024 season.
A trade for Newsome would give the Vikings a young, proven corner who might benefit from a change of scenery.
Vikings Face Potential Disadvantage on Trade Market
The Vikings could be at a significant disadvantage if they pursued Newsome or some other target on the trade market. The Vikings have four draft picks in the 2025 draft. Two of their picks are in the top 100. The other is their first-round pick, No. 24 overall.
The Vikings can address several of their needs in free agency.
Over The Cap projects that Minnesota will have $63 million to spend as of March 1. Sam Darnold could take up much of that. If not, the Vikings could work to keep many other key pieces of a roster that won 14 games in 2024.
But they must address their cornerback spot this offseason, and it will likely take a variety of avenues and resources to do so. Newsome could be part of the solution for the Vikings.
