The Minnesota Vikings have been searching for a true No. 1 cornerback for years through the NFL draft and free agency, but it may take a trade to get the job done.
Ryan Fowler of Bleacher Report on Sunday, July 7, authored a proposal in which the Vikings would flip a fifth-round pick in 2025 along with a third-rounder in 2026 to the New Orleans Saints in return for $98 million star cornerback Marshon Lattimore.
“Hypotheticals surrounding the future of Marshon Lattimore have circled overhead for months,” Fowler wrote. “If the long-time Saint in Lattimore is made available, expect brass in Minnesota to kick the tires. Adding impact talent on defense has been a goal of Minnesota over the last few drafts.”
Vikings Need High-End CB, Marshon Lattimore Would Be Best on Team Immediately
Minnesota’s started Byron Murphy Jr. and Akayleb Evans at the two cornerback positions. While Evans — a fourth-round pick in 2022 — showed improvement from his rookie season, the Vikings’ pass defense still surrendered 3,986 yards through the air to opposing offenses, which slotted them 24th in the league.
That type of porous defense isn’t solely the fault of the cornerbacks, or even the secondary as an entire unit. However, Evans didn’t help Minnesota’s coverage by finishing 99th out of 127 corners in the NFL who played enough snaps to qualify at the position, per Pro Football Reference (PFF). Murphy wasn’t much better than that at 87th.
The Vikings added Shaq Griffin this spring, who performed better than both Evans and Murphy in 2023, and third-round pick Mekhi Blackmon should make a leap from his rookie to sophomore seasons. That said, Lattimore is a four-time Pro Bowl selection and a truer lockdown cornerback than any player on Minnesota’s roster by a wide margin.
“Lattimore would immediately become the Vikings’ top perimeter stalwart,” Fowler wrote. “Whether he starts opposite of Byron Murphy Jr. or Shaq Griffin, slotting in Lattimore’s physical style of play within Brian Flores‘ defense could be a match that jigsaws seamlessly.”
Vikings, Saints Trade for Marshon Lattimore Fits Financially for Both Teams
The move also makes sense from a financial standpoint on both sides of the equation. Lattimore is under contract through 2026 and carries salary cap hits of $14.6 million next season as well as $31.4 million and $28.6 million the following two years.
Meanwhile, Fowler noted the Saints are on track to be almost $90 million over the salary cap one year from now, which is currently tracking as more than twice the cap debt of any other franchise in the league. On the other hand, the Vikings have $26.3 million in cap room to add to the roster over the next couple of months.
That amount of space would allow Minnesota to absorb Lattimore’s contract with ease and restructuring could address the rising cap numbers by pushing some of the cap hits off into the future via void years.
Lattimore has dealt with health issues over the past couple of years, appearing in just seven and 10 regular-season games in the last two campaigns, respectively. He was a Pro Bowler for the three consecutive years before that and has amassed 86 pass deflections, 15 interceptions and 5 forced fumbles in 90 games across his seven-year career.
