The Minnesota Vikings have as little financial flexibility as any team in the NFL. They're stacked at cornerback, too, with two-time Pro Bowler Xavier Rhodes, rising star Mackensie Alexander, and 2018 first-round pick Mike Hughes. As a result, one NFL analyst is calling for Minnesota to begin freeing itself of financial shackles by trading former first-round pick Trae Waynes.
Bleacher Report's Kristopher Knox writes that trading Waynes is the one move the Vikings should make before kickoff of the 2019 season.
The team should go ahead and get a deal done [for Waynes].
Not only would dealing Waynes get the Vikings something in return, but it would also provide valuable cap relief. Minnesota is $14.1 million over the cap. Releasing Waynes isn't really an option, as his entire $9.06 million salary became fully guaranteed at the start of the new league year in March.
With players like Xavier Rhodes, Mackensie Alexander and Mike Hughes on the roster, Minnesota can and should view Waynes as a trade chip.
In late February, CBS Sports' Jason La Canfora reported that Minnesota was “shopping” Waynes. There's been a drumbeat of suggestions ever since that the Vikings would be best served by moving him, with the cornerback-needy Kansas City Chiefs frequently mentioned as a potential trade partner.
Waynes, a 2015 first-round pick out of Michigan State, has started every game he's appeared in over the last two seasons after spending his first two years in the league as a reserve. In 2018, playing in 14 games, he had 44 tackles, one interception, and eight passes defensed.
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