The Minnesota Vikings have the 11th pick in the 2024 NFL Draft. Well … at least for now. General manager Kwesi-Adofo Mensah, head coach Kevin O’Connell and the rest of the staff have been tagged as a group very interested in trying to move up on night one.
It’s been widely reported that the Vikings tried to move up last year to grab either Anthony Richardson or Bryce Young and there would be absolutely nobody shocked if they work even more desperately to make that type of move this year, especially if they let Kirk Cousins go in free agency.
One of the most obvious options at the top of the draft, if the Vikings do indeed target someone in the top-3 picks, is the New England Patriots. They have been one of the many teams linked to Justin Fields, Baker Mayfield and even Kirk Cousins. Unlike Minnesota, New England does not appear all that interested in hitting the restart button again, after the disaster that ended up being Mac Jones + Bill Belichick.
Minnesota Vikings have already talked to Patriots about No. 3 Pick
But on Thursday during his scoop session on the Mackey & Judd Show (SKOR North), Darren ‘Doogie’ Wolfson advanced the possible draft night alliance between the Vikings and Patriots even farther when he reported that Minnesota checked in with New England at the Senior Bowl about whether or not they’d be a willing partner in the early evening on April 25.
“Here’s what I was told. Down in Mobile [at the Senior Bowl] there was a seed planted with New England, by the Vikings. Now, I’m not suggesting talks have advanced. It was one of those, ‘hey we’ll circle back to you presumably next week at the combine in Indianapolis’, but that some sort of seed was planted in terms of, ‘hey is there even any interest on your front, to move off that No. 3 pick?’”
Darren Wolfson – Mackey & Judd Show (SKOR North)
Preliminary trade talks get more serious at NFL Draft scouting combine
Doogie goes on to reiterate that whatever “seed was planted in Mobile” was a very preliminary thing. They wanted to know how interested the Pats are in moving off of pick 3, should that become the final decision the Vikings make in the 1st round.
Nonetheless, it’s important to note that every significant member of every front office across the NFL will be in Indianapolis at the NFL scouting combine next week. In fact, many are already there. So for the next 1.5 weeks, that town will be overwhelmed by loose-lipped NFL executives working hard all day and partying even harder (with league insiders and rival executives) all night.
And as that’s happening, it’s also worth noting that Vikings head coach Kevin O’Connell was originally drafted by the Patriots as an understudy for Tom Brady back in 2008 and still has connections deep into that organization, including its owner, Robert Kraft.
Those ties may not matter, in the end, but that extra layer of trust between the two franchises could play a role should talks continue to roll down the hill toward a possible draft night blockbuster.
No matter the Minnesota Vikings plans for the 2024 NFL Draft, whether that’s an organization-changing 1st round trade up to No. 3 overall or if they are looking to do something else, their plans will begin to reveal themselves more, over the next 10-ish days at the scouting combine.
