A massive trade for Dexter Lawrence could catapult the Vikings to the Super Bowl this season
By Tyler Forness,
1 days ago
The Minnesota Vikings are in an interesting position as they enter their bye week. They sit at 5-0 and are one of the current frontrunners to make and win the Super Bowl this season. A potential run for a Super Bowl title came out of nowhere, as the Vikings thought this run would begin in 2025.
The interesting predicament the Vikings find themselves in this season is how to handle the trade deadline. They only have three draft picks in the 2025 NFL Draft that are available to trade with a third round compensatory pick on the way this upcoming offseason. Would they be willing to make a very aggressive move to win now?
Honestly, it's unlikely they would do that. What could make sense is either a depth move or one that was similar to the T.J. Hockenson trade they made in general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah's first year. At the trade deadline, there is one name that is popular among the fanbase: New York Giants DT Dexter Lawrence.
Dexter Lawrence is a premier defender
When the Giants selected Lawrence with the 17th pick in the 2019 NFL Draft, it wasn't viewed very highly. Not that Lawrence wasn't a good prospect, but the interior of their defensive line was a strength of the roster.
It didn't take long for Lawrence to become a wrecking ball on the interior. In the last two seasons, Lawrence was a Pro Bowler and a second-team All-Pro. That will likely become a first-team All-Pro this year with Aaron Donald having retired. At nose tackle, Lawrence has 6.0 sacks already this year after having 4.5 in 2023 and 7.5 in 2022. He also accumulated 50 pressures in 2023, which is an insane number for a 0T/1T.
His performance has been nothing short of spectacular for the Giants. Against the Vikings, he torched the interior of the offensive line consistently and kept them in the game in the first half. He also had three sacks against the Seattle Seahawks this past Sunday continuing his dominance. That is something that the Vikings could use in a major way.
What would a Dexter Lawrence trade look like?
A trade for a premier player could end up proving difficult. As stated above, the Vikings have limited 2025 draft capital to send to anyone in a trade. They do have their full slate of draft capital in 2026 but that could be difficult for a trade like this.
The Giants could be moving on from both general manager Joe Schoen and head coach Brian Daboll after the season and trading away their best player when they need to win football games. It would take a great offer to make a move like this.
When looking at potential comparison points for a trade, there isn't a lot to look at. The only close comparison at defensive tackle was DeForest Buckner when he got traded in March of 2020. The 49ers received the 13th overall pick for Buckner and trades have evolved since then.
Another close comparison would be the Denver Broncos trading edge rusher Bradley Chubb to the Miami Dolphins for a first-round pick, fourth-round pick and running back Chase Edmonds. Lawrence is a better player than Chubb at this stage, but it's a good starting point.
If the Vikings were to make a trade for a player of Lawrence's caliber, it will likely happen in the same way that the Vikings traded for T.J. Hockenson: they want to keep him around long-term.
Salary cap wise, the Vikings would only have to absorb a pro-rated $6 million in base salary with base salaries of $15.5 million, $18.5 million and $18 million over the next three seasons. That is something the Vikings would likely give to a player on the free agent market this offseason. Now, that could be an issue this year because the best defensive tackles have already been extended. They could also acquire Lawrence and he would fit under the salary cap comfortably.
What is a fair price for the Vikings to pay? With players at the top of their respective positions going for multiple first-round picks, that would be the jumping-off point. However, it would be a major precedent for an interior defensive lineman to go for two first-round picks. Tyreek Hill went for less than that. However, it would certainly be more than one.
This would be both a win-now move and one to set them up for a stretch run under J.J. McCarthy for the next few years. Is that enough to trade away major assets? That's the million dollar question, but nobody would fault Adofo-Mensah if he went for it.
One thing to keep in mind when it comes to trade compensation: as much as we think we know about the market, nobody really knows what a player will go for. Surprises happen all the time.
Projected trade compensation : Vikings send 2025 first round pick and 2026 first and fourth round picks to the Giants for Dexter Lawrence and a 2025 second round pick
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