Minnesota Vikings could help New England Patriots downtrodden OL for second-consecutive year

The preseason is over for the Minnesota Vikings and the focus of the franchise and general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah is about finalizing the initial 53-man roster .

There are a lot of difficult decisions to be made by the Vikings and every other franchise in the National Football League. There will be over 1,000 players released over the next few days with some being signed by other teams and close to half of them being added to practice squads around the league.

The Vikings should trade Dalton Risner to the Patriots

There are a select few of them that will be traded so a team doesn't have to worry about claiming them on waivers with other competition. The Vikings could entice the New England Patriots to do just that.

If you watched the preseason game against the Washington Commanders on Sunday night, it showed a brutal display from the Patriots' offensive line. They were allowing massive pressure on both running and passing plays. It's no wonder quarterback Jacoby Brissett left the game with an injury.

This is where the Vikings can help. Last season, they traded the Patriots offensive tackle Vederian Lowe for a sixth round pick. They could strike a deal this year with left guard Dalton Risner.

After missing all three preseason games with injury, Risner is in danger of being cut . Seventh round pick Michael Jurgens played well in his final preseason game and that is the biggest competition for Risner. Dan Feeney has showed enough to keep a roster spot and having the center/guard flexibility is important here.

Is Risner worth trading for? That is where your mileage may vary. The Patriots could have signed him back in May for a similar deal he got from the Vikings. At that point, they may have been okay with their offensive line with a major focus being put into it next offseason. It also should be noted that they tried to add multiple offensive tackles to fortify the line.

With the Vikings potentially moving on from Risner, this could be a way to secure extra draft capital with the 2025 NFL Draft only having a projected four picks. It would also give quarterback Drake Maye something a little better than what they have right now, which will be crucial for his development.

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