There was rampant speculation that the Minnesota Vikings would make a trade at the deadline with their 6-1 start. The speculation was more rooted in wide receiver with the struggles of the corps as a whole.
With the injury on Sunday to Irv Smith Jr., the Vikings decided to go all-in at the tight end position, trading for Detroit Lions tight end T.J. Hockenson in a blockbuster deal.
Buy Vikings TicketsTrade terms, source tells ESPN:
🏈Vikings get TE T.J. Hockenson, a 2023 fourth-round pick and a conditional 2024 fourth-round pick.
🏈Lions get 2023 second-round pick and a 2024 third-round pick.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) November 1, 2022
The Vikings’ offense is predicated on being able to have a tight end that blocks and can also catch passes at a high level. They somewhat had that with Smith Jr. but he is always injured.
With Hockenson, you essentially have a better version of Los Angeles Rams tight end Tyler Higbee, who is a very important part of the offense there and an archetype that head coach Kevin O’Connell knows very well.
The Vikings did pay a premium in giving up a second-round pick in 2022 and a third-round pick in 2023. The nice part about the fourth-round picks that the Vikings got in each of the next two years is that they will likely be high picks with the Lions still struggling.
Stay tuned to the Vikings Wire for more analysis on this blockbuster trade.
