Trae Waynes listed among players that could still be traded

Even though the season is getting closer

We’re at a point in the offseason where it’s rare to see trades consummated in the National Football League, but that doesn’t mean it can’t happen. As a matter of fact, one of our friends over at The Ringer thinks that a prominent member of your Minnesota Vikings is still a solid possibility to be dealt before the season starts.

Robert Mays has put together a list of players that he thinks could still be traded, and he lists cornerback Trae Waynes. . .who was the subject of numerous trade rumors leading up to the NFL Draft. . .as one of those that could potentially be targeted.

Here’s what Mays has to say about Waynes:

The former first-round pick will carry a $9.1 million base salary on his fifth-year option this season, the Vikings are trying to squeeze all they can out of their remaining cap space (they currently have just $5.2 million available, according to OTC, ahead of only the Steelers), and with three highly drafted cornerbacks (Xavier Rhodes, Mike Hughes, and Mackensie Alexander) already on the roster, Waynes is no longer a necessary component. As a team with title aspirations, Minnesota may not want to sacrifice the defensive back depth that head coach Mike Zimmer covets, but $9.1 million is a lot of money to pay arguably the fourth-best cornerback on the team. Waynes and his penchant for grabbing receivers downfield can be maddening at times, but he’s a physically gifted player who would still add speed to any secondary.

While that sounds like a good idea in theory, this fails to take into account that one of those “highly drafted cornerbacks,” Hughes, may or may not be ready to go for the start of the season. In addition, as we know, second-year corner Holton Hill will be out for the first four games due to a suspension. Once you account for all of that, the Vikings. . .for all their depth at the position. . .would appear to be pretty thin at cornerback for the early going of the season.

I honestly think that if the Vikings were going to trade Waynes, or any of their other cornerbacks, they would have done so much earlier in the offseason so that they could find replacements for them well in advance. Not that the Vikings couldn’t trade Trae Waynes away before the start of the 2019 season, but with the way things are falling for this team, it would definitely come as a surprise.

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