5 teams who should be in on getting Josh Gordon

2. Minnesota Vikings

Speaking of being in a win-now window, we have the Vikings with quarterback Kirk Cousins in the second year of a fully guaranteed three-year contract along with a head coach and general manager who have to operate with a sense of urgency. They are essentially right up against the salary cap right now, but Gordon stands as an interesting possibility.

The Vikings have two of the NFL’s best wide receivers in Stefon Diggs and Adam Thielen. While offensive assistant Gary Kubiak’s offense has historically rendered production from a No. 3 wide receiver moot, but Minnesota does have a question mark there if Thielen or Diggs went down with an injury. Diggs has missed games off and on during his career and Thielen is coming off a hamstring injury suffered in Week 7, so it’s hardly out of the question that someone else may have to step up in an important game.

In the wake of safety Jayron Kearse’s recent arrest, and head coach Mike Zimmer’s pointed comments about it, the Vikings may have little appetite for inviting Gordon’s possible distractions. But never say never about adding Gordon (via a waiver claim or an after waivers signing), so the Vikings sit prominently on this list.