NFL Rumors: Vikings offer updates on Za’Darius Smith, Dalvin Cook
The Minnesota Vikings have two major questions remaining this offseason — what are they doing to do with aging veterans like Za’Darius Smith and Dalvin Cook?
An injury-prone Cook is a classic sell-high candidate at this point in his career. Plenty of teams need running backs, and the Vikings could receive a mid-round pick in return for his services. Minnesota could say millions by making him a post-June 1 cut, but before then they’d like to explore options for their former bell-cow.
“Conversations are always ongoing with him. We’re trying to be solutions-oriented and always try to put the roster together within our constraints,” GM Kwesi Adofo-Mensah said.
As for Za’Darius Smith, that’s a far tougher conversation. Smith asked the Vikings to release him earlier this offseason, but the team doesn’t sound willing to abide by those rules. Smith remains available in trade talks because he’s unhappy. However, if that relationship could be repaired, Smith is on an affordable contract and plays a valuable position. He still has plenty to achieve in Minnesota.
Solutions-oriented, as Adofo-Mensah framed the conversation, doesn’t mean all that much. Both Cook and Smith could be traded during the NFL Draft, though Smith could probably retrieve the most value considering he’s coming off a Pro Bowl season in which he had double-digit sacks.