The Minnesota Vikings need to pull the trigger and pull off a trade to acquire Odell Beckham Jr. There are three reasons why the Vikings need him.
Odell Beckham Jr. may be traded once again.
Rumors are swirling of the Minnesota Vikings and Cleveland Browns talking about the three-time Pro Bowler, with the compensation centering around a 2020 second round pick and a 2021 fifth round pick in exchange for Beckham.
After trading Stefon Diggs to the Buffalo Bills a few weeks ago for a first-round pick among other late-round draft choices, landing Beckham and keeping both firsts would be a phenomenal swap for general manager Rick Spielman.
Here are three reasons why the Vikings need this deal to go through.
Replacing Stefon Diggs
While the Vikings do have a threat at receiver in Adam Thielen, they need another option to compliment him. Throughout Thielen’s career, he always had Diggs on the other side. With Diggs out of the picture, the Vikings need another target to draw coverages.
In his career, Beckham has 6,511 receiving yards and 48 touchdowns. At 27 years old, the former LSU star has recorded five 1,000-yard campaigns in six attempts, with the other short-circuited by a broken leg.
Beckham Jr. would be of tremendous value in this regard. He’s a deep threat and a receiver dangerous racking up yards after catch. Beckham has drawn doubles since his rookie year with the New York Giants, certainly garnering more attention than Diggs.
Win-now mode
The Vikings are coming off a playoff appearance where they defeated the 13-3 New Orleans Saints in the Wild Card round before being ousted by the San Francisco 49ers. Heading into 2020, the Vikings need to be all in.
Acquiring Beckham would signal the Vikings are serious after losing so many pieces in the offseason. If rumors are true that this trade would only cost two draft picks, including one for 2021, the Vikings have no choice but to swing the deal.
Looking at their roster, the Vikings’ offense would be significantly upgraded by Beckham even accounting for the loss of Diggs.
Beckham Jr.’s mentality
There have long been arguments about whether Beckham is a team player, but things appeared fine between he and his teammates in Cleveland last year.
While his number may have dropped last season with the Browns, it didn’t seem entirely his fault. The Browns offense as a whole didn’t work under first-year head coach Freddie Kitchens. Additionally, at the season’s end, Beckham admitted he was battling a leg injury all season.
The 2019 season was nowhere near Beckham Jr.’s Pro Bowl numbers However, he still managed to snag 74 catches for 1,045 receiving yards and four touchdowns. Heading into Minnesota he would be in a better position to succeed. The Vikings 2019 offense was more effective than the Browns.
Coming off the season Beckham had with Cleveland, he would enter the 2020 season with a chip on his shoulder. A chip the Vikings could use to ride their ship to what could be a deep playoff run.