Early Wednesday evening, the Minnesota Vikings could breathe a sigh of relief. It wasn’t because they extended defensive coordinator Brian Flores, who could still leave if he lands a head coaching job at the 11th hour of the NFL’s hiring cycle. It was about wide receiver Jordan Addison, whose trespassing charges were dropped, according to Hillsborough County court records ESPN’s Kevin Seifert obtained.

According to SI’s Joe Nelson, the Seminole Indian Police Department arrested Addison earlier this month after the staff at a restaurant inside the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino asked him to leave. Addison allegedly refused, and the police had to redirect him to the front exit repeatedly during the incident, which ultimately led to his arrest.

While news of the arrest had Vikings fans fearing another suspension, it appears Addison is in the clear. The incident seems to fall into the no harm, no foul category. Still, it may also have moved up his timeline, which could expedite his exit from the Vikings this offseason.

Addison’s contract situation has been talked about in Vikings circles for a while. The 23rd-overall pick in the 2023 draft, Addison is one of the elite No. 2 receivers in the NFL, catching 175 passes for 2,396 yards and 22 touchdowns in his first three seasons. He is a solid complement to Justin Jefferson and could be the No. 1 target on several offenses.

But as Vikings also know, his issue isn’t talent. It’s that his offseason adventures resemble a GTA 6 mission.

Jordan Addison was arrested during his rookie season for going 140 mph in a 55 mph zone on I-94 in St. Paul. The incident was chalked up as a mistake, and Addison didn’t have any other incidents when the season began.

However, the concerns resurfaced when he was arrested for driving under the influence in Los Angeles. The optics of Addison’s arrest were not good, considering his teammate Khyree Jackson had died in an accident involving an impaired driver a few weeks prior.

His issues affected the Vikings this year when he was suspended for the first three games of the season. Later, they benched him for the first quarter of a game against the Cleveland Browns after he went M.I.A. on the team’s trip to London.

It’s unknown whether the suspension and added drama played a role in a disappointing campaign in which he had as many drops (seven) as in his first two seasons combined. But it also raised the question of whether the Vikings should trade Addison rather than pay him.

At the end of the season, the Vikings had time on their side. As a first-round pick, Jordan Addison had a fifth-year option that the Vikings could exercise this spring to have him on board for the 2027 season. By exercising that option, Addison could rehab his value in a prove-it year and help Minnesota land a haul entering that season if they decided against paying him after the 2026 campaign.

However, Addison’s recent arrest seems to have changed that thinking. According to SI’s Grant Cohn, the Vikings don’t want to pick up Addison’s fifth-year option and are shopping him to the San Francisco 49ers and the Buffalo Bills, ahead of this spring’s deadline. Cohen continued to speculate that Addison could be had for a second-, third-, or fourth-round pick, along with receiver Ricky Pearsall. Still, the fact that this speculation is out there makes it interesting timing.

Looking at Addison’s situation, the Vikings are making the right move. Picking up Addison’s option for 2027 would be crossing their fingers that he doesn’t get into trouble again. While his latest arrest may be a misunderstanding, it’s also a third strike for a player who seems to be at the wrong place at the wrong time when he’s not at the football facility.

Such a deal could also take advantage of a receiver-needy team that’s willing to take a risk by sending draft capital and paying for Addison. But there are some risks associated with making the move now.

In a perfect world, Addison could have kept quiet, put together a solid season, and the Vikings could trade him for a maximum return after the 2026 season. But with another offseason incident, the urgency has set in.

You could argue that doing this trade now also allows the Vikings to keep Jalen Nailor, who is set to become a restricted free agent. But paying a receiver who has never had more than 500 yards or 30 receptions in a season makes it a possibility that the Vikings are going down the path they didn’t go down with other secondary receivers, like Nate Burleson or K.J. Osborn.

Not to mention, moving Addison would hamper Minnesota’s offense. Perhaps the lure of Nailor’s availability, who has played in all 17 games in back-to-back seasons, would mitigate the risk of another Addison suspension. But the Vikings need all the help they can get on an offense that could rely heavily on J.J. McCarthy in his second year as a starter, be without T.J. Hockenson if they can’t work out a restructure, or be breaking in a new quarterback as the 2026 season begins.

It all screams that holding on to Addison for next season would be the optimal approach. But the Vikings can no longer do that after it took less than a month for Addison to find his way into trouble.

What seems like an honest mistake has more likely pushed Jordan Addison out of Minnesota, and it could force the Vikings to make a move they didn’t want to make this offseason.