{"id":1036810,"date":"2026-10-25T15:39:35","date_gmt":"2026-10-25T15:39:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/1036810\/"},"modified":"2026-10-25T15:39:35","modified_gmt":"2026-10-25T15:39:35","slug":"the-vikings-draft-picks-cap-space-and-roster-needs","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/1036810\/","title":{"rendered":"The Vikings’ Draft Picks, Cap Space, and Roster Needs"},"content":{"rendered":"

\t\t\t\t\"MinnesotaA Minnesota Vikings fan raises a sign inside U.S. Bank Stadium during the fourth quarter of Minnesota\u2019s regular-season matchup against the Chicago Bears on Dec. 31, 2017, in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The Vikings closed the afternoon with home-field energy and postseason buzz around the building as fans saluted a division-winning team entering January. Mandatory Credit: Brad Rempel-USA TODAY Sports.\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

Soon enough, there\u2019s going to be the NFL trade deadline and the various aftershocks that come thereafter. Many think that Minnesota will jump into the action<\/a>.<\/p>\n

As a result, the Vikings\u2019 draft picks, cap space, and roster needs are important. Go ahead and keep on reading to figure out where Minnesota finds itself across both of 2027 and 2028 as the two most important years for draft picks. And there\u2019s a focus on the open room alongside present moment roster needs.<\/p>\n

The Vikings\u2019 Resources Ahead of \u201926 Trade Deadline<\/p>\n

Step 1 \u2014 The Draft Pick Tally <\/p>\n

\"VideoGreen Bay, Wisconsin, USA; April 25, 2025; A wide shot captures the stage video board displaying \u201cThe Pick Is In\u201d for the Minnesota Vikings during the third round of the NFL Draft, as fans and team personnel await the announcement inside the draft theater in Green Bay. Mandatory Credit: Perry Knotts-Getty Images<\/p>\n

Minnesota is sitting atop a good cluster for the 2027 NFL Draft (credit to Spotrac<\/a>):<\/p>\n

1st<\/p>\n

2nd<\/p>\n

3rd<\/p>\n

3rd (PHI)<\/p>\n

5th<\/p>\n

5th (NYG)<\/p>\n

5th (CAR)<\/p>\n

6th<\/p>\n

6th (NYJ)<\/p>\n

6th (Jalen Nailor Compensatory Pick)<\/p>\n

And the 2028 outlook sees the Vikings sitting atop the normal allotment. The Vikings possess a pick per round from the 1st through to the 7th. Plenty of ammo for Nolan Teasley to do business if a talented player becomes available. <\/p>\n

Step 2 \u2014 The Open Cap Space <\/p>\n

\"NFL:Sep 13, 2026; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Minnesota Vikings fans look on during warmups against the Green Bay Packers at U.S. Bank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeffrey Becker-Imagn Images \u2013 Credit: IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect<\/p>\n

The fine folks at Over the Cap<\/a> with the cap space estimates for this year and next: <\/p>\n

2026: $6,079,362<\/p>\n

2027: $35,023,180<\/p>\n

As things stand, the best bet for the Vikings to clear out some cap room could be via restructure to convert compensation to a signing bonus. Otherwise, an extension with somebody like Andrew Van Ginkel has merit<\/a>. <\/p>\n

The $6 million isn\u2019t a ton but is enough to bring in a lot of low-to-medium level talents. Going big-game hunting would very likely require some cap clearing. <\/p>\n

Step 3 \u2014 The Roster Needs <\/p>\n

\"NFL:Sep 27, 2026; Tampa, Florida, USA; Minnesota Vikings head coach Kevin O\u2019Connell watches quarterback Kyler Murray (1) warm up prior to the game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Raymond James Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement Neitzel-Imagn Images \u2013 Credit: IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect<\/p>\n

Different people have different opinions (in case you haven\u2019t noticed, go share a take on social media). Nevertheless, there are some common positions that generate intrigue in Minnesota: <\/p>\n

Left Guard <\/p>\n

Tight End <\/p>\n

Safety<\/p>\n

Running Back<\/p>\n

Quarterback<\/p>\n

The final position \u2014 QB \u2014 is quite unlikely. What\u2019s intriguing, though, is that tire fire down in LA. Justin Herbert is a rare talent who has been working through a terrible year, meaning the rumors are ample<\/a>. Couldn\u2019t Kevin O\u2019Connell get something out of a passer with that combo of size and talent?<\/p>\n

Otherwise, look for help at one of the other spots as being more realistic. Running back appears to be the trendy option right now for the Vikings, but we\u2019ll see what occurs. Minnesota is re-welcoming Jordan Mason, per the team itself, so maybe that gust of wind moves the focus toward a different position. <\/p>\n

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Senior Editor for Vikings Territory & PurplePTSD . Twitter & Bluesky: @VikingsGazette. Email: k.joudry[at]vikingsterritory[dot]com. Canadian. Jude 1:24-25. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A Minnesota Vikings fan raises a sign inside U.S. Bank Stadium during the fourth quarter of Minnesota\u2019s regular-season…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1036811,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[7,6,15],"class_list":["post-1036810","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-nfl-draft","tag-football","tag-nfl","tag-nfl-draft"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nfl\/117502303916936120","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1036810","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1036810"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1036810\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1036811"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1036810"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1036810"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1036810"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}