OBJ Trade Talks Never Happened, Say NFL Insiders

Remember those Odell Beckham Jr trade talks the Vikings were supposedly having yesterday, with the Browns? They never took place, according to NFL reporters all over the league and internet..

ESPN and Yahoo Sports insiders have refuted the initial rumor (which was out of New York, from a well-known local radio host) and local ABC stations have done the same. The response has been pretty unanimous from insiders who have broached the subject…. An OBJ —> Vikings trade isn’t happening and was never under discussion.

x 2 https://t.co/6nqL7H8ePy

— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) April 16, 2020

Received a one-word answer from a source close to the #Vikings about the report they're talking to the #Browns about trading for Odell Beckham Jr. for a 2nd & 5th next year: "False"

— Mary Kay Cabot (@MaryKayCabot) April 15, 2020

From someone who would be involved: "It's BS." I know @MaryKayCabot and others have already said this too. But happy to answer for you. #Vikings https://t.co/wp048Jz1FM

— Darren Wolfson (@DWolfsonKSTP) April 15, 2020

I checked the twitter accounts of NFL Network insiders, Tom Pelissero and Ian Rapoport, and they haven’t even touched the subject yet. Unless they come out with a breaking report that confirms the original tweet, I’d say this rumor is about as dead as the career of the guy who reported it.

As we talked about on Bleeding Purple today with Daniel House (MNVikingsCorner.com), fans should have known something was up when we looked at the details of the OBJ trade rumors, themselves. Supposedly, the Vikings were only giving up a 2nd and a 5th for the 2021 draft? It’s hard to imagine that conversation ever getting off the ground, knowing Stefon Diggs went to Buffalo for a 2020 1st-rounder… (OBJ trade talk starts at 03:50 mark below)

As fun as it would have been to see OBJ in purple, it doesn’t make much sense to ship out one diva, just to bring in a bigger one. The Vikings have made it very clear, the type of offense they want on display for the foreseeable future. It’s Dalvin Cook, Dalvin Cook, Dalvin Cook, Play Action…

I wrote about it the other night and that blog hasn’t gotten the traffic it deserves… The big question to watch for the Vikings, is WTF they will do with Dalvin Cook’s contract. He isn’t playing 2021 under something that pays him as a backup, like his current deal. I wouldn’t, either…. not as a running back.

If you want to deep dive a wide receiver who could actually play for the Vikings in 2021, make sure you WATCH the Bleeding Purple Podcast, where House breaks down a 2nd-round WR who he calls the “best route runner in the draft” (29-minute mark below).

Eric Strack | Minnesota Sports Fan