The 2026 NFL Draft is approaching on April 23, and while many would assume that this would be the time that teams call for Minnesota Vikings edge rusher Jonathan Greenard, that might not be the case.
After this upcoming 2026 season, Greenard will have one year left on his contract, and with the player turning 29 in May, could a team put an offer on the table that causes Minnesota to pull the trigger on a trade for their veteran?
While some would expect a trade to happen around the draft, Bleacher Report’s Moe Moton believes a move would come after the draft, as teams that miss out on their edge-rushing targets could turn to Greenard.
“Entering his age-29 campaign, not far removed from consecutive 12-plus-sack seasons, Greenard should be able to fetch a middle-round pick,” Moton wrote in his article published on April 15.
“… Assuming Greenard has a solid trade market, Minnesota may be waiting for suitors to up the ante on compensation during the draft. Clubs that need an edge-rusher but pass on prospects at the position will be primary candidates to acquire a veteran next week.
“Also worth noting: the Vikings can save $12.3 million in cap space by trading Greenard. He may be expendable after 2024 first-rounder Dallas Turner registered eight sacks in a rotational role last season.”
With the Vikings last season, Greenard posted a 74.2 overall defensive grade from PFF, placing 31st out of 115 qualified edge defenders in 2025. His pass-rush grade came in at 77.6, good for 18th, while his 77.8 run-defense grade ranked 12th at the position.
He finished the year with 47 total pressures, including four sacks, 35 hurries, and eight hits. Moreover, he recorded 24 solo tackles and forced one fumble.
Vikings Warned About Potentially Trading Jonathan Greenard
Nonetheless, with the Vikings looking to compete this upcoming season, should Minnesota keep the veteran edge rusher rather than secure assets for him? ESPN NFL analyst Louis Riddick shared his thoughts on whether Minnesota should keep the player.
“When you have guys like Jonathan and Dallas [Turner] and Andrew [Van Ginkel], those are guys who you can kind of get drawn into, like playing this kind of fantasy football type of scenario a little bit too much when you’re talking about trading guys away who play premium positions who have the kind of game-changing ability like Jonathan has, like Dallas Turner has,” Riddick told KSTP in an April 13 video.
“I don’t like getting into that too much as far as constantly playing, having this revolving door, and saying, you know what, we can trade him, get some assets, and we’ll just replace him.
“It’s not always that easy. I like kind of getting guys, developing them, and arrive at fair market value, where you feel a little bit uncomfortable with maybe what you gave him. The player feels a little bit uncomfortable with maybe what he left on the table. But simply because you know it’s what’s best for the football team.”
Minnesota Urged to Keep Jonathan Greenard
Amid the rumors, Alec Lewis of The Athletic shared his take on whether the Vikings should trade Greenard with the NFL Draft approaching.
“I don’t think they should trade Jonathan Greenard unless they can get a first-round pick, which I don’t expect them to land,“ Lewis said on the March 31 edition of “Purple Insider.”
“The sack production in 2025 is what it is, but when you dig into the advanced metrics and the film, it tells a better story. His pass rush win rate, quick pressure rate and run stop rate all improved compared to 2024.”
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