Good Morning, New York Giants Fans!
With the New York Giants gearing up to face the Minnesota Vikings in week five, the biggest news of the week wasn’t in regards to the game, but rather a potential trade target, who’s coincidentally on the opposing team.
Vikings wide receiver Stefon Diggs was reportedly on the trade market earlier in the week, despite this reality being a rumor. Reports stated that the rumors were false, but with the displeasure occurring in the wide receiver room for Minnesota, it is only fair to believe they could be forcing their way out. After the departure of now head coach of the Giants, Pat Shurmur, the Vikings offense lost a bit of its juice.
Diggs earned 849 yards over 14 games in 2017 with Shurmur but tallied 1021 total yards and nine touchdowns last season. The Vikings have committed to a run-first offense which has ultimately hurt the statistics for the wide receivers.
Adam Thielen, Diggs’ teammate, stated:
â€You have to be able to throw the ball.â€
The frustration growing among the receivers could force the Vikings hand, and with Diggs potentially on the trade market, the idea of the Giants swooping in and stealing him is certainly possible. However, I wouldn’t recommend it.
The only way the Giants should theoretically attempt to trade for Diggs is if the Vikings are willing to accept a third-round pick or less. General manager Dave Gettleman has done a fantastic job drafting the past two years, which makes draft capital even more valuable.
For argument’s sake, Diggs is on a team-friendly contract. His cap hit is only $12.5 million this season and only reaches a maximum of $15 million in 2021 and 2022. In comparison, Odell Beckham Jr. is earning $17 million this season. Additionally, Diggs‘ contract has a low dead cap. If the Giants wanted to cut him in 2021, he would only count $6 million in dead cap.
The mantra for Big Blue moving forward, though, should be to alleviate any chance of carrying over dead salary into future seasons.
An argument against trading for Diggs would be how well rookie passer Daniel Jones has performed in just two NFL starts. With 567 passing yards and five total touchdowns, Jones has proved that he doesn’t need a plethora of talent to win football games. He has done so without Saquon Barkley for a majority of the time and without Golden Tate. When his offense is fully healthy, Jones will be more than capable of operating at a high-level. Therefore, Diggs is not essential.
Nonetheless–
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