Latest NFL news potentially opens the door for the Minnesota Vikings to fix their run defense with 1 simple move
This is a simple fix to the run defense
The Minnesota Vikings’ run defense has been an issue so far this season.
Through five games, the Vikings have allowed 132.2 yards per game on the ground, which ranks 25th in the NFL. However, they are only allowing 289.8 yards per game, which ranks sixth. They are still first in the league in EPA per play on defense at -0.12, but that drops to 25th in EPA/rush, which is positive at 0.008.
Many will look at the trade of Harrison Phillips as the catalyst for these issues. Still, there is a possibility the Vikings find his replacement, making a move that fits general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah.
Vikings could trade for Travis Jones to fix their run defense
Tuesday afternoon saw a couple of trades across the NFL, and one of them stood out in a big way. The Baltimore Ravens traded a promising young edge rusher in Odafe Oweh to the Los Angeles Chargers.
This is a bit surprising on the surface, considering the Ravens’ defensive issues, but they likely believed that Oweh either wouldn’t re-sign or was not in their long-term plans. They do have some young players at edge rusher in Mike Green and David Ojabo, who can step in for Oweh, and they can have Gilman help out their pass defense on the back end.
That leads to the all-important question: Will the Ravens have a fire sale now that they are 1-4? If they do, the Vikings should inquire about nose tackle Travis Jones.
A third-round pick in the 2022 NFL Draft, Jones has been a constant on the Ravens’ defensive front. It isn’t just about stopping the run with Jones; he can do a little bit of everything. You don’t want him to be a designated pass rusher, but he can push the pocket and absorb multiple blockers with his 6-4, 338-pound frame. He can also do a nice hump move that would make him and Jonathan Allen friends.
So far this season, Jones has played 175 snaps, including a whopping 63 against the Buffalo Bills in Week 1, when he posted season-high Pro Football Focus grades of 81.1 overall and 84.4 against the run.
The nice part about Jones is that he is a free agent after the season, so you can move on from him if you want, or the Vikings can extend him to be a long-term constant on the defensive front. It would be redundant to bring in Jones when they just traded away Phillips, but there is one thing that would eliminate that: money.
Phillips was set to make a base salary of $7.5 million next season, all of which is off the books. Giving Jones a contract would allow them to continue to be smart about how they structure the money moving forward.
The cost wouldn’t be much since he’s a nose tackle, likely something like a fifth-round pick, which the Vikings currently have from the Eagles, plus the possibility of up to three compensatory picks coming for the 2026 NFL Draft.
It would be both an admission that the trade was a mistake, but also a positive, since they got younger and more athletic at the position.
Would the Vikings make this move? They may want to wait for Blake Cashman’s return to see how the run defense looks with him back in the fold. Even so, Jones could make a major impact on the run defense right now.
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