Future of WR Jordan Addison is uncertain after another off-field incident this offseason, and the Vikings could choose to trade him

There are a lot of factors that go into the trade value of Jordan Addison.

Tyler Forness — NFL & College Football News Writer
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Oct 23, 2025; Inglewood, California, USA; Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Jordan Addison (3) reacts after making a touchdown during the second half at SoFi Stadium.
Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images

The future of Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Jordan Addison is a complicated one.

When you look at his production over his first three seasons, the idea to move on from Addison feels somewhat absurd. With how his career has transpired, it’s become a more likely outcome than we would have guessed.

Over the first three years of his career, Addison has had more than one incident off the field.

A potential Jordan Addison trade is complicated

The issues listed above are difficult to look past. His off-field issues have been a problem. It would be easier to overlook if it were an isolated incident, but three incidents with the law and one more while traveling with the team create a reputation that you don’t want to have. The one saving grace for Addison is that he just turned 24-years-old.

When you look at the on-field play, he’s been an incredible number two receiver opposite of Justin Jefferson. This season saw a dip in production, mainly due to the terrible play at the quarterback position. Over the first three seasons of his career, Addison has a combined 175 receptions for 2,396 yards and 22 touchdowns. It’s plenty good enough for the second, sometimes third option on the Vikings’ offense.

The main reason why teams would want to trade for Addison is simple: he’s a number-one wide receiver who has to play second fiddle.

Jordan Addison has interesting trade comps

If a team wants to trade for Addison, what would a trade look like? For now, we are going to focus on what compensation would look like without including the off-field issues.

Since 2020, there have been five different trades that can be considered comparable. To determine which ones can be used for a comparison point, I used two criteria:

  • Five or fewer seasons in the NFL
  • Comparable stats to Addison

These are the five trades:

YearTeamAssets AcquiredAssets Sent
2020Buffalo BillsStefon Diggs1st, 5th, 6th, 2021 4th
2022Philadelphia EaglesA.J. Brown18th and 101st overall (Draft Day trade)
2022Arizona CardinalsHollywood Brown, 100th overall23rd overall (Draft Day trade)
2022Chicago BearsChase Claypool2023 2nd (ended up being 32nd overall)
2025Dallas CowboysGeorge Pickens, 2027 6th2026 3rd, 2027 5th

Of these trades, both the Diggs and A.J. Brown trades are a little bit over the top in terms of capital, because they had proven themselves to be a tier ahead of where Addison is now, and they both became All-Pro wide receivers in short order.

From a production standpoint, the Claypool trade makes some sense, but it was a widely criticized move at the time due to his drop-off in production in year three, and it aged like milk with the pick being the first of the second round, and he’s bounced around the league.

The Hollywood Brown trade feels like very fair compensation, even though their trajectory with their production has been inverse of each other. Addison came out of the gate fast, while Brown slowly ramped up over those three seasons. This is the most likely trade comparison that makes sense from a talent and production standpoint.

If you add in the off-the-field issues, the comp to Pickens is fascinating. While their issues aren’t identical, they are comparable. Pickens’ issues were strictly on the field, mainly with erratic behavior and inconsistent effort. Those led Pickens to being traded for significantly less draft capital than he should have been.

At the trade deadline, I calculated his trade value at a 2026 1st and 2027 4th for Addison and 2026 6th. That was using a wider base of trade comps, and it was before his “incident” in January, which saw the charges dropped.

Considering his poor finish to the season and the off-the-field issues, his stock has declined. I keep going back to the Hollywood Brown trade as a fair compensation point, but likely modified slightly. In my latest 7-round mock draft, I sent Addison and pick 97 to the New England Patriots for 31st and 125th overall. Swap out 31st for a top 40 pick, and I think the compensation still makes sense for both sides.

Trade value: Late 1st/early 2nd and early day 3 pick for Addison and pick 97

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