The cornerback position for the Minnesota Vikings might be the biggest question mark on the roster right now. Byron Murphy Jr. is a solid number one, but both CB2 and CB3 are far from certain going into training camp.

There are some interesting players available for the Vikings to target, including last year's cornerbacks Shaquill Griffin and Stephon Gilmore. However, the top cornerback available is Jalen Ramsey of the Miami Dolphins.

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Jalen Ramsey is surprisingly affordable for the Vikings

A trade for Ramsey is one that the Vikings could easily make happen. Should they make the move? That's not the question on hand, as it's something that we've delved into multiple times.

The first aspect of the cost is simple: what kind of draft pick compensation would it take to make it happen? The likley compensation that has been thrown out there is a mid-round pick, and the Vikings have a couple of them.

Right now, the Vikings have their own third and fifth-round picks, with potential third and fourth-round picks coming as compensatory picks. They have enough ammo to make a move work, and some picks coming back to them to ease the burden. They could also trade a higher pick to get the Dolphins to potentially eat some of the salary that is owed to him, but they don't have to do so.

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Salary cap space is something that's really interesting when it comes to the Vikings and Ramsey. The Dolphins would save almost $10 million inj cap space but would end up eating around $15 million in 2026. However, with their salary cap situation, that might be a better option.

If the Dolphins trade Ramsey before August 31st, they will avoid paying out any of the option bonus that is due to him. In fact, a good portion of his contract is in option bonuses.

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As you can see in the above table, Over The Cap has a nice breakdown of what his contract looks like.

The key to seeing what his cap hits would look like with the Vikings is understanding the option bonuses. They act like a signing bonus that can be paid out at any point in the lifecycle of the contract. There are three roster bonuses due in the next three years, all of which fall on August 31st:

• 2025: $18.98 million ($3.796 million per year added to the cap hit)
• 2026: $8.135 million ($1.627 million per year added to the cap hit)
• 2027: $8.835 million ($1.767 million per year added to the cap hit)

This allows the team to pay Ramsey the money he is worth while having it remain palatable on the salary cap. It's what the Vikings did with Justin Jefferson's contract.

Now, these dollar amounts vesting in August make it a little easier to move on from Ramsey if they so choose. However, once they are paid, it becomes just a little bit harder after each one. The cap hits for the Vikings over the next four years are as follows:

• 2025: $9.916 million
• 2026: $18.288 million
• 2027: $20.055 million
• 2028: $31.19 million
• 2029 (void year): $12.351 million

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When you look at the Vikings' cap space for the next few years, they theoretically can make it work.

• 2025: $23,540,752 cap space ($13,624,752 with Ramsey)
• 2026: -$60,822,694 cap space with 59 players under contract (-$79,110,694 with Ramsey)
• 2027: $41,873,500 in cap space with 47 players under contract ($21,818,500 with Ramsey)

Doing so would also potentially take away a player or two at other positions, which is always the unintended consequence that you have to take into consideration. Do you believe that you are going to get around $20 million worth of player in 2027? That's the question you need to ask yourself now. Otherwise, you either need to look elsewhere or ask the Dolphins to take on some of that first option bonus to give yourself more flexibility in the future.

The Vikings could also rework the contract with Ramsey if he were willing to do so. Whatever path the Vikings took in order to get Ramsey in the building, they can make it work.

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Right now, the Vikings haven't shown the willingness to make a move like this with the main reason being that defensive coordinator Brian Flores believes in Isaiah Rodgers.

"He's been on my radar since he was at UMass, a fast playmaker. I think he's one of these kind of late-round guys who found his way in the league in the kicking game. And got in some games and made some plays. I've always thought he was a good player and was ascending. And the opportunity presented itself that we could maybe acquire him. I was all in, and I'm happy we got him. He's been a great addition. He's got a great kind of football IQ and acumen. That's something that we stressed, really, throughout the group, at all levels, secondary, second level, and obviously D line. And I think it's just a great addition we talk about, you know, bringing guys in who as far as building a synergy within the group. How does this guy mesh with Murph (Byron Murphy Jr.) and Harry (Harrison Smith) and Telly (Josh Metellus), and he's just come in and done a great job from that standpoint."

If things end up going south early in training camp, this may happen. For right now, a trade isn't likely to manifest, even if they can make it work financially.