I'd spend a high pick on a WR even with a stud already on roster. Minnesota's receiver management shows the standard for modern NFL roster construction at WR. They've done this approach across multiple regimes and it shows show the perfect execution. The Vikings initially paired Thielen (undrafted) with Diggs (5th round steal). When both emerged as high end receivers, they didn't become complacent. Thinking about Diggs' eventual contract demands and having identified better value, they flipped him to Buffalo for draft capital that eventually led to JJ. I wouldn't view this as luck. The Vikings maintained depth throughout the transition, allowing them to trade from strength rather than necessity. When Jefferson became elite status and Thielen aged... they again invested premium capital in Addison (23rd overall). This provided Minnesota continuous financial flexibility. As Thielen AND Diggs commanded market value, Jefferson's rookie deal offered tremendous surplus. Now with Jefferson commanding $35M+ annually, Addison's controlled rookie contract functions as the necessary counterbalance. Addison's skills complement Jefferson perfectly, creating a dangerous one-two punch that prevents defenses from exclusively targeting either player. This isn't redundancy, it's strategic stacking at a premium position. The Bengals attempted a similar approach with Ja'Marr, Higgins and Boyd, but didn't fully capitalize on the financial benefit. While they thoughtfully drafted Higgins (2nd round) despite having Boyd and A.J. Green, then added Chase (5th overall) despite Higgins' emergence, they failed on the back end by attempting to pay both Chase and Higgins simultaneously. They've now committed huge capital to both receivers at the same time - giving Higgins a $28m/yr and Ja'Marr $40m/yr. This dual investment creates a massive financial burden at one position group. Had they drafted another high-end receiver before extending both Chase and Higgins, they could have maintained better leverage and more balanced value distribution across the roster. The Vikings approach of constantly replenishing through the draft provides greater long term viability. Caserio has shown similar foresight. Despite having Nico coming up as a legitimate WR1, we rightly invested the third pick in Tank, then doubled down with X in the sixth. Dell's impact alongside Nico gave us a dynamic receiver tandem at combined cap hit below most WR2s. Smart franchises don't find one star receiver and stop investing. They continue a pipeline of talent through the draft, to ensure cost-controlled production at a position where market rates can be beyond reason. Minnesota proves that sustained investment at receiver isn't luxury but it's essential strategy in the modern NFL. It would be wise to invest a top 3 round pick in a WR this draft (or next). With Tank's extension coming up soon, injury concerns and the recent loss of Diggs via FA/injury, we need cheap talent ready to step up. Thoughts @raining threes @cmoak1982 ?
Well said. I don’t think we even have a choice, we have far too many injury concerns in our WR room not to draft a receiver early and possibly late.
Totally agree with this philosophy. I dont think I would pick a WR in the 1st in this draft but would probably pick one at 2-58. If the talent lead me to pick say Nolen and Ratledge or Milum at 2-58 I would definitely look at picking a guy like Royals at 3-79 because not only is he very talented, but his skillset fits very well with Collins/Kirk's skillsets. If I had to trade up to get a WR at the top of the 3rd in the Royals/Ayomanor type grouping I would do this using a 2026 draft pick to get the job done. I also would look at drafting a developmental WR like Thornton/ TesLaa/Sammy Brown Jr later in the draft so that I have 3 WR's with speed on the field to make sure the defense is stretched out enough that Mixon will have room to roam. That's how important I think adding team speed is to this team and the WR corps in specific. Plus as you said if you hit on the higher drafted WR and develop a WR this can help keep down the cost of the WR corps, so that you dont have to pay Kirk a fortune to keep him next year. I would also draft a wR in the 2026 draft somewhere depending on the talent level of the 2026 WR draft class.
I will say, there's more confidence in them drafting and hitting on a WR (whether at the top or the middle areas of the draft) due to Nick's success rate in finding talent and value there. It's been more hit than miss for OL, so that's why I'd lean more towards weapon in the earliest (or earlier rounds) and finding OL help towards the middle rounds.
DJ is my guy. Start at LG this year, then could slide over to LT next year. My hope is that we get a WR at 25 (Ebuka or Golden) and then trade back up into 1st to get DJ on a 5 year contract. 2-58 + 1 of our 2026 2nds (preferably Htown) is technically enough. Maybe throw in a 2026 4th. I said maybe.
