1. Money

It’s pretty simple. Right now, via Over The Cap, the Vikings are over the $200 million NFL salary cap by $11.3 million. Yes they have some easy decisions to make in search of relief, with cornerback Xavier Rhodes an easy cut with defensive tackle Linval Joseph and offensive tackle Riley Reiff possibly on the chopping block too. Trading wide receiver Stefon Diggs would also make some room.

But Cousins’ $31 million cap hit for this year stands apart as incredibly high. Without agreement on an extension to reduce that number, it’s going to weigh down the Vikings’ ability to make offseason moves (like upgrading the interior offensive line, re-signing safety Anthony Harris, or adding a corner to replace Rhodes and/or looming free agent Trae Waynes).

The boldest way for the Vikings to create cap space this offseason, independent of any other moves, is to trade Cousins and find a cheaper (yet ideally comparable or a little better in certain margins) quarterback. There’s a non-zero chance that the move is being considered internally, but the odds of Cousins being traded are very long until proven otherwise.