Vikings Floated as Trade Destination for Former $75 Million Pro Bowler

Getty Terron Armstead #72 of the Miami Dolphins looks on prior to a game against the Buffalo Bills.

The Minnesota Vikings traded a conditional fifth-round pick to the Jacksonville Jaguars to land left tackle Cam Robinson. However, the Vikings were still named a potential trade destination for five-time Pro Bowler Terron Armstead of the Miami Dolphins.

The Dolphins are 2-6 on the season and the Miami Herald’s Omar Kelly suggested several potential trade candidates.

The list included Armstead, who Kelly says is “having his best season” with the Dolphins.

“The prevailing thought was that this could be the 33-year-old’s last season in Miami because of his age and injury history,” Kelly wrote on November 4. “The Dolphins even drafted his replacement in Patrick Paul this summer. Miami could speed up Paul’s development and get ahead of difficult conversions it will likely have with Armstead this offseason by moving on from him now, sending him to an offensive tackle-needy contender like Minnesota.”

The New Orleans Saints selected Armstead in the third round (No. 75 overall) of the 2013 draft, and he spent the first nine seasons of his career with the organization. Armstead signed a five-year, $75 million contract with the Dolphins in free agency in 2022.

Armstead renegotiated his deal in March and is now in Year 1 of a three-year, $38.6 million pact.

He has five Pro Bowl trips to his credit and has protected the blindside of two pocket passers in former Saints QB Drew Brees and Tua Tagovailoa of the Dolphins.

Armstead has dealt with durability issues in his career, though. He has never played a full slate of games in a season, maxing out at 15 in 2019 and playing in 10 games in 2023. Armstead might be too lofty of a target for a Vikings team ravaged by injuries.

Vikings Trade Pitch Lands Dolphins’ Terron Armstead

KTSP’s Darren Wolfson said he expected the Vikings to make another move before the deadline.

“I’ll be surprised if they don’t do anything else,” Wolfson said on “SKOR North” on October 31. “They view the NFC being pretty darn wide open… the way they view it internally, they can still make a run in January.”

This Heavy Sports trade proposal aims to land Armstead from Miami.

Vikings get:

• Terron Armstead

Dolphins get:

• 2025 fifth-round pick

Armstead has a $1.2 million base salary that would be prorated for the remaining nine games of the schedule. He also has a $1.5 million per-game roster bonus.

His cap hit jumps from $10.5 million in 2024 to $22.1 million in 2025 and 2026. There are two void years on the back end of Armstead’s contract. But they are ghost years, with $0 cap hits in 2027 and 2028.

The Vikings are in good financial shape if they want to make another trade.

They have $7.9 million in cap space as of November 4, per Over The Cap, who projects the Vikings to have $75 million in room in 2025.

Cam Robinson Successful in Vikings Debut

The biggest X-factor in any potential pursuit of Armstead by the Vikings is Robinson, who had a successful debut against the Indianapolis Colts in Week 9.

Robinson – who has started every game he has played this season but was benched in favor of 2021 second-round pick Walker Little before the trade – is in the midst of his highest-graded season, per Pro Football Focus.

He received the second-worst grade among Vikings offensive linemen in Week 9.

PFF charged Robinson with allowing 4 pressures and 4 hurries. Blake Brandel was the only lineman who graded out worse in the game. PFF charged Brandel with 3 sacks.

The Vikings are light on draft capital. They already addressed their need for a left tackle amid starter Christian Darrisaw’s season-ending injury. Armstead might be an upgrade over Robinson. But it would still be a luxury trade that would create a logjam on the roster.