Jeremiyah Love
Getty
Jeremiyah Love is unlikely to be at No. 9 after the combine.
NFL analysts have speculated all offseason about how the Minnesota Vikings might improve the running backs room, with both a trade and the draft as legitimate pathways — but the road to the best RB available actually involves both.
Ben Goessling of the Star Tribune reported on Tuesday, March 24 that Minnesota is likely to target a rookie rusher with one of the four picks it holds inside the top 100: Nos. 18, 49, 82 and 97.
“I would not be surprised if one of those top-100 picks is used on a RB,” Goessling said during an interview with KFAN1003, per the VikingzFanPage X account.
Minnesota would ideally select Notre Dame running back Jeremiyah Love, who is far and away the best RB in the 2026 class and a potential generational player. Mel Kiper Jr. referred to Love as the “most explosive player” at any position, while his ESPN colleague Mina Kimes has mentioned the Vikings multiple times as perhaps the most intriguing fit for Love.
There is no way Love will drop to the Vikings at No. 18, however. The most common projection of late has him landing with the Washington Commanders at No. 7, though ESPN’s Tim Hasselbeck noted on Tuesday’s edition of NFL Live that the Tennessee Titans at No. 4 and New York Giants at No. 5 could also come into play.
None of that bodes well for the Vikings, though Daniel Jeremiah of NFL Network pitched a trade idea at the outset of free agency, in which Minnesota moves up to No. 7 by sending Washington, bereft of draft assets and with several needs yet to address, multiple picks in return.
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GettyNotre Dame running back Jeremiyah Love.
Given Goessling’s report, Jeremiah’s trade pitch is worth revisiting less than one month out from draft night.
Washington … they do not have a second-round pick, they do not have a fourth-round pick, they only have six picks overall.
I think there’s a way Minnesota could get from 18 to 7 without even parting with next year’s [first-round pick]. They have two [third-rounders] this year, could be a second-round pick next year. If I told you next year the Minnesota Vikings have Kyler Murray at quarterback, Jeremiyah Love at running back, Jordan Addison and Justin Jefferson, would you sign up to watch that offense?
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GettyRunning back Jahmyr Gibbs of the Detroit Lions.
Forget just dropping from pick No. 7 to 18 in the first round, Washington is likely to want some extra capital simply for passing up on Love, who has drawn comparisons to dual-threat superstar running back Jahmyr Gibbs of the Detroit Lions.
In all likelihood, the Vikings would need to surrender both third-rounders this year and a second-round pick in 2027 as well as the No. 18 pick in a swap to get the Commanders to even consider a deal.
But that kind of offer should command Washington’s attention, no pun intended, given that they pick just twice in the top 146 selections in next month’s draft and entered the 2025 campaign with the oldest roster in the league.
Not only do those age issues increase the likelihood of injuries and precipitous declines among players at crucial positions, a lack of rookie contracts also makes an older team more expensive and top heavy with talent — rendering injury problems involving quality players, like the ones wide receiver Terry McLaurin battled last season, that much more damaging to a team’s win/loss outcomes.