PFF Circles Key Vikings Defender for the Trade Block

As we head towards training camp, Pro Football Focus put out an article listing 15 names they believed could be trade candidates. According to them, there could be a big Vikings trade around the corner, with one of the team’s key defenders on his way out.

Cashman Fits the Vikings’ Defensive Timeline, but PFF Disagrees

When I opened the PFF article, I had to admit I wasn’t expecting Blake Cashman’s name to pop up, but there he was. Among the 15 names, the Vikings’ middle linebacker and green dot guy was named. Minnesota wanting to trade their main communicator and the cog in the middle that makes everything else turn didn’t make sense to me, but here is the rationale for PFF’s thinking.

Once the centerpiece of Minnesota’s fabulous defense, Cashman could be on the move after a down year.In 2025, Cashman didn’t look like the strong linebacker of the last two years.

His overall PFF grade dipped from 72.0 to 63.6, punctuated by his 48.6 PFF coverage grade. Nevertheless, he was good as a downhill player with a 7.7% run stop rate and a 5.3% missed tackle clip.In light of

Advertisement

Cashman’s decline as well as this being the final year of his contract, the Vikings drafted linebacker Jake Golday in the second round as well as extended Eric Wilson. That suggests that either he or Ivan Pace Jr. could have their days numbered in purple.

There are some valid points here. Cashman did have a down year; he is now 30 years old and in the last year of his contract. However, they fail to mention that he suffered a hamstring injury in Week 1 against the Chicago Bears, which severely hampered his start.

He didn’t return to full involvement until Week 8. He looked more like his old self by the end of the season, with 2 sacks and 2 tackles for loss in the final two games of the season. Coverage has never been Cashman’s strength, but it’s fair to say he didn’t have the best year in that department.

Will the Vikings Trade Blake Cashman?

Cashman is one of the Vikings’ best players, and I just don’t foresee the Vikings shopping him around. It would leave Minnesota very short at linebacker, with Cashman clearly a level above the others at his position right now. Eric Wilson did well as a rusher last season in Brian Flores’ defense, but I wouldn’t be confident of him taking on Cashman’s role on the defense.

Ivan Pace’s stock has been falling since his breakthrough as an undrafted rookie. He lost his starting place to Wilson last year and didn’t look close to being ready to take over from Cashman. Maybe Jake Golday can come in and take over straight away, but we are a long way off knowing that right now. The plan could be that the Vikings want their second-round rookie to take over next year, but Golday and Cashman playing together would be preferable to me.

Will the Vikings trade Cashman? I don’t know for sure that they won’t, but I would be very surprised if it’s even under consideration right now. The Minnesota native should be staying home at least for 2026.

Proud UK Viking. Family Man. Enjoy writing about my team. Away from football an advocate for autism acceptance.