Peter King likes the Mike Hughes trade — for the Chiefs
- Oops!Something went wrong.Please try again later.
It’s safe to say Mike Hughes did not work out in Minnesota.
A former first-round pick, Hughes struggled with durability and overall consistency in coverage.
This offseason, Hughes’ long-term future with the team came into doubt, when Minnesota opted not to pick up his fifth-year option. It should be pointed out, though, that accepting the fifth-year option for Hughes would have been very surprising.
The Vikings finally said goodbye to Hughes, shipping him off to the Chiefs for a late-round pick swap. Peter King of Pro Football Talk likes this trade, but not for Minnesota.
“I think I really like the low-cost deal Kansas City GM Brett Veach made for injury-plagued Minnesota cornerback Mike Hughes, King wrote. “The Vikings traded Hughes plus their seventh-round pick in 2022 to KC for a sixth-round pick in 2022. Hughes was the 30th pick overall in 2018, the third cornerback selected. Look at the trade this way, using 2021 draft numbers. The Vikings moved up from the 242nd overall pick (in 2021 draft numbers) to 215th overall. GMs will tell you that, when you get to this point of the draft, the pick you’d have made at 215 will still be available at 242 maybe half the time. So the Chiefs take a one-year flyer on Hughes, and if he’s good, he becomes part of their corner rotation and maybe finds a home. There is no downside. Nice deal for KC.”
I can see how, from the Chiefs’ perspective, this trade could work out. That said, from the Vikings’ vantage, it makes sense that the team would move on from arguably its fifth-best cornerback. Given his injury history, Hughes might not have even made the final roster had he stayed, especially if the Vikings prefer certain more inexperienced players over him.
