Vikings Free Agency: Five Wide Receivers Who Are Still Available

Following the trade of Stefon Diggs, the Vikings have a major need at wide receiver. After Adam Thielen, their best options are Bisi Johnson and Chad Beebe, so Rick Spielman will undoubtedly add several receivers before the 2020 season rolls around.

Much of the talk about where the Vikings will land new receivers has centered around the draft. This year's wide receiver class is incredibly deep and talented, so the Vikings should be able to find impact players in the early and/or middle rounds. But if they want someone who might contribute more right away, the Vikings could turn to free agency. The quality of the WR draft class has caused the FA market for receivers to be remarkably stagnant – only Randall Cobb and Emmanuel Sanders have signed noteworthy deals – so there are still plenty of solid players remaining.

Here are five wide receivers the Vikings could pursue in free agency.

Breshad Perriman (no longer available)

2019 stats: 36 catches, 645 yards, 6 TDs with Buccaneers | Age: 26

The 2015 first-round pick spent time with four different NFL teams in eight months from August 2018 to March 2019, and it seemed like his career might have been fizzling out. But Perriman finally broke through and was huge for Tampa Bay down the stretch last season, putting up 506 receiving yards and five touchdowns in the last five games of the year.

Perriman has outstanding speed – he ran two sub-4.3 second 40-yard dashes at his Pro Day in 2015 – which has helped him accrue a career average of 16.4 yards per catch. He could fill in for Diggs as Kirk Cousins' primary deep threat, but it's unclear if the Vikings would want to allocated $6-8 million annually to a receiver, given their lack of cap space. (Update: Perriman has signed a one-year, $8 million deal with the Jets, with $6 million guaranteed).

Robby Anderson (no longer available)

2019 stats: 52 catches, 779 yards, 5 TDs with Jets | Age: 26

Anderson and Perriman are in fairly similar situations, though Anderson's longer track record of production may make him more expensive. Both are talented, big-play threats at receiver who would likely have a more robust market in a year with a normal WR draft class.

But even though his price may be deflated slightly, Anderson will find a home. He's had at least 750 yards and five touchdowns in each of the past three years, despite catching passes from Sam Darnold and Josh McCown. He's averaged between 14 and 15 yards per catch in each of his four NFL seasons.

Of the two splash moves the Vikings could make at receiver, I'd guess Perriman is more realistic than Anderson. (Update: Anderson has signed a two-year, $20 million deal with the Panthers that pays him $12 million in 2020).

Taylor Gabriel

2019 stats: 29 catches, 353 yards, 4 TDs with Bears | Age: 29

If the Vikings don't want to commit significant money to one of the top two remaining receivers, they could look for a bargain deal for a veteran. Gabriel played in only nine games because of injury last season, but the shifty slot receiver has three seasons with at least 630 yards from scrimmage. He could be had for a low cost.

Demarcus Robinson

2019 stats: 32 catches, 449 yards, 4 TDs with Chiefs | Age: 25

Robinson is an intriguing option because of his age and the fact that he has eight touchdown catches over the past two years. But most of his 2019 production came on a 172-yard, two-touchdown explosion in Week 2, and it's worth questioning how valuable he would be catching passes from someone other than Patrick Mahomes.

Jarius Wright

2019 stats: 28 catches, 296 yards, 0 TDs with Panthers | Age: 30

Could the Vikings be interested in a reunion with Wright? He spent six seasons in Minnesota after being drafted in the fourth round in 2012, and has been solid in his last two years with the Panthers. He'd bring a lot of experience to the wide receiver room.

Other names to know: Tajae Sharpe, Chester Rogers, Paul Richardson, Geronimo Allison

Join the conversation at InsideTheVikings by clicking the follow button in the upper right-hand corner of this page, and follow @WillRagatz on Twitter.

Add us as a preferred source on Google