With an NFL expansion draft possible in the near future, here's who the Minnesota Vikings could leave unprotected

How would the Vikings handle a potential expansion draft? That's a very interesting discussion, and something that our own Wendell Ferreira is exploring by building a mock franchise and going through over the next few weeks.

Being that we have 90-man rosters, Ferreira is going at things a little bit differently. Here are the rules for an expansion draft:

1. Each current NFL team has to leave 12 players unprotected.,
2. ⁠Players with 0 or 1 accrued seasons are automatically protected and can't be on the list. Players with no-trade clauses can't be added either.,
3. ⁠If the player is taken, the expansion team will absorb both his future salaries and signing bonus prorations, so it can be a useful tool to unload veteran contracts. You can add on the unprotected list the worst possible players and/or some bad contracts, use strategy here.,
4. ⁠The list is final, meaning that teams can't withdraw a player after another one has been selected.,
5. ⁠The expansion team can get a maximum of two players from each NFL team, and a maximum of 40 players.

Who would the Vikings have available to be selected? There are a lot of potential options, with some of them being obvious selections either to make available or keep protected.

• WR Jordan Addison
• DT Jonathan Allen
• ILB Brian Asamoah II
• DL Travis Bell
• CB Mekhi Blackmon
• OL Blake Brandel
• ILB Blake Cashman
• RB Ty Chandler
• LT Christian Darrisaw
• LS Andrew DePaola
• RG Will Fries
• CB Kahlef Hallassie
• FB C.J. Ham
• DT Javon Hargrave
• DL Jonathan Harris
• TE T.J. Hockenson
• QB Sam Howell
• S Theo Jackson
• WR Justin Jefferson
• RB Aaron Jones
• WR Tim Jones
• C Ryan Kelly
• RB Jordan Mason
• S Josh Metellus
• WR Rondale Moore
• CB Byron Murphy Jr.
• WR Jalen Nailor
• RT Brian O’Neill
• CB Jeff Okudah
• TE Josh Oliver
• ILB Ivan Pace Jr.
• DT Harrison Phillips
• CB Isaiah Rodgers
• QB Brett Rypien
• OT Justin Skule
• S Harrison Smith
• CB Ambry Thomas
• CB Tavierre Thomas
• OLB Andrew Van Ginkel
• S Jay Ward
• OT Leroy Watson IV
• ILB Eric Wilson
• P Ryan Wright

When taking a look at who they could leave unprotected, the Vikings are in a good spot. They don't have to put anyone at risk who will be a major contributor, and arguably nobody who would make a major impact on the Vikings' 2025 season.

Vikings offensive players unprotected 

• RB Ty Chandler
• WR Rondale Moore
• WR Tim Jones
• QB Brett Rypien
• OT Leroy Watson IV

Vikings defensive players unprotected

• ILB Brian Asamoah II
• DT Travis Bell
• CB Kahlef Hallassie
• DL Jonathan Harris
• CB Ambry Thomas
• CB Tavierre Thomas
• P Ryan Wright

One element the Vikings can't take advantage of is trying to dump a bad contract. Right now, the Vikings don't have any bad contracts on their books to try and dump, as it's been a classic move for teams to do in previous expansion drafts.

Having three cornerbacks on the list is interesting, but all three players are on one-year deals and all of them may not make the team.

Who will Ferreira end up selecting from the Vikings? We will have the answer next week, and don't be surprised if it's on defense.