Rick Spileman is doing his part to silence speculation that wide receiver Stefon Diggs could be traded.
Speaking Tuesday at the NFL Combine in Indianapolis, Spielman applauded Diggs’ 2019 season and said there is “no reason” to think Diggs could be traded this offseason.
“Stefon last year had probably his most productive year. He’s a young receiver we just extended, and he’s a major part of our offense,” said Spielman when asked specifically about Diggs’ happiness with the team.
“There is no reason, the rumors or whatever you’re talking about, to anticipate that Stefon Diggs is not going to be a Minnesota Viking.”
Sound familiar? It’s nearly identical to what Spielman said about wide receiver Percy Harvin in February 2013. The Vikings traded Harvin to the Seahawks less than a month later.
“Percy Harvin is under contract and we expect him, just like all of our players under contract, to be here,” Spielman said then, adding that “there is no intent to trade Percy Harvin.”
The difference, however, is that Harvin was in the final year of his contract while Diggs has four years remaining on the five-year, $72 million deal he signed last year.
All that said, talking head Colin Cowherd said recently that Diggs is not happy in Minnesota and that the Vikings are open to shopping him for the “right pick” in the NFL Draft.
“Minnesota’s looking to move off him for the right pick. They are,” Cowherd said.
Meanwhile, running back Dalvin Cook is entering the final year of his rookie deal with the Vikings. Spielman suggested that contract talks could begin after the NFL Draft in April.
“Usually we do not look at extensions until we get through the draft,” he said. “I consider Dalvin in one of those core group of players that we definitely want to try to keep.”
