The Arizona Cardinals have already made one trade this offseason involving an offensive lineman and they doubled that total on Thursday when they made a deal with the Minnesota Vikings.
Under terms of the trade, the Cardinals will be shipping offensive lineman Mason Cole to the Vikings and in return, Minnesota will be sending a 2021 sixth-round pick to Arizona (223rd overall pick). The Vikings only owned the pick for roughly two weeks before trading it and that's because they were awarded it on March 10 as part of the NFL's compensatory formula. Thanks to the deal, the Cardinals now have six total picks in the draft and three of the final 38.
The fact that the Cardinals were willing to deal Cole isn't that huge of a surprise. Although he started 14 games at center for them last season, he became expendable last week after the Cardinals added Pro Bowl center Rodney Hudson in a trade with the Raiders.
Cole started his career in 2018 when the Cardinals made him a third-round pick and during his three years with the team, he started in 32 of the 46 games that he played in.
Although Cole spent most of his time playing center in Arizona, he almost certainly won't be playing that position in Minnesota. The Vikings have Garrett Bradbury at center and he'll likely be sticking there. However, the rest of the offensive line is kind of in flux right now. Not only did the Vikings release left tackle Riley Reiff this offseason -- he signed with the Bengals -- but the team's starting left guard from 2020, Dakota Dozier, is currently a free agent. If Dozier doesn't return, it's possible Cole will end up as a starting guard, which wouldn't be a completely unfamiliar spot since he started two games at guard during his time in Arizona. If Dozier does return, it's also possible that the Vikings will simply use Cole as depth on the offensive line.
No matter what happens, Cole is a solid addition for a Vikings team that needed offensive line help.
