Vikings Grab That Freak Athlete in Daniel Jeremiah’s Latest Mock Draft
Dustin Baker
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After the Minnesota Vikings nabbed Za’Darius Smith from the Green Bay Packers via free agency on Tuesday, the team must be steadily focused on a 1st-Round cornerback to fill out the coming-of-age roster, right?
Not according to NFL.com’s Daniel Jeremiah, who dropped his third mock draft of this cycle. Jeremiah plopped a player on the Vikings at a position they’re actually quite deep — the interior defensive line.
His name is Jordan Davis, and he’s the man who lit up the NFL Combine with unadulterated freakishness. Yes, that guy.
He’s the rookie with these specs:
Davis is 340+ pounds and moves like this:
The Vikings don’t need a defensive tackle — they released Michael Pierce because the roster had too many DTs and due to expense — but Davis at #12 might be irresistible. Especially for those aligning with the best player available philosophy inside NFL drafts.
Jeremiah briefly explained his choice of Davis to the Vikings:
“Davis is a dominant run defender with plenty of untapped potential as a pass rusher. (You saw what the 6-foot-6, 341-pounder did at the NFL Scouting Combine, right?)”
– Daniel Jeremiah | NFL.com
Ironically, Jeremiah’s lastest mock hit right around the time Za’Daruis Smith signed on the dotted line for Minnesota. Therefore, in the next edition, Jeremiah could pivot back to a cornerback selection like Ahmad Gardner or Derek Stingley Jr. It all depends on whether he believes the Vikings would remain faithful to best player available or cave because the CB portion of the roster is peanuts.
In any event, few would lament the selection of Davis. His athleticism is reminiscent of Warren Sapp and Aaron Donald, at least per an eye test. Of course, those are humongous shoes to fill, but you get the drift on the idea of drafting a freakishly-talented defensive tackle who can terrorize quarterbacks.
Jeremiah’s mock draft is also one of the first notable instances of Davis linked to the Vikings. In previous draft forecasts, the Vikings either select a corner, choose an EDGE rusher, or take a stab at Malik Willis.
Minnesota can make this Davis choice a no-brainer if it finds some money to sign cornerbacks in free agency. Otherwise, that will remain a vividly glaring need on the roster until remedied. Thankfully, Davante Adams and Allen Robinson left the division last week, so some anxiety subsided.
If Davis is the pick by the Vikings, he’d be the first University of Georgia alumnus selected by the franchise since 2012.
And that was Blair Walsh.
Dustin Baker is a political scientist who graduated from the University of Minnesota in 2007. His YouTube Channel, VikesNow, debuts in March 2022. He hosts a podcast with Bryant McKinnie, which airs every Wednesday with Raun Sawh and Sally from Minneapolis. His Viking fandom dates back to 1996. Listed guilty pleasures: Peanut Butter Ice Cream, ‘The Sopranos,’ and The Doors (the band).
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