Vikings 1st Round Provides Excitement
Ted Schwerzler
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The Minnesota Vikings had one of the worst defenses across the NFL last season. That led to the firing of coordinator Ed Donatell. Now with Brian Flores in charge, an overhaul could happen, but it doesn’t need to be in the 1st round of the upcoming draft. The offensive skill position intrigue provides excitement, unlike anything we have seen recently.
Last year, Kwesi Adofo-Mensah used his first draft pick as general manager on safety Lewis Cine. It was an understandable pick in that Harrison Smith is not getting younger, and the Minnesota secondary needed substantial help. Without beefing up the cornerback position, Cine was viewed as someone that could help over the top.
Vikings 1st Round Provides Excitement
This year, Adofo-Mensah could provide Brian Flores with a cornerback for the thin room on defense, or he could opt to find someone up front between the edges on defense. Plenty of talk has been made about the quarterback position, though, and Justin Jefferson still needs his running mate.
The NFL draft does not just play out on Madden; you can’t simply draft whatever exciting skill position player is out there. For a team that needs to find Kirk Cousins’ replacement and someone else to get the ball, too, having both quarterback and wide receiver in play represents an exciting opportunity.
Minnesota last drafted a skill position player in 2020 when Justin Jefferson got past the Philadelphia Eagles and landed in the Vikings laps. He has since gone on to become among the best wide receivers in the NFL, and while there was plenty of promise at the time, he’s exceeded all expectations. They have not taken a first-round quarterback since grabbing Teddy Bridgewater in 2014, and his catastrophic knee injury completely altered his career trajectory.
Plenty of teams take shots at the quarterback position, knowing that getting one on a rookie deal allows so much roster flexibility. Reaching for Christian Ponder was always a losing proposition, and Bridgewater may not have been much more than an average talent anyways. For the Vikings to take the next step post-Cousins, securing someone like Anthony Richardson could help to get them there.
Plenty of things will be in play for the Vikings this month, but having the possibility to make a huge splash and trade for their guy is among them. This quarterback class is exciting, and finding a step up from Adam Thielen could also be great. Not knowing how it will shake out, this is among the better drafts in a while to be a Minnesota fan.
Ted Schwerzler is a blogger from the Twin Cities that is focused on all things Minnesota Twins and Minnesota Vikings. He’s active on Twitter and writes weekly for Twins Daily. As a former college athlete and avid sports fan, covering our pro teams with a passion has always seemed like such a natural outlet.
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