Vikings Need a Backup Plan for the Draft
“The Vikings will draft (insert guess here), and it will be the (best player available/player of need). Book it!” Famous last words of everyone on the Internet banging out mock drafts, trying to either just have some fun speculating or trying to be a “Temu” Mel Kiper Jr.
I go with the first option for myself, but I’m not going to stay quiet if I’m right! Hey, even the experts get it wrong from time to time, so why not brag a little when someone like me guesses right? Kevin O’Connell and the entire Vikings staff are going to take their best stab at players in just a few days.
Contingency Paths Could Tilt Minnesota’s Draft Strategy
No matter how sure many of us and the experts are that the Vikings are going to draft Dillon Thieneman if he’s there, it doesn’t mean they will or even have the opportunity to if a team ahead of them thinks highly of him or another team jumps ahead of them for the same reason.
What do the Vikings do if the player they covet in a position they’re looking to fill is gone? Just like last year’s offensive line and quarterback, they’re going to have to go to the backup. That doesn’t necessarily mean a different position at their pick, but a hole they need to plug somewhere in the draft with the next guy in line that they can snag.
Last year, many people thought the team might get a chance at Grey Zabel until the Seahawks took him as he moved up draft boards for every team. The Vikings did take a guard, Donovan Jackson, at 24, who is a solid starter and most fans are happy with.
With that solid pick last year, it filled a need and took that position off the board for a “need” pick. We also don’t have to wait as long this year (18) as last year (24), but some of the spots we need to fill are similar.
Hitting on these positions and finding a solid player doesn’t matter what round you get them in, but some obviously have better skills and pedigree than others, with less risk in football’s biggest guessing game. Once again, I’m going to be clear that the team is NOT settling for a player just because they didn’t get the cream of the crop, but rather players similar to the consensus best player to choose at pick 18 in the draft.
Want: Safety – Dillon Thieneman (Oregon)
Draft: Cole Wisniewski (Texas Tech)
Let’s get this out of the way right off the bat. The Vikings need a smart, versatile safety to run Brian Flores’ scheme who can see the entire field and set the defense on the back end. Harrison Smith may come back for one more year, but the future may be now.
Thieneman was seen as a 2nd round pick for quite a while until he started gaining steam based on film and shot up boards. If he gets out of the Vikings’ reach, they may need to see who else is available at a different position and fill that role, and save safety for later. Emmanuel McNeil-Warren is also in that vicinity to be picked at 18, but he seems to jump between the 1st Round and the 2nd on most experts’ opinions.
That may be a scenario where they trade back and get better value for the position. If they go a different position, they may take Wisniewski in the later rounds. He was a combine snub but has been on several Top-30 visits, including one with Minnesota. Maybe like Thieneman, he’s a player who was overlooked, and teams see him as a late-round steal based on the tape.
He’s bigger than Smith and Thieneman, at 6’3″and 219 pounds. In North Dakota, he had 8 interceptions two years ago that didn’t necessarily translate to Texas Tech, but he held his own in the tackling department. If Smith grinds out one last year, he would be a great person to bring along the younger talent.
Want: DT – Kayden McDonald (Ohio State)
Draft: Domonique Orange (Iowa State)
They’re not “The Purple People Eaters” or even “The Wiliams Wall,” but the interior is pretty solid due to great late-round drafting and going outside of the league. Levi Drake Rodriguez has become a solid interior run defender with strong push, and Jalen Redmond is set to become a well-known NFL name for his ability to sack quarterbacks and make tackles in the backfield.
Taki Taimani and Tyrion Ingram-Dawkins are great rotational players who splashed last year at times. The Vikings need a big man who makes it tough to move the line of scrimmage. McDonald should be there at 18, along with Clemson’s Peter Woods, but they should also be available later in the 1st, if not at the beginning of the 2nd.
If they trade back to snag one and miss out, they have a guy later in round 3 or 4 in Orange, also known as “Big Citrus”. That’s a fun nickname! More than that, he can plug the middle and absorb double teams, which should free up everyone else to mind gaps and rush the passer. He doesn’t have pass-rush upside, but who cares if teams get so one-dimensional and frustrated because they can’t run on them?
He is truly a player the Vikings might be targeting later in the draft, no matter what happens earlier on, and they can get him in, possibly even in the 5th round, if they don’t move back up into the 4th.
Want: C – Sam Hecht (Kansas)
Draft: Jake Slaughter (Florida)
2026 is not a strong year for centers. There isn’t one seen as a 1st-round pick, and maybe not even one in the 2nd. Sam Hect is a solid technician at the position and doesn’t come with any injury baggage like Connor Lew from Auburn. Hecht could be snagged in the 3rd round or beyond, and no one would blink an eye.
Blake Brandel jumped in mid-season and was pretty solid at the position, with Michael Jurgens playing well when given the chance. If they want a true center, they may take Hecht and have him compete with the others, or give him time to develop. If they go a different direction or he gets snagged before they pick, the team could look to Slaughter.
The top three centers are ranked very similarly, and some say they could go in any order depending on team schemes. If the run doesn’t start until late, the team could steal one in the 6th or 7th Round, where, if they quickly develop into a starter, the team could look like drafting wizards. They could realistically think they already have the position covered, but competition is never a bad thing for a team or its players.
Want: RB – Jeremiyah Love (Notre Dame)
Draft: Emmett Johnson (Nebraska)
I never say never, but the chances of getting Love in the natural progression of the draft or by trading up are becoming less than 5% at this point if the experts are reading the tea leaves correctly. Love is generational, and the drop-off to the next level is significant, including his main backup, Jadarian Price. Why didn’t I name him?
He should be available at the 49th pick and maybe even in the 3rd at picks 82 and 97. I don’t think he fits the team scheme at this point for the type of player they need. Aaron Jones is getting old by running-back standards, and Jordan Mason is better known as a power back. Johnson is the quick twitch, make a cut, or even three, and get loose for a long run.
He’s not going to bowl people over. He’s going to outmaneuver them and leave them grasping at air. He had a great number coming out of Nebraska, both on the ground and through the air. Having a threat coming out of the backfield where teams have to keep an eye on Jefferson, Addison, and TJ Hockenson can open up underneath routes for a speedy, shifty guy like Johnson to cause major damage catching or on delayed handoffs.
He gives Kyler Murray or J.J. McCarthy a great option to check down to or use in run/pass option plays. Being from Minneapolis and a Vikings fan who recently said the team better draft him or pay for it for the next ten years is a nice sense of professional confidence that teams appreciate when you can back it up.
Those who remember having David Palmer as a change-of-pace running back will appreciate a player like Johnson, who makes the offense that much more dangerous. He needs to improve his pass protection if he wants to be a serious rotational player or starter, as O’Connell covets that skill.
Want: CB – Mansoor Delane (LSU)
Draft: Chris Johnson (San Diego State)
Delane may be a target of the team, and he could reach them naturally, or the Vikings could trade up if it’s just a few picks. Let’s say he’s gone, and the other corner choices don’t fit Flores’ scheme. They decide they can find a player in the 2nd Round, and that player is Johnson.
He is a bigger corner, which Flores likes in his system. At 6’0″ and 193 pounds, he fits the bill and is a solid tackler, which means runners don’t get far, and receivers either get the pass knocked away or are stopped in their tracks. Getting him at 49 in the 2nd Round might be tough, but if he’s there, he might be the best player available.
Last year, the team flirted with having only two viable starters, and the backups were either flops or questionable if they had to start regularly due to injury. They made it through unscathed, but they need an infusion of youth and true depth to lean on. Johnson can be that guy and should be able to play inside or outside when needed. They can’t risk it a second year, hoping no major injuries happen and there’s a big drop-off.
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