Here we are guys, another big checkpoint in the NFL offseason. On Thursday, we have the NFL Draft upon us from KC. After the draft, things start to make more sense in the off-season timeline. But for now, we are left watching the betting favorites rise and fall and smoke screen tweets go crazy.
Everyone is trying to gain some type of leverage to move up or trade down within the draft. Whether it’s spreading false rumors or giving false interest in a player. It’s just the name of the game. Sometimes the moving works, sometimes it doesn’t. But many Vikings fans are left wondering: what will KOC and Kwesi do in the 1st round?
Position Of Need
In the typical draft process, there are typically 2 ways you go about drafting players: drafting for need, and drafting the Best Player Available. While I’m not here to have an argument on either route, there is some skepticism on what exactly the Vikings should do Thursday night. In his first go-round last year, Kwesi traded out of his picks twice with division rivals in key spots to gain more picks.
Pulling off his best Rick Spielman impression, the roster settled on more players than they originally planned. But none of those picks seemed to do any justice in the ’22 season. 1st round pick Lewis Cine had a hard time getting on the field before his horrific injury in London. Andrew Booth didn’t fare much better. And the guy that did play the most, RG Ed Ingram had a rough rookie season, backed up by bad PFF stats. So to say the pressure is on to have an impactful class is an understatement.
So, what exactly do the Vikings need? Well, a lot of positions could use some help. The CB room is still very thin after off-season departures. I think the front office would be well suited to pursue a move-up for one of the Top 3 darling corners (Witherspoon, Gonzalez, Porter Jr.) in this draft. WR is something you have to look at. Jaxson Smith-Njigba, Jordan Addison and Zay Flowers are all studs that would be amazing in purple and gold. And then there’s the argument for drafting a quarterback.
Guy of the Future
The elephant in the room is what to do at the Quarterback position. Kirk Cousins has been fantastic in his 5 seasons in purple, but he isn’t getting any younger or cheaper. Sooner or later, the Vikings will have to find their QB of the future and go all-in on a young man to lead the franchise. Making that happened is easier said than done.
The Vikings can’t just blow it up to solve the problem, they have to be smart about it. Recent history has shown; if you can bottom out and get a star at the top of the draft (Joe Burrow), trade up to get your guy (Patrick Mahomes), or get yourself a lottery ticket in the 2nd round (Jalen Hurts), you are in the green. But the Vikings are in the 20s on draft night, possess little capital to move up, and don’t own a 2nd round pick. For the Vikings to get what they want, they have to be extremely smart and lucky to end up with a guy that can take over once the Kirk era is over.
Hendon Hooker and Dorian Thompson-Robinson have been the bargain names paired up with the Vikings. But until it happens, no one knows exactly who the Vikings will settle on. And that’s part of the fun.
Professional Driver. Lover of all things sports. I once cut meat for Paul Allen and Mark Rosen. I talk on a podcast about men hugging each other aggressively.