Why not Hernandez?

[Irish Jim]

Anyone know why he wasn't selected?  I thought for sure we were going to take him.  Anyone have any info as to why we passed?

[Guest]

They did not visit with him which may or may not mean anything.  Last year I could not find any reports of them visiting with Cook either.

Hernandez is strictly a left guard having started 49 games there at UTEP.  He is more of a power type guard who will maul you.  I am not sure his movement skills were enough in this current system.  He only had 32" arms too.

There could be some pause based off the players he faced at UTEP.  Did he face any defensive linemen that are going to get drafted?  Maybe level of competition played a part in taking him in the 1st round.

If he is there in the middle to late part of the second round I could see them taking a shot then.

[Guest]

31 other teams passed on taking Hernandez in the first. I'm not saying he's not a good player but obviously the Vikings had him ranked lower on their draft board than they did Hughes. Hernandez will probably be one of the first guys picked tonight but if he's not a scheme fit for the Vikings it really doesn't matter.

[Guest]

Scheme fit, and what I mentioned in another thread is that I think passing on him and Williams means they have no intention of leaving Remmers at RT and will move him into Guard. There were zero 1st Round OT's available after Miller went to the Raiders at 15. I like Williams, but he also projects to guard in the NFL. You don't reach for a bad lineman. 

[Guest]

Fit is the only thing I can think of. He profiles as a big, gap blocking mauler, but when you watch him play, you see a dancing bear who can really get out and move. So I don't know. I'm sure the Vikings have done their homework and have identified linemen they like on day two. But it gets harder and harder as we go on...

[Guest]

@TBro said:
Scheme fit, and what I mentioned in another thread is that I think passing on him and Williams means they have no intention of leaving Remmers at RT and will move him into Guard. There were zero 1st Round OT's available after Miller went to the Raiders at 15. I like Williams, but he also projects to guard in the NFL. You don't reach for a bad lineman. 

You may be onto something there. Sure enough, there was a dog pile of good guards available when we took our dime back. If they do fully intend to move Remmers inside (and with 31 inch arms, that's probably a good idea), then the need is more focused on tackle. And you're right, there wasn't any value at tackle right there. 

[Guest]

thanks guys.  I liked Hernandez because of his nastiness, something I think the OL needs, but Hughes looks good.   I do hope we could land an excellent OG or OT in 2nd rd.  Maybe even Hernandez is we package stuff right...

[Guest]

To often I think we fall in love with a player at a perceived need and don't see a bigger picture.  This makes sense if Remmers is getting kicked inside as has been mentioned a fair amount lately.

[Guest]

Cultures for each team is different.  An elite O line has seldom been part of the team identity to say nothing of the quality depth required to provide for rotation and injury relief.  I think most fans recognize it but most are ok with it.The last two playoff games are good examples of the cost but the lesson was mostly wasted.  

In the July 2017 NFL review in Athlon magazine they identified the top 20 Guards, the top 20 OTs and the top 20 centers.  

It shouldnt be to suprising that there was not a single Viking on any of the lists.  

[Guest]

The strength of his game is his brute strength, not getting out on screens and pulling. We need that ability for this offense. Nothing more nefarious than that. Look at the OL we took - he is the opposite of Hernandez. O'Neill lacks strength but can run really move. It's just a scheme issue.