Supafreak84's Mock Draft (Quarantine Edition

[supafreak84]

I am just going to preface this mock draft by projecting the Vikings roll the dice and sign Robert Nkemdiche on a one year prove it deal, similar to what they did with Sheldon Richardson.  I believe Nkemdiche has that same type of ability and can be an impact player when focused and motivated. Would love to see what Zimmer and Patterson could get out of him. 


With that said:


1 (22) Justin Jefferson, WR LSU-  I'm not completely sold he makes it this far but if he does this would be a tremendous pick for the Vikings.  6'1"/205 ran 4.44 at the combine and blew it up for the National Champions this year.  Chris Simms thinks Jefferson is the "better Jerry Jeudy" and Daniel Jeremiah has him ranked 14th in his top 50 and compares him to Keenan Allen.  I see Deandre Hopkins when I watch him.  Crisp route runner with great hands that catches everything.  The Vikings can not allow teams to crowd the box to stop Dalvin Cook without keeping them honest. Jefferson is a big play threat that would compliment Adam Thielen very well and give Cousins another weapon in the passing game. Day 1 starter.



1 (25) AJ Terrell, CB Clemson-  This is a Mike Zimmer type cornerback and would fill a huge need for a team that lost their entire nickel package this offseason. Started a ton of games for Clemson and is well schooled and tough.  Not afraid to come up and lay someone out against the run.  Long (6'1"/195) and fast (4.42).  Day 1 starter opposite Mike Hughes.



2 (58) Shane Lemieux, G Oregon- Started 52 consecutive games at left guard for Oregon. Nice size (6'4"/310) who can anchor and is an athlete who can pull in the running game.  Great fit in Minnesota's zone blocking scheme. Day 1 starter.



3 (89) Bradley Anae, DE Utah- Super productive captain in Utah.  21 sacks over the last two seasons.  Great hands and Senior Bowl week.  Not as explosive or twitchy as some had hoped at the combine.  A little undersized but has a non stop motor.



3 (105) Bryce Hall, CB Virginia- Vikings will continue to replenish their losses at CB.  Hall is another guy that has the size and length Zimmer covets (6'1" 202).  Some questions about his long speed but started a lot of games in Virginia and is very tough.  Did not run at the Combine as he was still recovering from an ankle injury that cost him most of his senior season. 



4 (132) Thaddeus Moss, TE LSU-  Randy's son so this pick definitely has some hometown flavor.  The Vikings have a depth need at the position after the release of David Morgan.  Moss was a transfer from NC State who really put together a nice year for LSU.  A little undersized but finds a way to get open and has great hands.  Unable to workout at the combine.  Reminds me a lot of former Viking Jermaine Wiggins. 



5 (155) Netane Muti, G Fresno State- Opinions are all over the board on this guy due to injury, and he could go anywhere from the second round to undrafted.  When healthy is super nasty and has some of the best tape I've seen.  Absolute finisher and drops defenders. Put up a Combine best 44 reps on the bench. Played some tackle and guard for Fresno State. Has ruptured his achillies and had a linsfrac foot injury that finished his season early last year.  Medical will be big on Muti but he could be an absolute steal. 



6 (205) Rodrigo Blankenship, K Georgia- For no other reason then this is a typical Spielman pick who always values competition on special teams and the potential cheaper option. Blankenship is one of the top kickers in this draft and doubles as a kickoff specialist



6 (207) Steven Montez, QB Colorado- I really like this kid.  Big athlete that will stand in the pocket and deliver the football. Has a lot of Big Ben type traits in that regard. Accurate (63%) and dropped a lot of dimes on those Laviska Shenault highlight reels. I'm not big on our depth behind Cousins and Montez will come in and compete for a roster spot.



7 (219) Alohi Gilman, S Notre Dame- Undersized, but feisty and will come up and hit. Should be an immediate contributor on special teams. 



7 (249) Stanford Samuels, CB/S Florida State- Another tall, long cornerback in the Zimmer mold. A bit up and down and ran slow at the Combine (4.66).  Might have to move to safety at the next level.



7 (253) Darion Daniels, DT Nebraska- Developmental nose tackle prospect

[Guest]

Acquiring JJ would actually get me excited about Vikings football again. I just cant see him falling that far. I think we need to acquire an OT somewhere along the line too.

It will be interesting to see how the Vikings stacked the WR's vs OL, DL and DB's available. 

THX for taking the time and effort! 

[Guest]

Great job! Love the Jefferson pick. I think he's got more upside to be a WR1 than Ruggs. Agree that he might not be there @ 22.

Something about Terrell makes my spidey senses tingle but I am maybe completely alone with that take so it's hard to criticize the pick with 3T addressed via your FA suggestion. 

Is 58 high for Lemieux? Maybe, hard to quibble with it otherwise. Like, like, like the Anae pick as a sub for All Vowels. 

The Hall pick is fantastic at that point. Some still have him going in the first, though less now. Moss....meh. Not really replacing Morgan's skillset. The move makes sense if Rudy goes.

Muti to me is akin to Hall. I've seen as high as the second, think that was on Walters. But like Hall there are big medical questions that just can't get answered in this current situation that could cause guys to fall, and some of them could fall significantly. 

Should Minnesota carry two Kickers? I don't mind the pick because Jimmy has convinced me that the change in holders is the real reason behind the change in fortunes for Bailey. But say he loses out to Rodrigo, who's a bit of a character in a good way. Would there be any savings from letting Dan go? Team's in rebuild mode so I'd like to see every Roster spot maximized in order to have the most chances to find the right kids to plug all the holes. That's why I wouldn't carry 2 kickers.

Montez is nice accept my autocorrect wants to type Montezuma lol. Gilman and Samuels is sneaky smart. I have both rated ahead of where Kearse was when he came out. Neither has his freakish athletic upside, but they just consistently make plays. And yes, I definitely would look at Samuels at Safety as well as Corner, though he might surprise at CB. Daniels makes sense. 

What I think I like the most about your mock, other than seeing you back and posting regularly again, is how well you value-shopped for players with nice upside coming off injuries. Both Hall and Muti have Pro Bowl ceilings. And who cares if they need to redshirt a bit?

This team isn't going to plug every single hole with Rookies and first time Starters in a single offseason. I'm seeing too many mocks trying to plug every single hole with the net result being a lot of 'safe' players, decently high floors, not that great of ceilings. 

Personally, I'd trade up and grab a Blue Chipper. Gives you the highest percentage chance of plugging one hole for the foreseeable future. But you're getting one with Jefferson without even having to trade up. And your taking chances on guys with big upside that are unfortunate victims of the current situation. 

Well done, sir. Well done indeed.

[Guest]

I think you are going to see three receivers come off the board in the early teens. Oakland at 12, San Francisco at 13, and Denver at 15 all have huge WR needs and I think you are looking at some combo of Lamb, Jeudy, and Ruggs. I think the teams to be worried about after that are Dallas at 17 (although defense makes a ton of sense there) and Philadelphia at 21. The Vikings might need to get aggressive to move ahead of these teams if they fall in love with Jefferson or another WR. 

[Guest]

My post draft Vikings roster:

QB: Cousins, Mannion, Montez
RB: Cook, Mattison Abdullah
FB: Ham
WR: Thielen, Jefferson, Sharpe, Johnson, Mitchell
TE: Rudolph, Smith, Moss
LT: Reiff, Hill
LG: Lemieux, Elflein
C: Bradbury, Jones
RG: Samia, Muti, Dozier
RT: O'Neill, Udoh


DE: Hunter, Odenigbo, Zettel, Anae
NT: Pierce, Stephen
DT: Nkemdiche, Johnson, Watts, Mata'afa

LB: Barr, Kendricks, Wilson, Gedeon, Smith

CB: Hughes, Terrell, Hall, Hill, Boyd

S: Smith, Harris, Gilman, Samuels


K: Bailey

P: Colquitt

[Guest]

First two picks are gold. Lemieux and Anae seem a little high. Love the Hall pick but only because you already took Terrell. I have a feeling he won't be ready for training camp. Moss, Muti...a lot to like. 

[Guest]

Is this a prediction of what you think the Vikings will do or is it what you will do?

Drafting a kicker after giving Bailey a 3 year 10 mil deal with a 3.15 mil signing bonus is beyond stupid.  There is no justification.  There should be no competition. 

If they release Bailey prior to June 1st they take an extra 2.1 mil cap hit. Seeing how there probably wont be any OTAs, mini-camps, etc. before June 1st and that it is unknown if the NFL will move that date, a post June 1 release would move that 2.1 mil dead money cap hit to 2021.

I do not see them drafting a tight end unless they have soured on Conklin. I hope they are not going to carry 4 tight ends this year but who knows.

I think a fast linebacker is necessary (and there were plenty in this draft) because Gedeon and Smith are not too impressive.

[Guest]

If Jefferson make is to #22 there is no way they can pass on him, he checks a lot of the boxes they're looking for. I also think in a normal draft class he's easily a top-15 pick so its good value. Terrell I am higher on than most, but the hitch in his hips gives me some pause. LSU completely exploited his ability to get around and he never had an opportunity to prove that was technique based. 

Really like Anae but could go either way on Lemieux. Rest of the draft does a nice way of filling in depth. The kicker pick made me chuckle but figure its more in jest. If you swap that pick for a high-end kick returner I would be very happy with this draft class. 

[Guest]

@MarkSP18 said:
Is this a prediction of what you think the Vikings will do or is it what you will do?

Drafting a kicker after giving Bailey a 3 year 10 mil deal with a 3.15 mil signing bonus is beyond stupid.  There is no justification.  There should be no competition. 

If they release Bailey prior to June 1st they take an extra 2.1 mil cap hit. Seeing how there probably wont be any OTAs, mini-camps, etc. before June 1st and that it is unknown if the NFL will move that date, a post June 1 release would move that 2.1 mil dead money cap hit to 2021.

I do not see them drafting a tight end unless they have soured on Conklin. I hope they are not going to carry 4 tight ends this year but who knows.

I think a fast linebacker is necessary (and there were plenty in this draft) because Gedeon and Smith are not too impressive.

It's a prediction of what I could see the Vikings do based on history. 

Conklin has not impressed to date and I think he could get bumped. 

[Guest]

@"Geoff Nichols" said:
If Jefferson make is to #22 there is no way they can pass on him, he checks a lot of the boxes they're looking for. I also think in a normal draft class he's easily a top-15 pick so its good value. Terrell I am higher on than most, but the hitch in his hips gives me some pause. LSU completely exploited his ability to get around and he never had an opportunity to prove that was technique based. 

Really like Anae but could go either way on Lemieux. Rest of the draft does a nice way of filling in depth. The kicker pick made me chuckle but figure its more in jest. If you swap that pick for a high-end kick returner I would be very happy with this draft class. 

Just looking at how the draft could fall I think either Jefferson or Ruggs might be in our wheelhouse at #22, even if that means jumping up a few spots to secure them. Agree in a normal draft we would not have a chance at these type of players.

Terrell did have a rough National Championship game but Burrow, Jefferson, and Chase (who will be a top 5 pick next year) gave a lot of defenders rough nights last year. I still love his toughness, physical skill set, and he did have a great National Championship game the year prior against Alabama.