Vikings mock draft roundup: Three weeks to go, a myriad of possibilities
Pro Days are over so we're back with our third mock draft roundup for the Vikings, a comprehensive look at who analysts think Minnesota will select in this year's NFL Draft.
The short answer: It's hard to say.
With the Vikings not owning a first-round pick it makes the projection harder (and also there are fewer of them since most mocks only do a first round).
Have things changed from our previous roundup?
Well, where in the past two mock roundups (First | Second) we saw a propensity of offensive linemen being predicted for Minnesota in the second round, that has changed here in our third roundup.
While some still tag the Vikings help up front, plenty of others are slotting Minnesota with a defensive player or even someone who plays an offensive skill position.
We'll take one more look at the mocks right before the draft. Until then, here’s the third roundup of mock drafts from around web.
Oh, and I dare you to find a more complete list anywhere on the internet (mocks listed in order of most recent to oldest and if we used a mock before the pick from the last edition is noted; any mocks from before March 29 are not included as we try to keep things somewhat current):
Matt Miller of Bleacher Report (April 7): Marcus Maye, S, Florida. Previously: Cam Robinson, OT, Alabama.
Kevin Hanson of EDSfootball.com (April 7): Round 2 -- Caleb Brantley, DT, Florida; Round 3a -- Derek Rivers, DE/OLB, Youngstown State; Round 3b -- Cooper Kupp, WR, Eastern Washington.
Dieter Kurtenbach of FOXSports.com (April 6) Round 2 -- Dan Feeney, G, Indiana; Round 3a -- Kareem Hunt, RB, Toledo; Round 3b -- KD Cannon, WR, Baylor; Round 4a -- Anthony Walker, ILB, Northwestern; Round 4b -- Malachi Dupre, WR, LSU. Previously (2 rounds): Feeney.
Eddie Brown of the San Diego Union-Tribune (April 6): Round 2 -- T.J. Watt, OLB, Wisconsin. Previously (4 rounds): Round 2 -- Dorian Johnson, OG, Pittsburgh; Round 3a -- Chris Wormley, DT, Michigan; Round 3b -- Chris Godwin, WR, Penn State; Round 4a -- D'Onta Foreman, RB, Texas; Round 4b -- Tanoh Kpassagnon, DE, Villanova.
Charlie Campbell of WalterFootball.com (April 6): Round 2 - D'Onta Foreman, RB, Texas; Round 3a -- Ethan Pocic, C, LSU; Round 3b -- Cooper Kupp, WR, Eastern Washington; Round 4a -- Jordan Morgan, OG, Kutztown; Round 4b -- Shaquil Grififn, CB, UCF. Previously : Round 2 -- Dan Feeney, OG, Indiana; Round 3a -- Pocic; Round 3b -- Jamaal Williams, RB, BYU; Round 4a --David Sharpe, OT, Florida; Round 4b --Travin Dural, WR, LSU.
The NFL Draft Guru (April 6): Round 2 -- Ryan Anderson, ILB, Alabama.
Mel Kiper Jr. and Todd McShay of ESPN Insider (April 5): Round 2 -- Kiper: JuJu Smith-Schuster, WR, USC. "The Vikings got only one catch out of their first-round pick from last year (Laquon Treadwell), and so they could use another wideout. Smith-Schuster had an inconsistent season, but he has No. 1 potential. He had 20 touchdowns the past two seasons."; McShay: Caleb Brantley, DT, Florida. "A highly disruptive interior run defender, Brandley posted 16 total tackles for loss the past two seasons. He also showed more flashes as a pass-rusher than his 5.5 sacks since 2015 would suggest."
Walter Cherepinsky of WalterFootball.com (April 5): Round 2 -- Caleb Brantley, DT, Florida; Round 3a -- D'Onta Foreman, RB, Texas; Round 3b -- Ethan Pocic, C/G, LSU; Round 4a -- Keiona Davis, DE, UT-Chattanooga; Round 4b --Will Holden, OT, Vanderbilt; Round 5 -- Elijah Lee, LB, Kansas State. Previously (4 rounds): Round 2 -- Malik McDowell, DE/DT, Michigan State; Round 3a -- Foreman; Round 3b -- Pocic; Round 4a -- Carl Lawson, DE/OLB, Auburn; Round 4b -- ArDarius Stewart, WR, Alabama.
Steve Palazzolo of Pro Football Focus (April 5): Round 2 -- Justin Evans, S, Texas A&M. "A perfect complement to safety Harrison Smith, Evans brings range on the back end and explosive coverage ability that ranked third among safeties in 2016, at 88.3. If he can cut down on the 23 missed tackles, the Vikings have one of the best safety duos in the league."; Round 3a -- Gerald Everett, TE, South Alabama; Round 3b -- Tanzel Smart, DL, Tulane.
Drafttek (April 5): Round 2 -- Dion Dawkins, OG, Temple; Round 3a --Larry Ogunjobi, DT, Charlotte; Round 3b -- Duke Riley, OLB, LSU; Round 4a -- Taywan Taylor, WR, Western Kentucky; Round 4b -- Eddie Vanderdoes, DT, UCLA; Round 5 -- Jeremy Sprinkle, TE, Arkansas; Round 6 -- T.J. Logan, RB, North Carolina; Round 7 --Austin Rehkow, P, Idaho. Previously: Round 2 -- Dawkins; Round 3a -- Joe Mixon, RB, Oklahoma; Round 3b: Alex Anzalone, OLB, Florida; Round 4a -- Taylor; Round 4b -- Chad Hansen, WR, California; Round 5 -- Channing Stribling, CB, Michigan; Round 6 -- Josh Carraway, DE/OLB, TCU; Round 7 -- Kenny Allen, P, Michigan.
Tony Pauline of DraftAnalyst.com (April 3): Round 2 -- Antonio Garcia, OT, Troy; Round 3a -- Davon Godchaux, DT, LSU; Round 3b -- Rasul Douglas, CB, West Virginia.
Luke Easterling of The Draft Wire (April 3): Round 2 -- Taylor Moton, OL, Western Michigan; Round 3a -- Jalaeel Johnson, DL, Iowa; Round 3b -- Roderick Johnson, OT, Florida State. Previously (7 rounds): Round 2 -- Moton; Round 3a -- D'Onta Foreman, RB, Texas; Round 3b -- Carlos Watkins, DL, Clemson; Round 4a -- Steven Taylor, LB, Houston; Round 4b -- Damien Mama, G, USC; Round 5 -- Amara Darboh, WR, Michigan; Round 6 -- Rudy Ford, S, Auburn; Round 7 -- Noble Nwachukwu, DE/OLB, West Virginia.
Miles Dittberner of Cover32 (April 3): Round 2 -- Dan Feeney, OG, Indiana; Round 3a -- Jalen Tabor, CB, Florida; Round 3b -- Jordan Willis, DE, Kansas State; Round 4a -- Pat Elflein, C, Ohio State; Round 4b -- Jordan Leggett, TE, Clemson.
Scott Wright of DraftCountdown.com (April 3): Round 2 -- Joe Mixon, RB, Oklahoma; Round 3a -- Ethan Pocic, C, LSU; Round 3b -- Duke Riley, ILB, LSU.
Chad Reuter of NFL.com (March 30): Round 2 -- Malik McDowell; Round 3a -- Chris Godwin, WR, Penn State; Round 3b -- Derek Rivers, OLB, Youngstown State; Round 4a -- Julie'n Davenport, T, Bucknell; Round 4b -- George Kittle, TE, Iowa; Round 5 -- Chris Carson, RB, Oklahoma State. Previously (4 rounds): Round 2 -- Dan Feeney, G, Indiana; Round 3a -- Cooper Kupp, WR, Eastern Washington; Round 3b -- Duke Riley, OLB, LSU; Round 4a -- Brian Hill, RB, Wyoming; Round 4b -- Kittle.
DJ Boyer of DraftSite.com (March 30): Round 2 -- Antonio Garcia, OT, Troy; Round 3a -- Dorian Johnson, OG, Pitt; Round 3b -- Isaiah Ford, WR, Virginia Tech; Round 4a -- Dion Dawkins, OT, Temple; Round 4b -- Montravius Adams, DT, Auburn; Round 5 -- Jehu Chesson, WR, Michigan; Round 6 -- Brandon Bell, OLB, Penn State; Round 7 -- Kyle Fuller, C, Baylor. Previously: Round 1 --D'Onta Foreman, RB, Texas; Round 3a -- Taylor Moton, OT, Western Michigan; Round 3b -- Eddie Vanderdoes, DT, UCLA; Round 4a-- Dan Skipper, OT, Arkansas; Round 4b -- Cole Hikutini, TE, Louisville; Round 5 -- J.J. Dielman, OT, Utah; Round 6 -- Ryan Glasgow, DT, Michigan; Round 7 -- Jake Eldrenkamp, OG, Washington.
Jeff Risdon of RealGM.com (March 29): Round 2 -- Carlos Henderson, WR, LSU; Round 3a -- Pat Elflein, G/C, Ohio State; Round 3b -- Jourdan Lewis, CB, Michigan.