Vikings first-round picks provide flexibility, opportunity in 2020 NFL Draft

The NFL offseason has a peculiar habit of simultaneously filling and creating needs, and the process is often expedited by the start of the new league year in March. Such was the case with the arrival of the legal tampering period this year, and with the smoke clearing, several teams have emerged with new assets and opportunities. The Minnesota Vikings are one such team, as they now have two first-round picks in the 2020 NFL Draft.

Vikings move on from Diggs 

The Vikings acquired another first-round pick by shipping wide receiver Stefon Diggs to the Buffalo Bills. The move was a long time coming, as Diggs frequently voiced his displeasure during times of offensive inconsistency in the 2019 regular season. The Bills ended up sending a first-round pick, a fifth-round pick, a sixth-round pick, and a 2021 fourth-round pick for Diggs and a seventh-round pick. The Vikings now have 12 selections in the 2020 NFL Draft, five choices on the first two days, and, most importantly, two in the first round.

The Vikings, of course, need the infusion of youth and talent. They made the playoffs in 2019, going 10-6 and earning a Wild Card berth, but they have newly-formed holes that need to be filled moving forward. Rick Speilman and company recently released Linval Joseph and Xavier Rhodes and allowed Trae Waynes to sign with the Cincinnati Bengals in free agency. They used the franchise tag on Anthony Harris, but reports suggest they’re willing to trade him for an extra mid-round pick. Things are changing in Minnesota, and although they did well extending Kirk Cousins, they need to maintain as much continuity as possible. When change is inevitable, resources are required to combat it.

Potential targets in the first-round

With the 22nd and 25th overall picks, the Minnesota Vikings have a valuable opportunity to fabricate continuity by supplementing thinning parts of the roster with young, ascending talent. The 2020 NFL Draft is both top-heavy and deep at the Vikings’ positions of need, such as cornerback, wide receiver, offensive line, and defensive line. It’s fun to think about what kind of combinations the Vikings can put together in this range.

A good starting point to use, to visualize what the Vikings might be able to accomplish with two late first-round picks, would be our previous seven-round mocks at Pro Football Network. I wrote the Buffalo Bills seven-round mock draft, and my colleague Ryan Gosling wrote the Vikings seven-round mock draft.

In the Bills seven-round mock draft published in February, the first-round selection, which the Vikings now possess, was conveniently relevant to the Vikings’ newfound needs. In that mock, I selected LSU wide receiver Justin Jefferson with the 22nd pick. Jefferson is an excellent athlete with great nuance, toughness, and dynamism after the catch. He’s a complete receiver with a high floor and proportional developmental upside, and he fits Cousins’ style well.

In his Vikings mock, Gosling went to the other side of the ball, and selected TCU cornerback Jeff Gladney at #25. Gladney fits the typical mold of cornerback in this class, with a long, athletic frame and a brisk play speed. Gladney couples elite functional athleticism with instincts and fluidity, and he’d be able to give the Vikings an immediate starter on the boundary.

If we coupled those two mocks together and bundled those first-round picks for the Vikings, Minnesota would leave the first round of the 2020 NFL Draft with a new running mate to Adam Thielen in Jefferson, and a new starting cornerback on the outside in Gladney. With three picks remaining on Day 2, the Vikings would already have two crucial needs filled, and plenty of room to keep improving. This is the kind of start to an NFL Draft that can catalyze a quick retooling, and that’s exactly what Minnesota needs to maximize their contention window.

It’s worth noting that this is just one of many possibilities the Vikings could entertain with their first-round picks, and they could also package together those picks to trade up in the 2020 NFL Draft and grab a prospect they’re particularly high on. Given the number of needs present, as well as the depth of the NFL Draft at those positions of need, however, I would prefer to sit back with two first-round picks and let the board play out. Either way, it’s a win for the Vikings, who have some control over their destiny and can now move forward with clarity and reset for a potential playoff run in 2020.