Draft Hopes

Many fans of NFL teams are coming up with their hopes for the 2014 NFL Draft. Fans of teams that experienced less than stellar 2013 seasons have been refining those hopes for a while now. Led by the Senior Bowl, the college all-star games are the first step of the long draft process. That process is even longer this year as the Draft is a couple of weeks later than it has been. The NFL Scouting Combine is the event that really starts forming the draft hopes of fans. The 2014 edition of the Scouting Combine concluded yesterday. The draft hopes of many are taking shape. There are still the respective Pro Days of each player. Those are most important for the players that chose not to compete at the Combine or couldn't compete due to medical issues. These Pro Days also give players that might have fared poorly at the Combine a chance to redeem themselves. The last bit of judgement that impacts the draft hopes of so many fans is actually the least accurate. The media. Mock drafts are the lifeblood of every fan drooling through the long days before the real draft. The supposed experts rarely know as much as we all believe that they do. Some of these "experts" might get some information directly from the teams but you should never believe anything that an NFL teams says before the draft. It's always fun to ponder the possibilities of the draft but believing anything that you read or hear is often a mistake. The draft is a crap shoot and anyone's guess is only a guess. Those guesses help all of us form our hopes for our team's draft.

The Minnesota Vikings have significant needs at quarterback and at pretty much every level of their defense. That's pretty bad. It's fairly shocking that the 2013 Vikings were about a half dozen plays away from turning a 5-10-1 record into a 11-5 record. Many of those "experts" predict that the Vikings will take a quarterback with the 8th pick of the draft simply because they need a quarterback. I don't think that they will take a quarterback with the 8th pick because I don't think that there will be value in taking a quarterback there. The top three quarterbacks in this draft are Texas A&M's Johnny Manziel, Louisville's Teddy Bridgewater, and Central Florida's Blake Bortles. All three should be off celebrating with their new teams by the time that the Vikings are on the clock. All three might be gone by the 5th pick. While I like all three of those quarterbacks, I think that there are some real nice quarterbacks available later in the draft. At least, that is the hope of all fans of the Vikings. My hope, right now, for the Vikings first pick in the 2014 NFL draft is Buffalo linebacker Kahlil Mack. I had never seen Mack play until Buffalo played Ohio St. at the start of the 2013 season. He was the best football player on that field. I hope that he's still on the board when it's the Vikings turn to pick. I'm starting to think that he won't be but there is still hope. I believe that Manziel, Bridgewater, and Bortles will be among the top seven players picked. Two of the most talented football players in this draft are South Carolina defensive end Jadeveon Clowney and Clemson receiver Sammy Watkins. Clowney could and probably should be the top pick by the Houston Texans. They also need a quarterback.  Quarterback usually trumps any other need but you never know. Clowney is one of those freak talents that is rarely seen. I believe that Watkins and Clowney will be among the top seven picks. The St. Louis Rams, with the 2nd pick, and Atlanta Falcons, with the 6th pick, could use a franchise left tackle. This draft has two of those in Aurburn's Greg Robinson and Texas A&M's Jake Matthews. Manziel, Bridgewater, Bortles, Clowney, Watkins, Robinson, and Matthews could all realistically be selected by the Vikings pick. That would leave Kahlil Mack still on the board. That's my hope. Mack would be a fantastic addition to the Minnesota Vikings defense.

As for my hopes for the rest of the Vikings draft. I hope that they find that quarterback, a defensive tackle too, a cornerback, maybe a couple of offensive linemen, another linebacker wouldn't hurt. Right now, I hope that Georgia's Aaron Murray is that quarterback. If not for a knee injury last fall, Murray might be among the quarterbacks at the top of the draft. Pitt defensive tackle Aaron Donald would be an excellent pick but I don't think that's possible with any pick other than their 8th pick. I think that they have too many needs to pay the price to trade back into the first round but I'm hoping that he's still there when they pick in the second round. Florida St. linebacker Telvin Smith would be a terrific choice in the third. Hopefully, Nebraska cornerback Stanley Jean-Baptiste would still be available in the fourth.

Here's my Minnesota Vikings draft hopes through four rounds (for now):
1. Kahlil Mack  LB  Buffalo
2. Aaron Donald  DT  Pitt
3a. Aaron Murray  QB  Georgia
3b. Telvin Smith  LB  Florida St.
4. Stanley Jean-Baptiste  CB  Nebraska

I have serious doubts that Mack or Donald will be available when the Vikings are on the clock in those rounds but one can hope. Fortunately, this a very talented, deep draft. There will be talented players available at all of those picks. I hope that the Vikings find them.