NFL Draft Day 1

Finally. The 2014 NFL Draft has begun.

New Minnesota Vikings head coach Mike Zimmer found himself a new defensive toy. UCLA linebacker Anthony Barr is headed to Minnesota. He's played on the defensive side of the ball for less than two years. He's gotten by in that time on natural talent and instincts. Both of which are immense. If his knowledge of playing defense approaches his natural talent, the Vikings have a defensive difference-maker. When I speculated about the possibility of the Vikings drafting Barr I thought of the ways that the Denver Broncos used the skills of linebacker Von Miller. Barr can be that sort of player.

The draft was moving along as expected until the Jacksonville Jaguars selected Central Florida quarterback Blake Bortles at #3. So, it didn't take long for the draft to get a little squirrelly. Bortles going early wasn't a real shock. He'd been considered a candidate for the first pick in the entire draft. I was just surprised that he went to Jacksonville.

It was pretty funny to see Phil Dunphy (Ty Burrell) sitting at the St. Louis Rams draft table.

The Buffalo Bills made a good, bold move in trading up five spots with the Clevelnad Browns to draft Clemson receiver Sammy Watkins. This is a very deep draft for receivers but Watkins was clearly the best. The Bills had to give up their first round pick next year but the trade didn't decimate this draft or next. Big jumps, even five picks, to the top of the draft often do. Watkins was one of the players truly worth trading up to get. Nice job Bills.

A little deja vu. Two years ago the Vikings got a nice little bounty from the Browns to move one spot. From #4 to the Vikings #3. It was repeated yesterday when the two teams swapped spots #8 and #9. They didn't get near what they got two years ago. The Vikings got only a fifth round pick to move that one spot. A free fifth round pick.

Some picks that surprised me, besides Bortles to the Jaguars:

Detroit Lions selecting North Carolina tight end Eric Ebron. I expected defense. Likely a corner. The Lions weren't lacking in the point-scoring department.

Tennessee Titans selecting Michigan tackle Taylor Lewan. This might have been the case of a player that was simply to good to pass. The Titans have put a lot of work into their line the past two years. Can't criticize that.

Dallas Cowboys selecting Notre Dame tackle Zack Martin. As with the Titans, it's difficult to be too surprised about a team improving the offensive line but I was.

San Francisco 49ers selecting Northern Illinois safety Jimmie Ward. Since the success of the Seattle Seahawks, teams have been teaming talented safeties. Ask New Orleans. I thought that the 49ers had done just that when they signed Antoine Bethea in free agency to go with last year's first rounder Eric Reid. So, I was surprised. Reid and Ward should be a dynamic combination for years. Bethea might now be in the way.

The Browns played Draft Day like the Browns in the Draft Day movie. They entered the draft with the #4 and #26 picks in the first round. They ended up picking Oklahoma St. corner Justin Gilbert with the #8 pick and Texas A&M quarterback with the #22 pick.

Two years ago, the Vikings traded back into the first round to select Notre Dame safety Harrison Smith. Last year, they traded back into the first to select Tennessee receiver Cordarrelle Patterson. It couldn't happen a third time. Could it ? Sure it could.

Before the draft even kicked off, the Seattle Seahawks announced that their #32 pick in the first round was up for grabs. That's the sort of thing that you do with a stacked, Super Bowl champion roster. The Vikings traded their 2nd and 4th round picks for that Seahawks pick and selected Louisville quarterback Teddy Bridgewater. Excellent. I actually thought that this trade would cost the Vikings one of their two third round picks. One of those picks was originally belonged to the Seahawks. It would be fitting to send it back to them. It wasn't a third. It was their fourth. Even better.

Trades and their original picks have brought seven first round picks to Minnesota in the last three years. Tackle Matt Kalil and safety Harrison Smith in 2012. Defensive tackle Sharrif Floyd, cornerback Xavier Rhodes, and receiver Cordarrelle Patterson in 2013. Linebacker Anthony Barr and quarterback Teddy Bridgewater this year. Kalil and Patterson have already made Pro Bowl Appearances. Smith, Rhodes have quickly become bright spots in what has been a pretty pathetic secondary. Floyd was a rotational player last year that is expected to start this year. The future of the Minnesota Vikings is in these seven players.

During the 2013 college football season, Barr and Bridgewater were both considered top-6 picks in those ludicrous, way too early mock drafts. Those rankings lasted into the early days of the draft evaluation season. Until Kahlil Mack's deserved elevation to the top of the linebacker lists, Barr was at the top of the position. Bridgewater was at the top of the quarterback lists until his regrettable, forgettable Pro Day. NFL Network draft evaluator, and former scout, Daniel Jeremiah had Barr as his #6 player in the draft. He had Bridgewater at #11. People either loved or hated both players. I just know that at various times in the past few months one or the other was my top player in this draft for the Vikings. Oklahoma St. cornerback Justin Gilbert and Pitt defensive tackle Aaron Donald also spent some time in that spot. I find it remarkable that they were able to get both Barr and Bridgewater.

Before the Vikings made the move with the Seahawks, there was a report that they were close to a deal with the Philadelphia Eagles to move into their spot in the first round, #22. That report said that the Vikings were targeting Texas A&M quarterback Johnny Manziel. I don't buy it. The Browns had a better offer and won the Eagles pick. Just because the Browns selected Manziel doesn't mean that the Vikings would have done the same. I think that the Vikings were trading up for Bridgewater, not Manziel. I think that the Vikings preferred Bridgewater to Manziel the entire time. The Browns wanted to get ahead of the Arizona Cardinals. The Vikings wanted to get ahead of the Cardinals, Browns, and all of the quarterback-needy teams ahead of them in the second round.

One drawback to trading into the first round is the long wait that I have for the Vikings first pick today and tomorrow.

The Vikings came out of the first round of the 2014 NFL Draft with a potential defensive difference-maker in Anthony Barr. Then they add the quarterback that they so desperately need in Teddy Bridgewater. This was a terrific start to the draft for the Minnesota Vikings.