First Round
12. Derek Stingley Jr., CB, LSU
Second Round
46. Trey McBride, TE, Colorado State
Third Round
77. DeMarvin Leal, DT, Texas A&M
Kiper had the even picks so he made the Vikings picks in the first two rounds. McShay made the third round pick.
First Round thoughts:
No complaints on the first pick as Derek Stingley Jr. is my favorite for the pick. I have my doubts that he’ll be there but he’s the pick if he is.
Second Round thoughts:
Trey McBride is probably the surprise of the trio of picks. With the departure of Tyler Conklin, tight end can be considered a need. Johnny Mundt was brought in from the Los Angeles Rams in free agency. New head coach Kevin O’Connell and new offensive coordinator Wes Phillips know him well. O’Connell was his offensive coordinator for the Rams. Phillips was his position coach. I have decent expections for Mundt because of the faith put in him by his former and current coaches. Still, he hasn’t had a lot of opportunities in the league and he’s coming off a torn ACL. If the Vikings were to be tempted by a tight end at the top of the draft, McBride is the best in the draft.
If not McBride, who? There were several intriguing receivers on the board when Kiper picked McBride.
Receivers:
Skyy Moore, Western Michigan
John Metchie III, Alabama
George Pickers, Georgia
Alec Pierce, Cincinnati
Wan’Dale Robinson, Kentucky
Edge:
Nik Bonitto, Oklahoma
Drake Jackson, USC
Interior Offensive line:
Dylan Parham, Memphis
Cole Strange, Chattanooga
The available receivers is a pretty loaded group. I’m probably leaning Nik Bonitto or the interior linemen as the pick over the receivers and McBride.
Third Round thoughts:
DeMarvin Leal in the third round has the makings of a steal. There was a time when some thought that he could be a first round pick. He has first round talent. The problem is that he doesn’t always play to that talent.
If not Leal, who?
One of the my draft favorites is Houston corner Marcus Jones. In this Kiper/McShay mock, he’s available at #77. He’s my pick. Illinois safety Kerby Joseph, Tennessee receiver Velus Jones Jr, and Kentucky guard Darrian Kinnard are tempting.
If I was making the picks rather than the Kiper/McShay duo, it looks like I’d end up with a mock like this:
12. Derek Stingley Jr., CB, LSU
46. Nik Bonitto, Edge, Oklahoma
77. Marcus Jones, CB, Houston
An interesting aspect of the Kiper/McShay mock is the available cornerbacks in the second and third rounds. If the real draft fell similar to this mock, the Vikings have corner options if they don’t select one in the first round. Florida’s Kaiir Elam and Auburn’s Roger McCreary were available at #46. Marcus Jones, Texas-San Antonio’s Tariq Woolen, and Cincinnati’s Coby Bryant were available at #77. The quality corners potentially available in the second or third round open up the options available to the Vikings in the first round. Despite that, I still like Stingley in the first. Even if he’s gone, I probably like Washington’s Trent McDuffie at #12. Some say that McDuffie could still be available with a trade down. I have doubts about that. Kiper gave him to the Baltimore Ravens at #14 in this mock. I don’t see McDuffie being available too far past #12.
Eight more days until the real draft.
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