Minnesota Vikings 2021 Draft Picks

The 2021 NFL Draft is in the books. It was a productive three days for the Minnesota Vikings. 

Minnesota Vikings 2021 Draft Picks

1(23) Christian Darrisaw, OT, Virginia Tech

3(66) Kellen Mond, QB, Texas A&M

3(78) Chazz Surratt, LB, North Carolina

3(86) Wyatt Davis, OG, Ohio State

3(90) Patrick Jones II, Edge, Pittsburgh

4(119) Kene Nwangwu, RB, Iowa State

4(125) Camryn Bynum, S, Cal

4(134) Janarius Robinson, Edge, Florida State

5(157) Ihmir Smith-Marsette, WR, Iowa

5(168) Zach Davidson, TE, Central Missouri 

6(199) Jaylen Twyman, DT, Pittsburgh

Perhaps the biggest surprise of the Vikings draft was that Rick Spielman made a single trade. One trade! Seven rounds of drafting action and Spielman made one trade. No Day 2 trade. No Day 3 trade. The one trade that Spielman made came on the first night of the draft. The Vikings turned the 14th pick into Christian Darrisaw, Kellen Mond, and Wyatt Davis. 

The Vikings collected an 11-member draft class despite making selections in only five of the seven rounds. 

Improving the offensive line has been a Vikings need since Steve Hutchinson left. That was in 2011. A ten-year need! This was a productive draft in that two immediate starters might’ve been added to the offensive line in Christian Darrisaw and Wyatt Davis. Mike Zimmer wanted some size, strength, and power added to the offensive line. Darrisaw and Davis provide that. It’s only early May but I expect the Vikings offensive line to look something like this.

LT  Christian Darrisaw 

LG Wyatt Davis

 C   Garrett Bradbury

RG Ezra Cleveland

RT  Brian O’Neill

Perhaps the guards are flipped but I expect the above to be the starting five. Is it risky to start two rookies? I’d rather see two rookies starting than another season of veterans the likes of Dakota Dozier or Tom Compton. I see starting two rookies the likes of Darrisaw and Davis as more progress than risk. For the first time in a decade I actually feel good about the potential of the Vikings offensive line. 

If only Darrisaw and Davis were added, I’d be feeling pretty good about this draft. The Vikings did more than that. 

A quarterback doesn’t have to be selected in the first round to get most of the attention. It’s all about the quarterback. The Vikings grabbed Texas A&M’s Kellon Mond with the second pick of the third round and some talking heads assume that Kirk Cousins’ job is in jeopardy. The Vikings QB1 job isn’t open this season. It likely isn’t open next season. If the Mond pick does anything, it might put an end date on Cousins’ Minnesota quarterbacking days. Selecting a possible 2023 starter in the 2021 NFL Draft probably shouldn’t dominate draft day headlines. But it’s a quarterback. It’s always about the quarterback. 

I think that North Carolina linebacker Chazz Surratt might be the surprise pick of the Vikings 2021 Draft Class. There’s just something about this kid. He enters college as a quarterback and leaves it as a linebacker. He should be an immediate hit on special teams. He’ll compete with free agent addition Nick Vigil, Troy Dye, and Cameron Smith for defensive snaps. 

Defensive end was probably the most significant defensive need. The Vikings need to develop a pass rush presence opposite Danielle Hunter. They brought back Stephen Weatherly after a 2020 sabbatical in Carolina. D.J. Wonnum showed promise as a rookie last year. I really like the addition of 3rd-round pick Patrick Jones II and 4th-round pick Janarius Robinson to that competition. There’s a lot of young passing rushing talent for Andre Patterson to mold. 

From Percy Harvin to Cordarrelle Patterson to Marcus Sherels the Vikings can boast a strong recent kick return tradition. The last couple seasons haven’t come close to that tradition. Kene Nwangwu and Ihmir Smith-Marsette will look to return to that tradition. Smith-Marsette could challenge for the third receiver role. 

As a Cal alum, I’m always excited when the Vikings add a Golden Bear. Camryn Bynum has been one of my recent favorites. I was thrilled when he was the Vikings pick at #125. He was a terrific corner at Cal so I was a bit surprised when he was selected as a safety. The more I thought about his college corner play the more I could see it translating to NFL safety play. I like it. I like it a lot. 

The Vikings found a potential punter in tight end Zach Robinson. His college punting gig is probably just a positional curiosity but he does give the Vikings a backup punter. The versatile fifth-rounder is an intriguing, tall, tight end talent. If the Vikings were to select a tight end in this draft, I expected him to be a strong blocker. That presently isn’t Robinson’s strength. But that 6’7” height is sure intriguing. 

Jaylen Twyman became a draft crush early in the evaluation process. Most of my mock exercises included him as a Vikings FOURTH round selection. Right or wrong, I would’ve been happy if the Vikings grabbed him then. I was thrilled with his selection at 199. 

As an eternal optimist, every Vikings draft rocks the day after. This draft feels like a very productive one. Offensive line, left tackle in particular, and edge rushers were the biggest needs. Those needs, especially the offensive line needs, were well filled. For me, Christian Darrisaw and Wyatt Davis are the highlight of this draft. I sure hope that I’m thinking the same five years from now. Kellon Mond and Chazz Surratt were the picks that most surprised me but I’m fan of both. Then there are sentimental favorites Camryn Bynum and Jaylen Twyman. I like this draft. The Vikings 2021 Draft was a productive draft. 

One question. Is it an NFL mandate that NFL Network goes to commercial when the Vikings are on the clock?