These Available Day 3 Prospects Visited with the Vikings Prior to the Draft
Josh Frey
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The Minnesota Vikings are currently slated to make five selections on the third and final day of the NFL Draft. Earlier in the draft, they made picks of WR Jordan Addison and CB Mekhi Blackmon, both of whom had top-30 visits with Minnesota prior to the draft. If they continue the theme of selecting prospects that they visited with, these are the available Day 3 prospects that also visited with Minnesota prior to the draft.
Offense
Quarterback
- Tanner McKee Stanford
- Jaren Hall, BYU
- Dorian Thompson-Robinson, UCLA
Why the Vikings Could Add a Prospect: Kirk Cousins is entering the final year of his contract for the first time since signing with the Vikings back in 2018. This is as good an indication that he could be headed elsewhere in 2024 as any. If that is the case, Minnesota needs to work on finding their QB of the future.
Running Back
- Evan Hull, Northwestern
- DeWayne McBride, UAB
Why the Vikings Could Add a Prospect: Minnesota locked up Alexander Mattison for the next couple years, but Dalvin Cook could still be traded sometime today. If that happens, we have absolutely no idea how good either Ty Chandler or Kene Nwangwu are, and the Vikings would need a running back to take some pressure off Mattison.
Wide Receiver
- Matt Landers, Arkansas
Why the Vikings Could Add a Prospect: Round 1 saw the Vikings get their presumed WR2 of the future in Jordan Addison, but he doesn’t add much in terms of his capabilities as a deep threat to take the top off a defense. If Minnesota opts to select a WR today, expect that skillset to be a top priority.
Tight End
- N/A
Offensive Line
- Anthony Bradford, LSU
- Nash Jansen, North Dakota State
- Colby Sorsdal, William & Mary
- Henry Byrd, Princeton
Why the Vikings Could Add a Prospect: It’s all about depth here. We saw the Vikings go into the 2022 season with very little depth on the interior of their offensive line, and by the end of the season, they were scraping the bottom of the barrel with ‘Chris Reed at center’ reps. In order to make sure that doesn’t happen, the Vikings could dedicate another pick to the o-line, particularly at that center position.
Defense
Defensive Line
- Calvin Avery, Illinois
- MJ Anderson, Iowa State
Why the Vikings Could Add a Prospect: Minnesota lost Dalvin Tomlinson in free agency, and they have done very little to replace his talent on the defensive front, particularly as a run-stuffer. Perhaps the Vikings have their eye on a developmental prospect to help fill that role.
EDGE
- Isaiah Land, Florida A&M
Why the Vikings Could Add a Prospect: This really depends on the status of Za’Darius Smith moving forward. A couple months back, Smith requested a release from the Vikings, and ever since, there has been silence on that front. If Minnesota makes a deal to move Smith elsewhere, they certainly need to add more depth at EDGE.
Linebacker
- Mohamoud Diabate, Utah
Why the Vikings Could Add a Prospect: This is arguably the thinnest position on the Vikings roster right now. The Vikings let go of their anchor, Eric Kendricks, during the offseason, and this is a group of players behind Jordan Hicks and Troy Reeder that are largely unproven at the NFL level. Perhaps the safer route would be adding another free agent, but Mohamoud Diabate would be a fun prospect to pair with Brian Asamoah.
Cornerback
- Jarrick Bernard-Converse, LSU
- Isaiah Bolden, Jackson State
Why the Vikings Could Add a Prospect: Minnesota may have gotten a promising prospect in Mekhi Blackmon on Friday night, but the depth in their cornerback room is still rather shallow. This is especially so when you consider all of Byron Murphy, Andrew Booth, and Akayleb Evans have had significant injuries in the past 12 months.
Safety
- Jordan Howden, Minnesota
Why the Vikings Could Add a Prospect: The Vikings managed to maintain Harrison Smith this offseason, and they are hoping their 2022 first-round prospect, Lewis Cine, returns healthy from his brutal leg injury suffered early last season. However, the long-term status of the position is very much up in the air right now. A fifth safety provides some extra depth if nothing else.
Josh Frey is a Class of 2020 graduate of The College of Idaho and managing editor of PurplePTSD.com. When he’s not writing about the NFL, Josh enjoys running, gaming, or rooting for the Milwaukee Brewers and Bucks. Check out his Twitter account: @Freyed_Chicken.