Vikings Draft Order Is Officially Set
Josh Frey
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We’ve known for awhile that the Minnesota Vikings draft will include at least nine picks in 2024, barring any trades to either bring that number up or down.
We’ve also known that they currently hold selections in the first round (1), second round (1), fourth round (2), fifth round (2), sixth round (2), and seventh round (1). However, we have been waiting on the official order (other than Nos. 11 and 42) for these selections, mostly making educated guesses to this point. That changed on Friday.
The Vikings Draft Order
This week, the NFL announced all of their compensatory picks for the 2024 NFL Draft, and as a result, we now know that there will be 257 selections in April, and the full order for these selections. Unfortunately, the Vikings were not a team to receive one of these compensatory picks (though they seem very likely to get at least a couple in 2025).
However, we do know exactly where the Vikings will make their picks this spring. Here is a look at the Vikings draft order for 2024:
- Round 1, Pick 11
- Round 2, Pick 42
- Round 4, Pick 107
- Round 4, Pick 128
- Round 5, Pick 156
- Round 5, Pick 166
- Round 6, Pick 176
- Round 6, Pick 187
- Round 7, Pick 230
Minnesota heads into the 2024 offseason with a number of major questions to answer across their roster. Namely, their biggest questions revolve around QB Kirk Cousins and OLB Danielle Hunter. Cousins, who has never hit free agency since he signed with the Vikings back in 2018, is set to do so this upcoming week.
The QB was playing some of the best football of his career before suffering an Achilles tear in Week 8 against the Green Bay Packers. As a result, it may not be in the Vikings’ best interest to hand out a big contract to a soon-to-be 36-year-old quarterback, particularly if Cousins wants a fully guaranteed deal, as he has negotiated himself into throughout his career.
If the Vikings are not going to bring back Cousins, they will almost certainly target a quarterback at some point in the draft, and probably with either their first-round or second-round picks. There are a number of very talented QBs in this draft class who could serve as either immediate starters or at the very least developmental pieces.
Meanwhile, Hunter is coming off arguably his very best season in 2023. The pass rusher led the NFL with 23 tackles for loss and recorded a career-high 16.5 sacks. He will be one of the most sought-after players on the open market this spring.
Considering the Vikings also have Marcus Davenport and D.J. Wonnum scheduled to hit free agency this spring, they could be in desperate need of quality edge rushers by the time the draft arrives. Throughout his tenure as general manager, Kwesi Adofo-Mensah is yet to select an edge rusher for the Vikings in the draft. Expect that trend to change this April.
The 2024 NFL Draft officially gets under way on Thursday, April 25th and will go until Saturday, April 27th.
Editor’s Note: Statistics for this article were found via Pro Football Reference.
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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.