Peter Schrager’s First 2024 NFL Mock Draft Has Vikings “Stick and Pick”
Josh Frey
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The Minnesota Vikings could take a number of different paths in the 2024 NFL Draft.
While the most likely scenario seems to revolve around a trade up to acquire a quarterback, Minnesota might decide that the price to move up simply is too steep to warrant such a move. If that is the case, the Vikings will be making selections at Nos. 11 and 23.
Peter Schrager, one of the faces of NFL Network, dropped his first 2024 NFL mock draft of the offseason, and this is precisely the path that he suggests for the Vikings as the most plausible.
Vikings “Stick and Pick” in Peter Schrager’s 2024 NFL Mock Draft
Keep in mind, Schrager is one of the more plugged-in NFL minds in terms of sources, so this is a very notable mock draft. As such, Schrager added the disclaimer, “As always, this isn’t what I would do — it’s what I’m hearing from my sources around the league.”
And, if what he’s hearing is correct, the Vikings may end up zeroing in on a cornerback with the 11th overall pick, opting to take Terrion Arnold out of Alabama.
It is worth noting that there was a trade up for a quarterback, but it involved the New York Giants moving up to No. 4 and taking J.J. McCarthy. As a result, the Vikings were left out to try with QBs flying off the board with each of the first four picks.
Arnold would be a very interesting pick for the Vikings considering he wasn’t asked to play a ton of man coverage at Alabama, playing just 26.1% of his snaps in man, per PFF (though to be fair, that may have resulted more from the Crimson Tide’s scheme rather than ability). Still, Brian Flores has typically utilized more man and may want to get back to that after a very zone-heavy defense in 2023 that gave up a ton of completions in the short passing game.
Regardless, this is how Schrager defends the selection: “The Vikings stay put to take a top corner and great all-around prospect. Arnold arrived in Tuscaloosa as a five-star safety, then played inside and outside corner under Nick Saban. He flourished and was the Alabama defense’s field general last season. Great juice and a leader. Sam Darnold will be the Vikings’ Day 1 starter in this scenario, but that doesn’t mean Minnesota’s done with the quarterback room …”
Schrager alluded to it, and indeed, the Vikings were not done with the QB room. With the 23rd overall pick, the analyst has Minnesota opting to take Bo Nix out of Oregon.
Nix revived his collegiate career over his past two seasons with the Ducks, but there are questions as to how he can hold up at the NFL level given the amount of single reads that Oregon utilized in their offense.
“Nix could go as high as 11, 12 or 13 … or completely fall out of the first round. I think 23 to the Vikings — or another team around here in a trade-up — makes sense. One thing on Nix: He’s as accurate as they come, having just set the FBS record this past season with a completion percentage of 77.45. Smart processor, too. These are things that will be very highly valued by offensive coaches and QB gurus. That’s Kevin O’Connell. That’s Sean Payton. I could see Nix playing for either of those master tacticians,” Schrager wrote.
Overall, this type of rationale should give Vikings fans hope regardless of the QB who ultimately gets selected by the team. Minnesota provides a very soft landing spot for any rookie quarterback given the talent in place on the roster, and perhaps Nix can find a way to be successful in Kevin O’Connell’s scheme.
If the Vikings have that type of faith in Nix or even Michael Penix, perhaps it makes more sense to simply go this route rather than send massive amounts of draft capital to move up the board.
The 2024 NFL Draft is set to begin on Thursday, April 25th.
Editor’s Note: Statistics for this article were found via Pro Football Focus.
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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.