Vikings Given Multiple Options for “Biggest Need” in 2025 NFL Draft
The Vikings attacked their need for defensive interior help in a big way this offseason. After extending Jalen Redmond following a mini-breakout season, they solidified the position group in free agency by coming to agreements with Jonathan Allen and Javon Hargrave, two of the most sought-after players at the position during the negotiating periods.
This hasn’t stopped PFF from naming the interior defensive unit as Minnesota’s biggest need going forward. It’s understandable to disagree after the major signings given out by Kwesi and Company, but Hargrave and Allen are both already in their 30s.
Allen was given a three-year contract, and Hargrave a two-year, meaning that while they are big-time signings, they are both not in the “long-term” plans for what the Vikings may become in the later part of the 2020s.
PFF provided their readers (and the Vikings) with a couple of solutions at the position, one in the first round and one in the later rounds.
Vikings’ Best Early-Round Option for Defensive Interior
Their early-round choice was Oregon DI Derrick Harmon, a frequent selection amongst mock drafts revolving around these Vikings. Harmon is a very well-balanced tackle prospect, garnering an 80.5 run-defense grade and 86.3 pass-rush grade in 2023.
Harmon garnered 2024 AP Second-Team All-American honors last season and third-team all-Big Ten conference team. He accumulated 45 tackles, 10.5 TFLs, five sacks, four PBUs, and two forced fumbles over the course of the season, stamping his draft value as that of a first-round selection.
He stands at 6’3″, weighs 313 lbs, and ran a 4.95 40-yard dash at the 2025 NFL Combine. If he is able to overcome his habit of “overpursuing” and losing contains, as well as polishing up his counter-rushes, he could be a legitimate problem for the NFL for years to come.
Vikings’ Best Late-Round Option for Defensive Interior
PFF’s top late-round option is a man I recently mocked to the Vikings on day 2 of the 2025 NFL Draft, that man being physical freak Deone Walker out of Kentucky.
Walker is a 6’7, 331lb space-eater out of Kentucky who was very often mocked in the top 10 of way-too-early 2025 mock drafts last year after the 2024 NFL Draft. He was given this recognition due to his mountain of a frame and very productive 2023 season. 2024 wasn’t up to the standard he set the year before, and his draft stock has suffered greatly because of it.
In his defense, Walker played the 2024 season with a “pars defect,” meaning a small fracture in the back. This stifled his effectiveness greatly, though he was still a solid pass rusher last season. When healthy, his pass-rushing ability is freaky. His frame allows him to naturally impose his will on opposing blockers.
He played legitimate competition against various SEC foes and held his own, taking up multiple gaps, and his sleep and being able to take on routine double-teams. Though he struggled a bit in 2024, he was still awarded with 2024 Second-Team All-SEC honors. If he is able to improve his run-defending habits and lower his pad level a bit to take on NFL offensive linemen, Deone Walker could be an absolutely scary defensive lineman.
Editor’s Note: Information from PFF helped with this article.
