Vikings 4-Round Mock: Trade Up, Trade Back, or Stay Put?

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Apr 3, 2019

Trade Up. Trade Back. Stay. Each year, Rick Spielman has handled the Vikings draft different. From 2015-2018, Spielman has held onto the Vikings first-round pick (or traded it for Sam Bradford), taking Trae Waynes, Laquon Treadwell and Mike Hughes. Prior to that, he had three straight years of being aggressive, trading back into the first-round for Teddy Bridgewater, Cordarrelle Patterson and Harrison Smith. He is also on record saying he likes to move back to acquire about 10 picks in each draft. While we don’t know what Spielman has up his sleeve, we can assume a lot of moving and shaking will go on during draft weekend. Here are the three ways it can play out:

I used Fanspeak On-The-Clock premium to simulate the draft and trade offers, as well as Drafttek’s trade value chart to evaluate if each trade was realistic. I also only mocked the first four rounds, as anything from 5-7 will basically be the same players/dart throws.

Option 1: Staying Put

Photo: https://hailstate.com/roster.aspx?rp_id=4726

  1. EDGE Montez Sweat
  2. OG Chris Lindstrom
  3. TE Jace Sternberger
  4. S Amani Hooker

Round 1, Pick 18 – EDGE Montez Sweat

Also Available: OT Andre Dillard ; CB Greedy Williams ; DT Christian Wilkins ; DT Jerry Tillery ; OT Cody Ford

Round 2, Pick 18  – OG Chris Lindstrom

Also Available: DL Charles Omenihu ; C Erik McCoy ; WR Hakeem Butler ; WR Parris Campbell

Round 3, Pick 17 – TE Jace Sternberger

Also Available: OT Kaleb McGary ; OG Connor McGovern ; WR Terry McLaurin ; EDGE Ben Banogu

Round 4 , Pick 17  – S Amani Hooker

Also Available: WR David Sills ; QB Ryan Finley ; CB Kendall Sheffield ; TE Josh Oliver ; OG Nate Davis                                                                         

Draft Synopsis: When staying put, it’s important to let the draft come to you. As badly as I wanted to take Andre Dillard in the first, Montez Sweat proved to be too good of value as a potential premier edge rusher (TJ Hockenson, Noah Fant, Jonah Williams and Jawaan Taylor were all gone at this point).  After passing on the offensive line, I was fortunate to have Chris Lindstrom available in the second-round, adding a starter on the offensive line. Sternberger provides the Vikings with a tight end to compliment Kyle Rudolph, but I strongly considered Terry McLaurin who is one of my favorite mid-round WRs this year. Either way, I wanted to get Cousins another skill-positoin player. In the same vein of the Sweat pick, Amani Hooker was a strong value in the fourth, giving the Vikings another option on the back-end of the defense.

Option 2: Trading Up

Photo: https://www.blackheartgoldpants.com/2018/11/13/18089600/the-curious-case-of-noah-fant-iowa-football-bhgp

Traded: 50th, 81st, 120th (639 points)

Received: 28th overall from Chargers (660 points)

  1. TE Noah Fant
  2. iOL Garrett Bradbury

Round 1 , Pick 18 – TE Noah Fant

Also Available: OT Andre Dillard ; DL Rashan Gary ; OT  Cody Ford ; DT Jerry Tillery ; iOL Garrett Bradbury

Round 1, Pick 28 – iOL Garrett Bradbury

Also Available: OL Dalton Risner ; WR Marquise Brown ; DT Jeffery Simmons ; WR N’Keal Harry

Draft Synopsis: In the trade up, the Vikings got two premier players at positions of need. I was tempted to take Rashan Gary, but knowing I’d be aggressive I couldn’t afford that luxury. Fant gives the Vikings a premier ‘move’ tight-end and additional receiving option, making the skill positions of Diggs, Thielen, Fant, Rudolph and Cook among the tops in the league. Meanwhile, Bradbury slides right in at center or guard to fortify the offensive line, as we refuse to miss out on the run of lineman. The Vikings are unable to address defense until the 6th-7th round, hoping they find another Holton Hill-esque sleeper like they did last year.

Option 3: Trading Back

Photo: https://gopack.com/roster.aspx?rp_id=7608

Traded: 18th overall pick (900 points)

Received: 33rd, 65th, 103rd from Cardinals (933 points)

  1. iOL Garrett Bradbury
  2. S Taylor Rapp
  3. DL Charles Omenihu
  4. OT Kaleb McGary
  5. WR Miles Boykin
  6. TE Josh Oliver

Round 2, Pick 1 – iOL Garrett Bradbury

Also Available: WR N’Keal Harry ; WR Marquise Brown ; WR Irv Smith Jr. ; OL Dalton Risner

Round 2 , Pick 18  – S Taylor Rapp

Also Available: OG Chris Lindstrom ; WR Hakeem Butler ; WR Riley Ridley ; DL Zach Allen ; DL Charles Omenihu

Round 3, Pick 1  – DL Charles Omenihu

Also Available: iOL Erik McCoy, OT Kaleb McGary, DL LJ Collier, CB Lonnie Johnson, TE Jace Sternberger

Round 3, Pick 17 – OT Kaleb McGary

Also Available: OG Connor McGovern, TE Jace Sternberger, CB Sean Bunting, WR Terry McLaurin, EDGE Ben Banogu

Round 4 , Pick 1 – WR Miles Boykin

Also Available: TE Josh Oliver, OL Bobby Evans, TE Isaac Nauta, WR Emmanuel Hall, EDGE Jalen Jelks, DT Khalen Saunders

Round 4 , Pick 17  – TE Josh Oliver

Also Available: WR David Sills, QB Ryan Finley, CB Kendall Sheffield, S Amani Hooker, RB Bryce Love, OG Nate Davis

Draft Synopsis: In what appars to be a deep draft, the trade down scenario allows the Vikings to be flexible with their draft and fill-in all of their ‘needs’. Garrett Bradbury is potentially in play for the Vikings at 18, so getting him at 33 is a steal. The additional picks afforded me the luxury to take one of my favorite players in safety Taylor Rapp, aka Harrison Smith-lite as a best player available strategy. Omenihu adds a versatile defensive lineman that can play EDGE or on the interior. McGary could be Riley Reiff’s incumbent, Boykin has a Julio Jones-like athletic profile and Josh Oliver adds an athletic TE to the bunch. My issue is that while the OL is improved, Boykin and Oliver aren’t locks to be upgrades over what’s on the roster, giving the Vikings similar-quality position players for 2019.

 

Comment your favorite class below:

  1. Sweat ; Lindstrom ; Sternberger ; Hooker
  2. Fant ; Bradbury
  3. Bradbury ; Rapp ; Omenihu ; McGary ; Boykin ; Oliver
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