Vikings 7-round mock draft.
Simon Bruus
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Round 2, pick 14: Ethan Pocic, C, LSU.
Last time I did a mock draft I had the Vikings picking Forest Lamp in this spot, but as it often does the hype train has left the station and I don’t think Lamp will fall to the Vikings or out of the first round for that matter. Ethan Pocic is an extremely intelligent guy who’s played every position on the LSU line during his college career, he’d be able to step in at Centre from day 1 allowing the Vikings to move Joe Berger back to guard or possibly keep him at centre as he’s getting up in age. Has great athletic traits, body control and quick hands to shoot his hands to engage blocks and stay on them. Made the offensive calls at LSU with fantastic instincts and and knowledge of the game.
Round 3, pick 16: Dan Feeney, G, Indiana.
Dan Feeney would be a fantastic pick for the Vikings in this spot, he’s a four year starter and two time captain for Indiana Hoosiers. Feeney has great power and stature for the position, he’s a hard mouthed leader who would add some toughness to the line. Light feet allows him to slide in pass protection, making him an above average pass protector. He plays till the whistle and doesn’t have a lot of mental errors. Would be an immediate impact player on the line and could definitely improve our line from day 1. Feeney hasn’t really picked up that much hype quite yet but it’ll probably happen as we near the draft.
Round 3, Pick 23: Adam Bisnowaty, OT, Pitt.
Adam Bisnowaty could very well be gone by this point of the draft, but there’s a chance he might be here for the Vikings with their second pick in the third round. Bisnowaty has good size at 6’5, 307 lbs. Bisnowaty uses his greta feet to stay square on his blocks and follow speed rushers, his arms are shorter than ideal length but his feet makes up for it allowing him to lead rushers past the pocket. Extremely competitive and hard nosed player who won’t take any shit from opposing players, he’ll play till the whistle and it shows up on blocks trying to finish plays. Bisnowaty plays with good intelligence allowing him to easily pick up blitzes and changes in the front, something the Vikings line could use. However, while Bisnowaty does have a lot of good qualities he won’t be a perfect player at this spot, Bisnowaty – sometimes struggles to find defenders to block in space. Secondly Bisnowaty will likely need at least half a season to bulk up and get stronger to deal with bull and power rushers.
Bisnowaty could definitely help sure up our line, and eventually be a quality starter at one of the most important positions in football.
Round 4, Pick 15: Samaje Perine, RB, Oklahoma.
Everyone keeps talking about Joe Mixon for the Vikings, and while Mixon is a talented guy there’s absolutely no way that Rick Spielman drafts a guy like Mixon with such big off the field issues. Instead, he might loot to another Oklahoma running back, namely Samaje Perine, the record holder of the single game record for yards. Perine is an aggressive no bullshit runner, who hits the hole with authority with out too much dancing around in the backfield. He reminds me a lot of Jordan Howard, the second leading rookie rusher from this year, as he has an ability to bounce off defenders and go for long run even though he doesn’t have amazing break away speed. Further more Perine has great hands, and is able to use his soft hands to help out in the passing game.
Round 4, Pick 24: Dalvin Tomlinson, DT, Alabama.
I’ve talked about Tomlinson before, an overshadowed part of the Alabama defensive line who may slide under the radar for a bunch of teams and thus be a valuable late pick-up for the Vikings. Tomlinson has great arm length and power allowing him to burst through blocks and pick a shoulder to drive back a blocker. Tomlinson has great power allowing him to be an effective run defender driving back blocks, often recognising the direction of the run from the formation allowing him to make plays in the backfield. Tomlinson can take on double blocks to free up other guys on the line and not get driven back. He has fantastic hands and reach to bat down passes. Tomlinson would be able to be an immediate impact player on our defensive line rotation giving Linval Joseph some much needed help.
Round 5, Pick 14: Josh Jones, S, NC State.
A prototypical FS and athletic freak at 6’2, 215 lbs. Jones, while still raw, has the size and speed necessary to succeed in the NFL and could allow Harrison Smith to move closer to the LOS where he excels. While Jones may excel at FS he has played Strong Safety his entire career and is a sound tackler, Jones would be able to line up over the entire field and Zimmer would definitely be able to find creative ways to use Jones’s talent.
Round 6, Pick 16: Larry Ogunjobi, DT, Charlotte.
Talk about an under the radar prospect. Ogunjobi, of Nigerian decent, is a disruptive defensive tackle for Charlotte who showed extremely well at the Senior Bowl proving he could play with top class competition. Ogunjobi is incredibly athletically gifted and would need to sit for a year to learn under Zimmer, however, last time we picked a raw athletic defensive lineman it worked out quite well.
Round 7, Pick 15: Andreas Knappe, OT, UCONN.
I will not stop beating the drum for this guy. A danish native from Silkeborg, Denmark, Knappe might be a little older than a lot of guys would have liked for an offensive tackle, will be 26 when the season starts – which might be why he’s sliding under the radar for a lot of team. The 6’8 325 lbs offensive tackle is one of the biggest humans in this draft, but don’t let that scare you. Knappe moves extremely well for his massive size and uses his long arms to guide rushers away from his QB. He has great power allowing him to deal efficiently with power rushers. Knappe is by no means a perfect prospect with his high age and relative low grade competition but he’s showed well against all competition and will surely be an intriguing prospect come April.