Grading The Vikings 2015 Draft

[MusicCityViking]

Selections:

CB Trae Waynes (1)
LB Eric Kendricks (2)
DE Danielle Hunter (3)
OT T.J. Clemmings (4)
TE MyCole Pruitt (5)
WR Stefon Diggs (5)
OT Tyrus Thompson (6)
DE B.J. Dubose (6)
OT Austin Shepherd (7)
LB Edmond Robinson (7)

[VikingPaul73]

Selections:

CB Trae Waynes (1) - B+
LB Eric Kendricks (2) - A+
DE Danielle Hunter (3) - C
OT T.J. Clemmings (4) - B+
TE MyCole Pruitt (5) - D
WR Stefon Diggs (5) - B+
OT Tyrus Thompson (6) - B
DE B.J. Dubose (6) - F
OT Austin Shepherd (7) - C
LB Edmond Robinson (7) - D

[halfgiz]

NFL Network thought Vikings was the most improved defense after the draft.

[Mothman]

I gave it a C+, mainly because I think it's too early to draw any conclusions and that's an average grade. I have no idea if this will prove to be a good draft class for the Vikes or not. It has a "boom or bust" feel to me but I could even be wrong about that.

[PurpleKoolaid]

I gave it a C+. Kinda of a lackluster draft. Hoping Waynes is a hit. Some of the later picks have me stumped.

[HardcoreVikesFan]

I gave it a 'B.' Some thoughts:

- I wasn't really happy with the B.J. Doubose pick at all.

- I appreciate the effort the team made to upgrade the offensive line, but I am unsure how well Tyrus Thompson and Austin Shepard project as potential guards.

-Danielle Hunter was a bit of a disappointment to me, but I am not too upset with the pick.

- I wasn't a fan of Edmond Robinson - especially with Ifo Ekpre-Olomu and Gerold Holliman on the board yet.

- I thought T.J. Clemmings in round four was great value. Though I wonder exactly what his true NFL fit will be.

- I wasn't overly excited about Trae Waynes, but I am coming around. He definitely has speed and has length. Zimmer has a plan for him - that I am sure of.

- Perhaps the best pick of the draft for Minnesota was Eric Kendricks. I don't know how he fell to the team. He is going to be a great player for the team. I am very excited to have a middle linebacker in place who can be a three-down player.

- I always hate when the draft is over. I love the draft. I hate waiting a whole year to see it unfold!

[jackal]

I gave it a B because I feel less would unfair and so would more than a B

I liked Kendricks.. I think he is going be a great addition to our defense
I think Mays (Former Bengal) Kendricks, and Hodges will play in passing
downs.

Waynes might be great player but had other players rated higher than him,
(Danny Shelton)but time will tell

Clemmings was a major steal in the fourth.. A+
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kekzCCqAVUI

Tryus Thompson OT A
another great pick that late in the draft
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=beW5Ih3KqzQ
Strong and can play all up and down the O line
Could see him fighting for the LG spot this year..

OT Austin Shepard B
Strong and a great worker.. will push guys for spots..
Back up or Practice Squad

DE huge upside and explosive player, it will be great to A
see what Zimmer does with him

Robinson Edmond C- sounds like a project kinda guy.

Pruitt TE C+
sounds like has some good ball skills but we have a ton
of TE/FB type guys Zach Line, Asiata, Ellison, Bostick, Ford, Rudolf, more ???

Diggs special team monster and worker (B minus)
Similar to Adam Thielen (but more talent ??)

[John_Viveiros]

I gave it a C+, mainly because I think it's too early to draw any conclusions and that's an average grade. I have no idea if this will prove to be a good draft class for the Vikes or not. It has a "boom or bust" feel to me but I could even be wrong about that.

Same for me. I went with the straight C, because there's just no way to know. I do like the boom or bust picks, assuming that we have someone we think is "replacement level" at our current positions. I think we have that everywhere but left guard and MLB. We need some guys to come in and be better than average at some important positions.

[nightowl]

I'd say a B-, that's really propped up by the first 4 picks, and I do like the Thompson and Sheppard picks late. Also when you come out of the draft with 3 of the top 40-45 players and you didn't give up the farm for it, that's pretty good.

I like the Waynes and Hunter picks, I love the Kendricks and Clemmings picks.

After that they got kinda odd.

I don't really understand the Diggs and Pruitt picks. Diggs character and injury history run opposite of the character needs Zimmer and Speilman spoke about. I accept these two have some talent, I just think there were other less risky picks.

Tyrus Thompson and Sheppard are respectable picks at those spots. Thompson has the natural ability but a questionable motor. Sheppard is the flip side of that coin, he does his work on guts and instincts. I wouldn't be surprised to see Sheppard carve out a respectable career as a backup, he seems to have the attitude that points towards that.

I have no clue who the other two guys are.

[mondry]

CB Trae Waynes (1) - A+ We get the best corner in the draft who's a perfect fit schematically and BPA at a position of need, perfect
LB Eric Kendricks (2) A+ Pretty much the same as above, BPA at a position of need
DE Danielle Hunter (3) B+ Tons of potential and a great height weight speed specimen, would be an A+ but needs to be coached up a little. Perfect fit schematically
OT T.J. Clemmings (4) A Again the BPA at a position of need, every other team's fans were extremely jealous of this pick in the 4th round. Even Packer fans were calling him slick rick on reddit.
TE MyCole Pruitt (5) B- For the 5th round we got a TE with some upside and really nice college production
WR Stefon Diggs (5) A+ BPA, this guy is Percy Harvin but dealt with some injuries and never had a QB, immediate upgrade over adamn theilan as a WR and Sherels as a PR.
OT Tyrus Thompson (6) B- Projected to go in round 4 or 5, to get him in the 6th is a great value pick. Lot of talent and upside to be in the 6th round
DE B.J. Dubose (6) D Maybe the coaches see something we don't but I felt like this was a miss.
OT Austin Shepherd (7) A Love this pick in the 7th round, not very talented but high motor high effort often trumps talent (bryant mckinnie) on the offensive line
LB Edmond Robinson (7) C+ This guy has a good frame for the LB position but he needs a lot of time in an NFL weight lifting program to put mass on that frame.

Overall Spielman nailed the top 4 most important picks and did well throughout the middle with only one "kind of strange" head scratcher. This might be the best draft we've ever had under Spielman, unbelievably good. I'll give it an A- for the total package.

[saint33]

I'd say a B-, that's really propped up by the first 4 picks, and I do like the Thompson and Sheppard picks late. Also when you come out of the draft with 3 of the top 40-45 players and you didn't give up the farm for it, that's pretty good.

I like the Waynes and Hunter picks, I love the Kendricks and Clemmings picks.

After that they got kinda odd.

I don't really understand the Diggs and Pruitt picks. Diggs character and injury history run opposite of the character needs Zimmer and Speilman spoke about. I accept these two have some talent, I just think there were other less risky picks.

Tyrus Thompson and Sheppard are respectable picks at those spots. Thompson has the natural ability but a questionable motor. Sheppard is the flip side of that coin, he does his work on guts and instincts. I wouldn't be surprised to see Sheppard carve out a respectable career as a backup, he seems to have the attitude that points towards that.

I have no clue who the other two guys are.

just listened to the Tyrus Thompson conference call on vikings.com. It was a good interview, funny, likeable kid. And he said he hates when people question his motor because he played last year with a lisfranc tear which is why he may have looked like he wasn't trying or was sluggish.

[saint33]

surprised how down some people are on Hunter. I guess because he wasn't a household name coming into the draft it makes a little sense, but the kid is extremely gifted. Sort of a similar type of a pick as Everson Griffen was, raw as hell, but he'll have time to be developed and his athletic ability is off the charts.

[nightowl]

just listened to the Tyrus Thompson conference call on vikings.com. It was a good interview, funny, likeable kid. And he said he hates when people question his motor because he played last year with a lisfranc tear which is why he may have looked like he wasn't trying or was sluggish.

If that's truly the case we may have got away with one. I'll give him the benefit of the doubt. Thanks for the tip.

[S197]

I won't grade based on the picks, it's just too hard to tell with this group. If we can get 3 or 4 solid players out of the picks after the first two rounds it will be a successful draft. Problem is, we probably won't know that for another two or three years.

I'll give Spielman an initial B+ on finding guys with a lot of upside. He was patient and let Kendricks fall into his hands and bought low on guys like Clemmings, Pruitt, and Diggs.

Also a B+ for racking up the picks without any major losses by moving back that I could see.

I'll give him a C for not addressing the o-line until the 4th and I'm not really sure Clemmings can play guard. It's a C because they did attempt to trade up and you only have so many picks to fill holes, otherwise this grade would be lower.

Also a C for not grabbing a RB in a class that I thought was pretty deep. We have McKinnon so that offsets a lower grade but all the issues with Peterson, we should be taking someone else into camp.

Lastly, a D for failing to draft a QB once again. I get we have Hill as the vet and Kafka as potential but we went, what a round and a half without anyone taking a QB? It would not have been hard to get a decent QB for a relatively low pick.

[Mothman]

CBS Sportsline lists the Vikings among the draft's winners:

http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/eye-on-foo ... -contender

Minnesota Vikings: Rick Spielman's personnel history is spotted with questionable quarterback decisions, a resume he fixed by drafting Teddy Bridgewater late in the first round last year. Otherwise he's done a nice job in the draft and it continued. Trae Waynes, Eric Kendricks and Danielle Hunter are all young defenders getting tossed into a defense that is going to break out in a big way next season. Mike Zimmer's a stud defensive coach and he's got tons of talent on that side of the ball. Harrison Smith, Xavier Rhodes, Anthony Barr, Everson Griffin and Shariff Floyd -- there are a lot of big investments. They could be dominant next year. Adrian Peterson didn't go anywhere and that's a win too, with his agent playing nice. T.J. Clemmings and Stephon Diggs are value picks to add to an ascending offense.

Also, for what its worth, Pete Prisco gives the Vikes a B+.

http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/writer/pet ... re-highest