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Rather than post who I think the Vikings will take with each pick, I offer a smorgasbord of choices that address the needs and also possibly uncover some gems. Both Teddy Bridgwater and Johnny Manziel will be gone. I do not believe there is another QB worth a top ten selection. Many are pointing to Blake Bortles, but I NEVER trust prospects who suddenly surge after Bowl season. And there are too many questions about Derek Carr's mechanics for me to feel comfortable taking a risk on him with a top ten pick. This is a list of players I think the Vikings have a realistic shot of drafting WITHOUT trades. I only went through Round 6 because, well, I'm lazy. And by round 7 what was a crapshoot becomes merely throwing things at the wall and seeing what sticks.

These are the players the Vikings should target (in no particular order):

Round 1 - Pick 8

LB - Khalil Mack - will he make it to #8? If he does, he would be the foundation the Vikings could build into a nasty LB corps
LB - CJ Mosley - dependent upon injury concerns, if healthy, the best LB option out there
S - Ha Ha Clinton-Dix - best safety available in the draft, imagine him teamed with Harrison Smith
CB - Darqueze Dennard - a shutdown CB is desperately needed
DT - Louis Nix - Disruptive force when he is healthy. Coming off knee surgery.
WR - Mike Evans - another weapon for the "QB of the future" to target

Round 2 - Pick 40

LB - Kyle Van Noy - an excellent, intelligent LB who could end up as productive as the first round prospects
DT - Aaron Donald - Small, but extremely effective pass rushing DT
DT - Ed Stinson - not much of a pass rush, but is this the run stuffer the Vikings have been lacking?
OT - Antonio Richardson - an excellent tackle who has first round potential
FS - Ed Reynolds - took a step back this past season, but could blossom into a very good FS
QB - If Bortles or Carr is available, pull the trigger here.

Round 3 - Pick 72

OG - Zack Martin - should he somehow slip this far, take him!
LB - Yawin Smallwood - tough, hard-hitting LB with great size
DT - Anthony Johnson - should he slip to the third round, he'd be a nice pick up here
QB - Tajh Boyd - if he's still available, he would be a worthwhile choice
LB - Christian Jones - could line up at OLB or DE in passing situations
C - Travis Swanson - may go earlier, but it would be good to have a guy to push Sullivan

Round 3 - Pick 96

CB - Aaron Colvin - some may view this as a little high for him, but he's a tough corner
OG - Anthony Steen - a run blocker who flourished in a zone blocking scheme
LB - Chris Borland - there are knocks on his pass coverage ability, but he's aces on run defense and could be a special teams star
FS - Kurtis Drummond - he would be a steal if he drops to the late third
DT - Daniel McCullers - might be considered one-dimensional, but he has Pat Williams-type size
OT - Morgan Moses - solid ROT potential.

Round 4 - Pick 104

LB - Jonathan Brown - the bright spot on a very bad team. Has the talent, needs coaching
FS - Calvin Pryor - had a breakout season and has great size
DE - James Gayle - could be a real gem. Very hard worker who would blossom under the right guidance
SS - Deone Bucannon - could slip this far and would be a nice backup for Harrison Smith
LB - Dee Ford - pass rushing LB with great speed
G - Zach Fulton - a good run blocker who improved his pass blocking this season

Round 5 - Pick 136

LB - Trey DePriest - an ILB who could flourish out of the shadow of CJ Mosely and Adrian Hubbard
DT - Ryan Carrethers - it may be wishful thinking to hope he's here when the Vikings pick. If he is, it's a no-brainer
QB - David Fales - his lack of arm strength could cause him to fall and this would be the time to take a chance on him
WR - Robert Herron - short, but has amazing speed and toughness
DE - Taylor Hart - great size and could play almost anywhere on the line

Round 6 - Pick 168

DE - Larry Webster - a project with huge potential out of D-II. Very athletic, but raw and needs to bulk up
QB - Connor Shaw - really solid QB who simply does not throw INTs
OT - Austin Wentworth - great pass blocking and good size
TE - Jacob Pedersen - a tight end who can catch AND block

Where's the RB's?

Vikings gonna need one.

I don't think we can risk waiting until the second round to draft a QB. I think all of the good ones will be gone by then. Most of them by the first 10 picks... Although your picks for the first round would be great additions, I think quarterback is our main concern at the moment which is why we should pick one in the first round.

SkyFire wrote:I don't think we can risk waiting until the second round to draft a QB. I think all of the good ones will be gone by then. Most of them by the first 10 picks... Although your picks for the first round would be great additions, I think quarterback is our main concern at the moment which is why we should pick one in the first round.

I understand your desire for a QB. But I really do not feel any of them are worth a first round pick outside of Bridgewater and Manziel. And why reach for a guy when there are other needs right now that can be addressed with the best players available?

If there is no good prospect at QB then I would prefer Barr over Mack but they are very close. One or the other will be gone by the Vike's 1st pick at #8. I really like Barr's game and upside.

BGM wrote: I understand your desire for a QB. But I really do not feel any of them are worth a first round pick outside of Bridgewater and Manziel. And why reach for a guy when there are other needs right now that can be addressed with the best players available?

I couldn't agree more. I think it would be far worse to swing and miss on another first round quarterback than it would be to just wait and stick with a veteran option or draft a quarterback like David Fales or Tahj Boyd later.

frosted21 wrote: I couldn't agree more. I think it would be far worse to swing and miss on another first round quarterback than it would be to just wait and stick with a veteran option or draft a quarterback like David Fales or Tahj Boyd later.

I like Boyd a whole lot he would be a great pick with one of their 2 3rd round picks.

As far as offensive linemen go, I don't see the Vikings taking anything other than a guard (and not an undersized center to be converted to guard) above the 5th round. Overall, I expect their draft to be heavily weighted toward defensive players. After that QB that they have to take in the 1st or 2nd round, and probably a guard later on, they don't have a lot of pressing needs on offense. Possibly a mid to late round WR.

DePriest is going back to Bama

I was skeptical at first, but I am no longer. The Vikings MUST get a QB in the first round. All of the weapons are there on offense. Solidify the OL with a guard somewhere in the draft, and you're golden.

The barrel is loaded - it's time to pull the trigger.

In 2011 the vikings shocked the world with the selection of Christian Ponder with the 12th pick, passing on Nick Fairley, Robert Quinn, and Ryan Kerrigan just to name a couple.

In 2012 the Vikings selected Matt Kalil with the 4th pick and even though a pro bowl LT, passing on Ryan Tannehill, Luke Kuelchly and Dontari Poe just to name a couple.

A question arises, why in you're right mind would you want them to reach for another QB or another "need" position over the most valuable player on the board? IF Calvin Johnson was sitting on the board, IF Darrel Revis was sitting on the board, IF Patrick Willis was sitting on the board, would you really just want to continue to settle for what you need? I know what you're thinking, it is not that easy any pick can be a bust... well that is why you pay money to these so called "scouts" to help you and your organization make the right decisions. The first round is where you don't want to get it wrong, this is the round where you will find your franchise cornerstones. When may rolls around there is a very real possibility that Mike Evans, Sammy Watkins, Stephon Tuitt, Darqueze Dennard and Anthony Barr will all be on the board or at the very least one of them, if this happens and we take a QB that is not named Manziel OR Bridgewater I will only have one question on my mind. IS this a franchise that really wants to win? SKOL

Vike Fan 4 Life wrote:DePriest is going back to Bama

Crud. I was afraid some of my info was out-dated. I will update my list later. Thanks!

Speilman traded up to get a third draft choice in the 1st round last year. I hope he trades up from 8 to get our future Q.B. Ponder can't be coming back, Cassell isn't the answer..Who gets to start? Joe Webb?

I think they are going to grab a QB in the 1st round. Way too much talk from Winterpark stating that the Franchise QB wasn't on the roster this past season. Unless they make some blockbuster trade or FA signing it all seems to point towards picking up one of the QB prospects. I'm not sure we'll get to him, but I would love to see Manziel here. He seems to have that extra intangible spark, whatever it is.

As far as other positions. I think an under the radar need is a legit NT. We haven't had one since Pat left and it shows.

mansquatch wrote:I think they are going to grab a QB in the 1st round. Way too much talk from Winterpark stating that the Franchise QB wasn't on the roster this past season. Unless they make some blockbuster trade or FA signing it all seems to point towards picking up one of the QB prospects. I'm not sure we'll get to him, but I would love to see Manziel here. He seems to have that extra intangible spark, whatever it is.

As far as other positions. I think an under the radar need is a legit NT. We haven't had one since Pat left and it shows.

That is my belief as well. One of the Vikings biggest weaknesses is their inability to stop RBs at the first level with the DL. There seem to be only a handful of run stopping DTs in this draft.

There were no trades factored in, but I would not be averse to trading up for Manziel or Bridgewater. I imagine the coaches hired will have a major effect on who the team targets in the draft, so my list may be pretty obsolete when it's all said and done.