B
Minnesota Vikings
The Vikings found their guy under center in McCarthy: B.
by cw ·
2024 NFL Draft
· 11 picks
· 3 steals
· 7 reaches
The board owed the Vikings one, and it paid up: Ennis Rakestraw Jr., the No. 37 name on the board, sitting there at Round 4, Pick 29 like a gift left on the doorstep. A dependable weekend that grades out a B.
The whole projection now runs through J.J. McCarthy; hit there and everything else looks smarter. If this class has a fault line, it runs straight through edge rusher. The Vikings indulged a want in Rakestraw Jr. while a need in edge rusher and tight end stayed open.
Owens has a lot of ground to make up just to look fairly priced.
Nothing here to lose sleep over, and plenty to feel decent about.
Pick-by-Pick
In slot 11 they get their quarterback of the future, even if it was a touch early. The biggest hole, addressed.
In pick No. 24 they get a run-stuffing presence up front at fair value.
Khyree Jackson at the Round 3 slot is a clear overpay, with better names still on the board. Useful body for a position without much behind the starter.
They went early on Hunter Nourzad in pick No. 108, and the value did not follow. Better still, it is exactly the hole they had to fill.
A want over a need in No. 129: Ennis Rakestraw Jr. adds a cornerback while edge rusher and tight end keeps waiting.
A reach for Jordan Jefferson in Round 5, Pick 21; a little patience would have been rewarded. It plugs a real leak on the depth chart.
You do not let a wide receiver like Jamari Thrash reach slot 167 and blink. They did not. It shores up a spot that genuinely needed the help.
Josh Newton in the 177th overall pick should not have been possible, and that is the whole point. A want more than a need, though you can never have too many.
Garret Greenfield in pick 216 is the kind of reach that only looks good if he outplays it. They walked in needing this and walked out with it.
Tyler Owens in the 230th pick is early enough to raise a brow, if not a full objection. A glaring weakness, addressed head on.
Emani Bailey at the 232nd pick jumps the queue by a touch more than is comfortable. Another box on the needs board, quietly ticked.