D-
Minnesota Vikings
Daniels is the Vikings' new face under center. Grade: D-.
by Max ·
2024 NFL Draft
· 9 picks
· 0 steals
· 6 reaches
Call it belief, call it a gut call, but Nick Jackson at Round 7, Pick 23 is 172 spots clear of consensus, and that is the headline. The math is unkind, and the D- follows.
The trades bled value they could not afford to lose. They have staked the next five years on Jayden Daniels, which is the only story that really matters here. A whole weekend of picks and safety is somehow still a want.
The roster is better shaped than it was, with quarterback chief among the fixes.
Add it up and it is a weekend the front office will hope everyone forgets, safety very much included.
Pick-by-Pick
In the Round 1 slot they get a long-term answer under center at fair value. It fills the loudest need on the roster.
In pick 16 they get a potential shutdown corner. More want than need.
Fair-plus on Chop Robinson, a quiet win that adds up over a draft. It also answers one of the loudest questions on the roster.
Donovan Jackson at the 108th pick is a conviction pick that outran the value. This was priority one on the needs board, and now it is handled.
A big swing on Justin Rogers at slot 124, well ahead of any board in the building. It shores up a spot that genuinely needed the help.
They talked themselves into Frank Gore Jr. at No. 145, and the board did not agree. The roster fit checks out.
Layden Robinson in pick 148 is early enough to raise a brow, if not a full objection. A must-fix position, and they treated it like one.
They left a pile of value on the table to take Nick Jackson this early at the Round 7 slot. Useful body for a position without much behind the starter.
Connor Colby at the 256th pick is an overdraft of the loud, memorable kind. That was the need underlined and circled, and now it is checked off.