B
Minnesota Vikings
The Vikings robbed the room for Sainristil. Final grade: B.
by wbwychor ·
2024 NFL Draft
· 15 picks
· 6 steals
· 2 reaches
If you want a masterclass in dealing, watch the Vikings, who turned every swap into a profit this weekend.
With quarterback and tight end unsolved, spending premium capital on cornerback is the choice that costs them. The Sainristil pick alone nudges the whole weekend up a notch. They will regret leaving quarterback for another day if the season turns on it.
Every board in the league had Harrell lower, and that gap is the story.
All told, a solid class that does its job everywhere but quarterback.
Pick-by-Pick
In the 11th overall pick they get a press-man option on the boundary. Need was not the driver here.
Byron Murphy II slid further than he should have, and the Round 2 slot is lovely value for the interior defensive lineman. The roster fit checks out.
Steal is underselling it; Javon Bullard at pick 86 is a heist with the alarm still ringing. Top of the wish list, and they did not leave without it.
The needs board was loud and they turned it down, spending Round 4, Pick 8 on Mike Sainristil with quarterback and tight end unsolved.
They zigged when the board said zag, taking Kris Abrams-Draine at cornerback with quarterback and tight end open.
No edge and no loss on Braelon Allen in slot 148; it is a wash and a sensible one. Another box on the needs board, quietly ticked.
Ty'Ron Hopper at Round 5, Pick 14 is neither steal nor reach, just the going rate. A quiet depth add at a thin-ish spot.
They paid sticker price for Grayson Murphy in pick 160, and that is fine. It answers the question that was keeping the coaches up at night.
The board had cheaper options than Brennan Jackson at the Round 5 slot, and it noticed. Better still, it is exactly the hole they had to fill.
They did well to land Chau Smith-Wade in the 165th overall pick, just ahead of his grade. Insurance at a position that did not really ask for it.
They paid a round early for Jaylen Harrell in pick No. 179, more than the board wanted. They walked in needing this and walked out with it.
A clean, defensible pick in the 190th pick with a little surplus value in Aki Ogunbiyi. This was priority one on the needs board, and now it is handled.
They let Isaiah Neyor come to them and pounced at No. 220. It fills a real need, too.
Good things come to war rooms that wait, and Daequan Hardy at slot 230 is the proof. Nice player, but the depth chart did not need him here.
Carson Steele at pick No. 249 is right where the board had him, plain and simple. A sensible fit for a spot that needed help.