D-
Minnesota Vikings
The Vikings bled value on every deal, hence the D-.
by MarkSP18 ·
2025 NFL Draft
· 9 picks
· 3 steals
· 4 reaches
When the story of this class is written, it opens with Jonah Monheim at Round 5, Pick 3, a reach of 72 spots that the board flatly disagrees with. The board pushed back all weekend, and the D- is the result.
They handed away value on the phones that the picks cannot earn back. If this class has a fault line, it runs straight through quarterback.
The Emmanwori value carries more weight than any single miss elsewhere. The veteran additions, Braelon Allen chief among them, give the class a floor the rookies alone would not.
It is a steep hill from here, and the grade knows it.
Pick-by-Pick
In Round 1, Pick 7 they get an anchor for the defensive front at fair value. A clean fit for the roster.
They will replay Nick Emmanwori at slot 45 for years; that is how good the value is. Better still, it is exactly the hole they had to fill.
The board had Armand Membou higher than No. 76, and the offensive lineman fell to them anyway. A glaring weakness, addressed head on.
Cam Skattebo at the 97th pick jumps the queue by a touch more than is comfortable. It shores up a spot that genuinely needed the help.
Taking Barrett Carter in the Round 4 slot is close to grand larceny; a linebacker that good had no business lasting this long. A minor need, but a need all the same.
A premium they did not need to pay, Mello Dotson a notch or two before his time. A quiet depth add at a thin-ish spot.
Jonah Monheim at the Round 5 slot is a steep price for a hunch, hard to square with any board. It answers the question that was keeping the coaches up at night.
They liked CJ West enough to skip the value, taking him in the 186th overall pick. The roster fit checks out.
Cody Lindenberg at No. 221 nudges the ledger their way without any fuss. Depth on depth, at a spot that was hardly crying out.