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The Minnesota Vikings selected Caleb Banks, ranked 62nd by Mel Kiper Jr., with the 18th overall pick in the NFL Draft. This decision highlights a significant divergence from Kiper's draft board.
Vikings picked Mel Kiper's 62nd-ranked player with the 18th pick in the NFL Draft originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
Every draft board is different.
In this case, the Minnesota Vikings clearly had a very different draft board from the one put together by ESPN analyst Mel Kiper Jr.
Kiper had Florida defensive tackle Caleb Banks ranked as his No. 62 player in this draft class.
The Vikings took Banks with the 18th overall pick during Thursday night's first round.
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Yeah, that's a bit of a difference.
"Big-time reach for me," Kiper wrote after the pick. "Banks was No. 62 on my board, the biggest stretch of the night. Sure, there's reason to believe this could work out for the Vikings. Banks can stop running backs in their tracks, and he gets enough interior push to be a factor in the pass rush. He moves well for a 6-foot-6, 327-pounder. But he has been dealing with a foot injury for a while now, and he just had surgery on it after the combine. A lot of risk here, even if Banks healthy and at his best can shore up the interior."
Making matters worse is that two great safeties, Dillon Thieneman and Emmanuel McNeil-Warren, were still on the board.
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The Vikings likely saw potential in Caleb Banks that aligned with their team needs, despite his lower ranking by Mel Kiper Jr.
Mel Kiper ranked Caleb Banks as the 62nd player in the draft class.
Caleb Banks plays as a defensive tackle for the Minnesota Vikings.

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The Vikings will need an heir to Harrison Smith, and many thought they'd go safety with this pick.
Instead, they reached on Banks.
"This was made worse by the fact that safety Dillon Thieneman was still on the board," Kiper writes. "Everyone thought that pairing made sense. Harrison Smith is still uncertain to return for 2026, and even if he comes back, he's 37 years old. Thieneman would have been perfect in Brian Flores' defense. Not sure I understand this one."
Banks will have to prove some doubters wrong. Football players love that kind of motivation, though, so don't be surprised if Banks is paying attention and uses it as fuel.