Vikings Should Be Leery of One Draft Trap

Jamie Sabau

Do you know the positional favorite for the Minnesota Vikings to draft in Round 1 on Thursday night? A safety. Is drafting a Round 1 safety a death sentence? No, it is not. Can safeties easily be found from Rounds 3 through 7? Yes, they can.

Safety can wait. Premium picks should not.

Unlike any other position in professional football, safeties are easier to find in the draft’s later rounds. The Vikings must decide whether to invest 1st-Round draft capital in a spot that can be addressed relatively easily in Round 3 or later.

Why Minnesota Should Save Pick No. 18 for a More Valuable Position

A safety is fine for the Vikings, but it’s not optimal team-building.

San Francisco 49ers safety Talanoa Hufanga (29) celebrates after securing an interception, energizing his defense early in the game on Oct. 23, 2022, at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara during a matchup against the Kansas City Chiefs, with teammates rallying around him following the momentum-shifting takeaway in the first quarter. Mandatory Credit: Cary Edmondson-Imagn Images.

Safeties Drafted from Round 3-7

It’s not a cardinal sin to select a safety in Round 1; let’s get that out of the way. It’s just not difficult to snag from Round 3 to 7,

From 2012 to 2023, these safeties were chosen after Round 2 and later started 50+ games in the NFL:

• Adrian Amos
• Jamal Adams
• Ricardo Allen
• Jessie Bates
• Julian Blackmon
• Tre Boston
• Kevin Byard
• Andre Cisco
• Chuck Clark
• Landon Collins
• Kamren Curl
• Quandre Diggs
• Will Harris
• Jaylenn Hawkins
• Amani Hooker
• Talanoa Hufanga
• Micah Hyde
• George Iloka
• Brandon Jones
• John Johnson
• Kerby Joseph
• Damontae Kazee

Most positions aren’t like that.

The Numbers

You just read the raw list of mid-to-late-round safeties who latched on as starters. Here’s the comparative skinny:

Players Drafted from R3 to R7,
Who Started 50+ Games in NFL,
Per Position,
From 2012 to 2023:

Safety: 38
Guard: 34
Defensive Tackle: 33
Tight End: 29
Wide Receiver: 28
Tackle: 21
Inside Linebacker: 20
Cornerback: 20
EDGE: 20
Center: 16
Running Back: 14
Quarterback: 5

If you’re ever curious why a quality safety can be signed in free agency at virtually any time — even if the middle of the regular season on a random Wednesday — it’s because there’s some market saturation. Put plainly, decent safeties are not hard to find. Why? Well, they come from the middle and late draft rounds. Simple as that.

In Support of a Safety

Are you big on Dillon Thieneman? How about Emmanuel McNeil-Warren? That’s actually great; there is nothing wrong with you, nothing wrong with your draft wishlist.

For example, if an idiot had published this article about Harrison Smith in April 2012, Minnesota would’ve missed out on a Hall-of-Fame-caliber or fringe Hall-of-Fame safety. The Vikings picked Smith 29th in 2012, and every moment has been worth it.

Toledo safety Emmanuel McNeil-Warren (22) tracks the play and moves into position, showcasing awareness in the secondary on Dec. 30, 2023, at Arizona Stadium in Tucson during the Arizona Bowl matchup against Wyoming, as he remained active in coverage and support throughout the postseason contest. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images.

Or, more recently, the Baltimore Ravens drafted Malaki Starks in Round 1, and he immediately looked the part of a quality starting safety with staying power.

This article does not claim that safeties are bad. No one should frown if Thieneman is the pick. It’s just that good safeties, more than other positions, can be procrastinated to Rounds 3 through 7.

The Viking Age‘s Jaleel Grandberry on Thieneman: “Eighteen, of course, is where Minnesota picks, and while prospects don’t come off the board in the order of their ranking, this is a sign that Thieneman will likely be available for the Vikings, and that it would make sense for Minnesota to select him. Minnesota adding a player like Thieneman is exactly what the Vikings defense needs, and he would be a phenomenal weapon for Brian Flores to work with.”

“The good news for Minnesota is that if the franchise wants him, it looks like the team will have the opportunity to get him. In addition to his prospect ranking, Thieneman was recently projected to land with the Vikings in Mel Kiper’s final mock draft of the year. So as the draft approaches, all signs point to Minnesota landing Dillon Thieneman, and he’ll be a selection who should have fans excited.”

If Not a Safety, Then Who?

Finally, let’s pretend the Vikings’ executives and coaches already agree with this mentality — they decide to get a safety on Friday night or Saturday afternoon. The realistic draft board might look like this:

• Jermod McCoy (CB, Tennessee)
• Kenyon Sadiq (TE, Oregon)
• Keldric Faulk (EDGE, Auburn)
• Akheem Mesidor (EDGE, Miami (FL))
• Peter Woods (DT, Clemson)
• Kayden McDonald (DT, Ohio State)
• T.J. Parker (EDGE, Clemson)
• Colton Hood (CB, Tennessee)

Oregon tight end Kenyon Sadiq (18) reacts after reaching the end zone, celebrating with visible energy following a scoring play on Dec. 7, 2024, at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis during the Big Ten Championship game against Penn State, as the Ducks capitalized early in a high-stakes conference title matchup. Mandatory Credit: Robert Goddin-Imagn Images.

Per the list above, illustrating players by positional need, it might be wisest for Minnesota to pick an EDGE rusher or a cornerback. There’s a reason those positions are considered premium, and safeties are not.