B-
Minnesota Vikings
Larceny in No. 179 lands the Vikings a B-, Smith-Wade and all.
by kgrundseth ·
2024 NFL Draft
· 9 picks
· 4 steals
· 0 reaches
The board owed the Vikings one, and it paid up: Chau Smith-Wade, the No. 158 name on the board, sitting there at slot 179 like a gift left on the doorstep.
The safety spot stays a question, and it was the one they most needed an answer at. They left with quarterback solved and the rest of the wish list mostly ticked off.
Good work on the whole, with safety the one box left unchecked.
Pick-by-Pick
In the 11th overall pick they get a pocket-collapsing interior rusher. A clean fit for the roster.
They took J.J. McCarthy at par in pick No. 42, which is nothing to complain about. This was priority one on the needs board, and now it is handled.
A tidy little value on Khyree Jackson in the 108th pick, a step better than break-even. Useful depth more than a marquee fix.
Malik Washington at slot 130 is money in the bank, a wide receiver taken below his worth. It fills a real need, too.
A market-rate running back, with the board and the slot shaking hands on Jaylen Wright. It shores up a spot that genuinely needed the help.
LaDarius Henderson in No. 160 is fair value, right on his grade. A must-fix position, and they treated it like one.
A tidy bit of business in Round 5, Pick 30, where Austin Booker graded well above the range. That was the need underlined and circled, and now it is checked off.
They barely believed it either: Chau Smith-Wade still on the board at the Round 6 slot. Nice player, but the depth chart did not need him here.
Steele Chambers slid further than he should have, and Round 7, Pick 10 is lovely value for the linebacker. Useful body for a position without much behind the starter.