B-
Minnesota Vikings
Larceny in the 179th pick lands the Vikings a B-, Simpson and all.
by TCSmith ·
2024 NFL Draft
· 12 picks
· 4 steals
· 1 reaches
Somewhere a general manager is explaining how Jaylin Simpson got past him. The Vikings do not have to explain a thing at No. 179. A dependable weekend that grades out a B-.
Reaching for Raym left real value on the table behind him. The safety hole is the one line item this class does not answer. The trades cost them a sliver of value they did not need to spend.
Stockpiling next year's capital is patient, if unglamorous, asset work.
In sum, a sturdy weekend with one asterisk, the safety spot they never got to.
Pick-by-Pick
In pick No. 30 they get juice off the edge at fair value. Exactly the need they had to hit.
T.J. Tampa is a better player than pick 51 suggests; smart patience, rewarded. It thickens a room that could stand to be thicker.
Steal is underselling it; Ja'Lynn Polk at the 73rd pick is a heist with the alarm still ringing. A sensible fit for a spot that needed help.
A straight-up fair deal on Braden Fiske at the Round 3 slot, value and slot in agreement. It fills a real need, too.
By-the-book stuff, Leonard Taylor III at Round 4, Pick 8 squarely in line with his ranking. One more legitimate question on the roster, answered.
They took Jordan Travis at par in slot 130, which is nothing to complain about. A must-fix position, and they treated it like one.
Braelon Allen at the 148th overall pick is neither steal nor reach, just the going rate. It plugs a real leak on the depth chart.
No drama and no debate, Layden Robinson went about where he belonged in No. 160. That was the need underlined and circled, and now it is checked off.
A swing that ignored the value entirely, Andrew Raym well ahead of where he belonged. It also answers one of the loudest questions on the roster.
Somehow Jaylin Simpson was still sitting there in slot 179, and they pounced on premier cornerback value. Insurance at a position that did not really ask for it.
Value with a capital V on Braiden McGregor in the Round 6 slot, a genuine coup. The one spot they could not leave alone, and did not.
They did well to land Brevyn Spann-Ford in the 230th overall pick, just ahead of his grade. The roster fit checks out.