D+
Minnesota Vikings
The Vikings answered their biggest question with McCarthy. Grade: D+.
by thajoykileryahoocom ·
2024 NFL Draft
· 15 picks
· 9 steals
· 2 reaches
The phones were a trap the Vikings kept walking into, shipping out surplus on nearly every deal.
They have staked the next five years on J.J. McCarthy, which is the only story that really matters here. If McCarthy pans out, nobody remembers the price. If not, this is the pick they hear about.
However the rest shakes out, Rouse at that price is a win they earned.
It is a steep hill from here, and the grade knows it.
Pick-by-Pick
In slot 17 they get a disruptor off the edge. The biggest hole, addressed.
J.J. McCarthy at pick 21 is an overdraft of the loud, memorable kind. It also answers one of the loudest questions on the roster.
A top-tier offensive lineman at a bargain, Amarius Mims in pick No. 42, plain and simple. The one spot they could not leave alone, and did not.
They did well to land Edgerrin Cooper in the Round 2 slot, just ahead of his grade. Not urgent, but hardly pointless.
The board screamed and they did not listen, reaching into the next round for Sedrick Van Pran. Top of the wish list, and they did not leave without it.
Jaden Hicks at the 109th overall pick is a first-round grade at a bargain-bin price, no notes. This was priority one on the needs board, and now it is handled.
DeWayne Carter slid further than he should have, and Round 4, Pick 13 is lovely value for the interior defensive lineman. One more legitimate question on the roster, answered.
Christian Mahogany in No. 116 is a bargain the rest of the room will envy. That was the need underlined and circled, and now it is checked off.
Josh Newton in the Round 4 slot lands just on the right side of the ledger. A minor need, but a need all the same.
Dylan Laube at Round 5, Pick 20 nudges the ledger their way without any fuss. Another box on the needs board, quietly ticked.
Taking Kalen King in the 166th overall pick is close to grand larceny; a cornerback that good had no business lasting this long. A luxury on a unit that was already in good shape.
A tidy bit of business in the 179th pick, where Luke McCaffrey graded well above the range. It fills a real need, too.
Circle this one: AJ Barner at pick No. 190 is a fall that decides a draft. A sensible fit for a spot that needed help.
Walter Rouse in slot 211 is the kind of fall that makes a whole class. The biggest hole on the depth chart just got a whole lot smaller.
Joe Milton III at No. 229 is daylight robbery; nobody expected him to last. It answers the question that was keeping the coaches up at night.