Well, well, well, looks like someone decided we needed a new platform to shove some more Vikings info down your throat. But don't worry, we won't be filling your mind with a bunch of nonsense, hopefully you find us as bright and charming here as you do on air.
So to kick off my first article on here, I, Ryan "Grapes” Grapentine, figured I would start slow and post my initial Big Board that we went over on Episode 103 this week, and do a little dive into the players and give you my analysis on them to let you know why they sit where they sit, and why they're a great fit for our scheme. So without further adieux, I present my ever changing Big Board.
1) Trevor Lawrence QB Clemson
This should come as a surprise to no one, as Lawrence is the top graded prospect across the land, sans Chris Simms. At 6’6” 220 lbs he has the prototypical build you're looking for in a quarterback even though he has a slender frame. He moves well in the pocket and throws with great anticipation. He wasn't asked to do a whole lot in the offense, so the numbers don't pop out at you. It's odd to think that the best QB prospect since Andrew Luck never won a Heisman, but here we are. Thanks Dabo…
2) Justin Fields QB Ohio State
Justin Fields is going to get a lot of scrutiny in the coming weeks and I don't think it will be all that fair. I know a lot of OSU Qb's haven't panned out but this isn't Cardale Jones were talking about. Fields was the #2 recruit put of HS right behind Trevor Lawrence. Fields originally attended Georgia, but transferred to OSU after he was beat out by Jake Fromm. Fields hit the ground running in Columbus and they never looked back. Fields has nice touch, great mobility and can hit throws at all levels of the field. He gets knocked for slow processing because he mainly hits his first read, but if your OC knows what he's doing, you don't need any other reads. Plug him in and let his talent do the talking.
3) Zach Wilson QB BYU
As you all probably don't know, I was a big Johnny Manziel fan. So big I pouted when we took Anthoney Barr over him. Which may be why I'm a little skittish while evaluating Zach Wilson. I shouldnt be, because Zach Wilson is a man of God, whereas Johnny Football was the antichrist. Both shorter and skinnier than your average, they also play with the same style and moxy. That's where the similarities stop. Zach Wilson is not Johnny Football. Wilson makes NFL throws with a flick of the wrist, they way Patrick Mahomes does. He breaks the pocket like Kyler Murray, and does a great job of squaring up his shoulders before launching the ball and dropping into spots where only his WR can get it. He is the ideal fit for the Vikings West Coast Offense. Writing this up, I may have him too low..
4) Trey Lance QB NDSU
“But Grapes, you hated Carson Wentz BECAUSE he went to NDSU. What gives?” Well I'll tell ya, Trey Lance is far and away superior to Carson Wentz in every single facet of the game. I wanted Lance to fail because this state is riddled with Bison fans and it's disgusting. But low and behold here we are in the first week of March and Lance is #4. From the Land of 10,000 lakes, it would be a fairy tale ending for a kid who was deemed not good enough for the Gophers to offer him a scholarship, to end up as the starting QB for the Minnesota Vikings. Lance has a big frame, has got some wheels to him and a cannon of an arm. He isn't asked to make a lot of NFL throws which will scare some people off (I was a little worried) but you can't focus on what they're not asked to do. When a play needed to be made, he made it. He only played one game in 2020 due to the pandemic but his 2019 tape was great. Lance also only had one turnover compared to 40+ TDs and led NDSU to an undefeated season and an FCS title. The kid can play, Carson can't.
5) Penei Sewell OL Oregon
NFL ready? Check. NFL size? Check. Positional versatility? Check. Vikings fans, if we have the chance to get Penei Sewell, we should sprint to the podium. Last year's Tackle class was amazing with, Mekhi Becton, Tristan Wirfs, Jedrick Wills and Andrew Thomas, but Sewell would've went ahead of all of them. He's that good. And with Rieff on the roster as of right now you want someone who can play guard for a year or two before kicking outside, and Sewell can do that. Another 2020 opt out, you don't have any tape to see how he progressed after 2019 but that tape was so good he's been a consensus top 5 player all year. He's big, athletic and mobile. Exactly the kind of lineman the Vikings have been looking for.
6) Rashawn Slater OL Northwestern
If we're sprinting to get Sewell, we're definitely running to get Slater. All things hold the same as Sewell where Slater also has positional versatility, mobility and is NFL ready. He's a perfect fit for the zone scheme at either guard or tackle and the Vikings can plug him in wherever they see fit. Slater was one of the few to hold former #2 pick Chase Young in check his final season, and that definitely vaulted him up boards because of it. And rightfully so. If you can hold your own against Young, while also having consistent top tier technique on tape, you should be able to make some money at the next level, and I expect Slater will be making a lot of money in his career.
7) Christian Barmore 3Tech Alabama
“You think Barmore is the seventh best player in the draft?!” *Insert Will Ferrell gif* What an idiot
No, I don't think he's the seventh best player but I do think he's the 7th best fit for us in this draft. Back in the day the Williams Wall ruled the NFL, and would give up no more than 75 yds on the ground while creating pressure right up the middle. I miss that feeling. I want it back. A front four of Danielle Hunter, Michael Pierce, Christian Barmore and a rotation of Wonnum/Weatherly/Odenigbo would immensely help out a defense front that was bottom half in the league in almost every single category. Barmore is a late riser but has always shown he can play. The College Football playoffs is where he made his money. Going up against top OLines in Notre Dame and Ohio State, Barmore showed that he can play with the big boys, wreaking havoc in all facets of the game. Pierce and Barmore throwing guys into the opposing QBs lap would be a sight to see. And would also be nice seeing it happen to anyone not named Kirk Cousins.
8) Kwity Paye Edge Michigan
If you're a Gophers fan, you probably remember the 2020 Opener against Kwity Paye and the Michigan Wolverines. Kwity Paye was #19 and was a one man wrecking crew. Paye is a freak athlete who ran the 3 cone drill in 6.8 seconds, which if you didn't know, is incredibly gifted for a man of his size. He's a guy you want DL coach Andre Patterson to get his hands on. He has all the tools, he just needs someone to help him put it all together on a consistent basis.
9) Alija Vera-Tucker OL USC
Need a guard? Need a tackle? No worries, this guy can play both. In 2019 Vera-Tucker started at LG for the Trojans before kicking over to LT for the 2020 season, and played like a natural. He was a major reason USC QB Kedon Slovis played as well as he did. Vera-Tucker held his own against all competition, including future top 20 pick Oregon EDGE Keith Thibideaux, which is a monster task on its own. I would be more than happy to grab him at 14, and plug him in at LG for a year before kicking out to LT after Riley Rieff's contract is up.
10) Christian Darrisaw LT Virginia Tech
This guy right here moves up a couple of slots if we don't bring back Riley Rieff. As a pure tackle, it's hard to fit him higher because you then have a “problem” of too many tackles. Do you slide Rieff inside? Can Darrisaw play guard? Both have their question marks and honestly I prefer not to find out. Darrisaw is a mammoth who can move, and enjoys watching tape on LT Trent Williams. If we take him, I'd rather plug him in at LT, and hope that we've moved on from Rieff and filled the void at LG before we do so.
11 Kyle Pitts WR Florida
You see what I did there? I called him a WR because that's what he is. Line him up at TE all you want, but I don't want to hear anyone complain that we took Pitts because we have Irv Smith Jr. Irv is a fine player, but when you have the chance to add a talent on Kyle Pitts level you have to do it. Arguably the best skill position player in the draft, he fills the role of the WR3 spot and also can line up inside with Irv when we run 12 personnel 38 times a game. Don't overthink this one. If he's available you should take him.
*Definitely not high enough on the board. Will adjust
12 Caleb Farley CB Virginia Tech
Oh yes Vikings fans. Another CB in the 1st round, I know you guys are as excited as I am. With Gladney almost certainly a nickelback, the uncertainty surrounding Mike Hughes and if he can stay healthy (also final year under contract) the Vikings will need outside help to go along with 2nd year player and Grapes and Gorak favorite, Cameron Dantzler. Farley reportedly ran a 4.22 40 at the EXOS combine last week but I nor you should believe the numbers coming out, as they're more than likely skewed in favor of the players. I for one am shocked. The fake numbers tho should take nothing from Farley's game as I think he's the clear cut #1 CB in the draft and has the potential to be shutdown CB day 1.
13) Patrick Surtain II CB Alabama
The Vikings hired former Alabama DB Coach Karl Scott, who will come with plenty of information on Patrick Surtain II, and GM Rick Spielman was with the Dolphins when his dad, Patrick Surtain, was playing alongside Sam Madison, creating one of the best CB duos in recent memory. Not that any of that matters, but the more info you can gather on a player in the draft the better. Surtain II was one of the highest graded CBs in all of college football last year and has great instincts when playing in coverage. He played a lot of zone at Alabama which may hurt his chances of being drafted by us but Surtain is definitely good enough to start immediately next to Dantzler and Gladney.
14) Gregory Rousseau DE Miami
Rousseau is one of the biggest question marks in the draft. At 6’6” 265lbs he has the size and length to be a superstar at the next level. Rousseau had 19.5 tackles for a loss and 15.5 sacks in 2019 for the Hurricanes. Unfortunately he opted out of 2020 so we couldn't see if those were real numbers or if he did just clean up the yard to pad his stats, which it kind of looked like on tape. He also has inside/outside flexibility which would give Zimmer another chess piece for the exotic blitzes that we all know and love when he has the talent to do so.
15) Jaycee Horn CB South Carolina
Son of cell phone celly Joe Horn, former WR for the Saints, Jaycee has the tools and the bloodline to be a #1 corner in the NFL. He only allowed 8 catches in 239 coverage snaps, with a 33% completion rate in 2020 which if you didn't know, is pretty good. Less than one catch per game good. He's also been working out with Jalen Ramsey as of late which can only help his game.
That concludes my initial Top 15 Big Board. As you know some notable names were left off.. Ja'Marr Chase, Jaylen Waddle, Devonta Smith… at first I thought I did the right thing, but then you try and position yourself in front of your TV on draft day and Ja'Marr Chase is on the board along with Christian Barmore. Who am I pounding the table for? Probably Ja'Marr Chase. 3tech is a bigger, more immediate need and I would've love to get a legit one. But Chase is so good I don't think I can pass him up. Adam Thielen is 31 so we're going to need a replacement sooner or later. I'm sure I'll figure it out as the draft gets closer. Luckily I still have time to work it all out and create the perfect big board for you to follow come draft day.
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