Category: Mock Drafts

Minnesota Vikings secure secondary help in latest mock draft

The Minnesota Vikings secure some help in the secondary in the latest mock draft.

Yahoo Sports’ Nate Tice gave us his latest mock draft as the 2024 NFL draft order is taking shape. The Minnesota Vikings are currently picking 15th. For Tice, this was the perfect chance for Minnesota to secure some long-term help in the secondary with Iowa cornerback Cooper DeJean.

In this mock draft timeline, Brian Flores returns as Vikings defensive coordinator. DeJean, an incredibly versatile defender with outstanding athleticism, stays in Big Ten country and joins in on the blitzing and shifting coverage fun.

DeJean can be a Pro Bowl-caliber player at outside cornerback, slot or at safety, so let’s drop him in Flores’ lava lamp-like scheme and let him rip it up from everywhere. DeJean’s punt return ability is the cherry on top.

DeJean’s versatility is a perfect plug-and-play for Flores, as he can make plays from everywhere on the field. He can line up outside with the number-one receiver while having the athleticism to stay with your tight end or slot receiver on the inside. He rallies to the football and tackles well, which is necessary in Flores’ scheme. DeJean can be anywhere in the defensive secondary, and he will be able to make a play. Just to put a cherry on top, he’s an electric punt returner as well.

While the future of the edge room is also a huge question mark, bringing in talent like DeJean is not a bad route to go either.

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Purple Daily on Draft: Vikings won’t play Jaren Hall and J.J. McCarthy breakdown

The latest eisode of Purple Daily on Draft discusses Jaren Hall and breaks down Michigan QB J.J. McCarthy

The Minnesota Vikings are in quite an interesting position both in terms of right now and in the future.

They chose to start Nick Mullens over both Jaren Hall and Josh Dobbs  which can be boiled down to Mullens winning the job in training camp. Is there any reason why Hall would start over Mullens?

Host and Vikings Wire managing editor Tyler Forness watched some film on J.J. McCarthy during his downtime on Sunday afternoon with the Vikings not having a game to cover. What do his pro prospects look like?

Lastly, the guys break down a four round of a seven-round mock draft from Pro Football Network. Who did they have the Vikings taking and when did they select a quarterback and how do they fit?

All of that and more on the latest episode of Purple Daily on Draft, dropping every Monday afternoon on the Purple Daily YouTube channel.

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Minnesota bolsters defense in three-round mock draft

Minnesota forgoes the quarterback for a pair of defensive lineman in the latest three-round mock draft.

Sports Illustrated’s Luke Easterling put out the first of many three-round mock drafts with the end of the NFL regular season inching closer.

With the 22nd pick in this hypothetical, the Minnesota Vikings take defensive lineman Leonard Taylor, III from Miami.

This entire defensive front needs reinforcements, so this pick is about finding the best value, either along the interior or on the edge. In this scenario, it’s the former for Minnesota, as they land an explosive and disruptive presence at the point of attack in Taylor. His attacking style of play would be put to good use by defensive coordinator Brian Flores.

Easterling continued adding to the defense. With the next pick at number 53, the Vikings took Jack Sawyer, a fleet-footed, explosive edge rusher out of Ohio State.

Minnesota’s third-round pick was a part of the deal for tight end T.J. Hockenson.

Immediately, questions will arise over the quarterback position. That’s fair. With this hypothetical, it’s safe to assume that Kirk Cousins has a chance to finish what he started in the beginning phases of this season. Another assumption is that Flores does not take a head coaching position and stays to help continue to build Minnesota’s defense.

This scenario is not a far-fetched reality. The defense has been playing at a stellar pace thus far. With how Kirk played before he was injured, it does make one wonder how much this team could have accomplished with him at the helm. Next year would be a chance to find out. It would be a chance to make that deep playoff run that has alluded Vikings fans since 2017.

There’s also the dark side of these decisions. What if this is just a fantasy that the front office is chasing? What if Cousins never looks the same again after a ruptured Achilles at the age of 35?

These are all questions that Kwesi Adofo-Mensah and the Vikings front office must mull over before the 2024 NFL draft in April.

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Vikings make interesting selection in ESPN mock draft

Cornerback isn’t going to be a popular pick, but it could be a likely one for the Vikings

Mock drafts are going to be coming fast and furious throughout the next few months, especially with some teams being out of the playoff race already with four weeks to go.

The Minnesota Vikings are still in the thick of the playoff race but it’s still a good time to take a look at mock drafts. ESPN’s Matt Miller released a mock draft on Tuesday morning and he has the Vikings selecting Clemson cornerback Nate Wiggins.

The Vikings are desperate for a franchise quarterback but probably won’t be picking high enough to get a top passer in this class. Maybe they bring back Kirk Cousins? Maybe they sign someone else or address it further down the board? Either way, I like them adding a top-flight cornerback here at No. 22 if QB isn’t an option. People at Clemson say Wiggins is the fastest player on the Tigers’ roster, and he does it at 6-foot-2. He played his best football down the stretch of the 2023 regular season before declaring for the draft and has true CB1 traits.

A cornerback in the first round after spending numerous resources on a solid cornerback room with a top defense? Feels like the Mike Zimmer era doesn’t it? This would feel like a luxury pick, especially with a player like UCLA EDGE Laiatu Latu going a pick later to the Buffalo Bills.

In a vacuum, Wiggins is a good football player with size, length and aggressiveness that would be a good fit for the Vikings defense. Is it a pick that they should make? I wouldn’t quite go that far, but it’s a possibility that should be considered a possibility.

2024 NFL draft: Browns land underrated wide receiver in latest 2024 NFL mock draft

The Browns are still in need of adding a WR in the 2024 NFL draft, landing Georgia’s Ladd McConkey in a new 2024 NFL mock draft.

The college football season is winding down, and 2024 NFL mock drafts are trending in an upward direction. While the Cleveland Browns do not own a first round pick in the 2024 NFL draft, they do still own a plethora of draft picks. In Draft Wire’s latest mock draft, the Browns utilize their top pick, the projected 56th overall pick in the draft, to land an underrated wide receiver in the form of Georgia’s Ladd McConkey.

While he has not officially declared for the 2024 NFL draft yet, McConkey has been a three-year contributor for the Bulldogs. He currently sits with 456 yards and two touchdowns on 29 catches this season.

Missing the first four weeks of the season and one game in November limited McConkey’s production in 2023. Make no mistake, however, the film on the Georgia wideout is phenomenal. Despite his size, McConkey is strong off of the line of scrimmage, plays through contact at a high level, and is a dynamic route runner.

Despite acquiring Elijah Moore via a trade and drafting Cedric Tillman in the third round a year ago, the Browns find themselves in a position to prioritize the wide receiver position once again. Amari Cooper is set to take on a $20 million cap hit, and outside of these three mentioned, there is not a long-term contributor in the room.

McConkey fits both a need and the talent matches where he was selected in this 2024 NFL mock draft.

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Vikings select Bo Nix in latest PFF mock draft

Could Bo Nix be the answer for the Vikings at quarterback?

The Minnesota Vikings are likely to be in the market for a quarterback this offseason, including the NFL draft. In his latest mock draft for Pro Football Focus, Trevor Sikkema has the Vikings selecting Oregon QB Bo Nix.

Here is what Sikkema had to say about Nix and his prospects with the Vikings.

Unless the Vikings continue to ride with pending free agent Kirk Cousins, they’ll be heavily interested in the 2024 quarterback market.

Nix once again had a very impressive year as Oregon’s signal-caller. He finished the season with a 92.2 passing grade and an 87.3 passing grade under pressure, making only one turnover-worthy play under pressure all season. While he brings NFL-caliber arm talent, his season was not as demanding as it was for others. His season average depth of target was below 7.0, and his percentage of total passing yards that came through the air was below 40%.

I am not very high on Nix. As Sikkema mentions, his aDOT was low and his receivers did a lot of work with yards after the catch. That’s not a surprise, as Nix isn’t a great processor nor has the pocket presence to drive the ball down the field under the face of pressure. These are two things that you need to be able to do at the next level.

If the Vikings were to take Nix, it could be what sets them back in a similar vein to when they took Christian Ponder in 2011.

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Lions full 2024 mock draft 3.0: End of the college regular season edition

Mock drafts at this place and time are about ideas and getting more familiar with players who could intrigue the Lions during the 2024 NFL draft in April in Detroit

The college football regular season has come to an end as the calendar flips to December. It’s a good time for the fresh update of the 7-

The pick order is based on the current NFL standings and playoff seeding ladder entering NFL Week 13. Detroit would pick 27th in the first round.

Version 1.0 from after Week 4

Version 2.0 from the bye in Week 9

Mock drafts at this place and time are about ideas and getting more familiar with players who could intrigue the Lions during the 2024 NFL draft in April in Detroit.

The first round is pulled straight from the latest full NFL mock draft over at Draft Wire.

2024 NFL mock draft: End of college regular season projections

2024 NFL mock draft: End of college regular season projections from Draft Wire’s Jeff Risdon

The college football regular season came to a close over Thanksgiving weekend. That makes it a great time to update the projections for the 2024 NFL draft.

We’re still a long way from doing anything more than speculation and guesswork, but the data points to evaluate from both the prospects and the NFL teams are stronger after so much football has been played. These ideas do not represent draft rankings; that big board is here.

The draft order is based on the current NFL standings after Week 12.

2024 NFL mock draft: Browns overhaul WR room, add talented Ohio State DT

In this 7-round 2024 NFL mock draft, the Browns improve their roster with Ja’Lynn Polk and Tyleik Williams

We have hit cold weather, so that means it is time to start firing up the 2024 NFL mock drafts. And for the 7-4 Cleveland Browns, they have one more season with no first round picks, but that does not stop them from adding talents like wide receiver Ja’Lynn Polk and defensive tackle Tyleik Williams here.

When looking ahead to April for the Browns, their team needs remain relatively the same as they were a year ago. Last year, we knew they needed to target a wide receiver, a defensive tackle, another defensive end, and thought that offensive tackle could be the wildcard. And they drafted just those four positions with their first four picks in the draft.

This year, the Browns are playing rentals at defensive tackle in Maurice Hurst (please re-sign him!) and Shelby Harris and Jordan Elliott is about to see his rookie contract expire. The wide receiver room is lacking outside of Amari Cooper still, and another defensive end could be on the menu with Za’Darius Smith set to hit free agency after this season.

What can the Browns do with the seven picks they currently hold in the 2024 NFL draft? Find out here in this 2024 NFL mock draft.

Browns upgrade defensive trenches in new 2024 NFL mock draft

The Browns get Jim Schwartz a new weapon in a new Draft Wire 2-round mock

As we turn to colder weather, the amount of 2024 NFL mock drafts will begin to uptick. And while the Cleveland Browns do not have a first round pick for one more year, Draft Wire’s latest two-round mock draft gets them in on the action. They are currently sitting with the no. 56 pick on the board, the Browns addressed the defensive trenches again, adding LSU’s talented defensive tackle Maason Smith.

After a dynamic freshman season in 2021, the LSU Tiger missed most of his sophomore season. While Smith got off to a slow start this season, the 6-foot-6 and 300-pound defensive tackle has seen his production take an uptick.

Thus far in 2023, Smith has only racked up one sack but sits with 14 pressures on the season. For his hype coming into the season, however, Smith has not had the season many anticipated. He is built like a first round defensive tackle and will test well at the combine.

With just Dalvin Tomlinson and rookie Siaki Ika as the only defensive tackles under contract beyond the 2023 season, it makes sense for the Browns to give defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz another interior big man.

The draft is far from here, but Smith would be a bit of a letdown.

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