Even if the Vikings don’t buy out nose tackle Linval Joseph, there’s a pretty good chance the team drafts an interior defensive lineman early in the 2020 NFL Draft.
Mike Renner from Pro Football Focus thinks it will be in the first round.
In Renner’s first mock draft since the combine, he has the Vikings drafting Auburn defensive tackle Marlon Davidson.
Here’s what Renner wrote about the pick:
Davidson continues to bulk up into a three-tech this offseason. After being listed at 280 for Auburn last year, he came to the Senior Bowl at 297 and then checked in at 303 this past week at the Combine. The fact that he still ran a 5.04 40 at that weight should be considered a win. He should be a massive upgrade over Shamar Stephen, who collected only six pressures on 350 pass-rushes last season.
Renner is 100 percent right about Stephen. The team needs an upgrade next to Joseph (if he returns). If the team does buy out Stephen, this pick seems even more likely.
In 2019, Davidson was named First-Team All-SEC. By all accounts, it seemed like he had an impressive showing at the combine.