Minnesota was in no place for playoff contention at 1-5. There is always good news for a team that appears to be in a down year, though: the worse the record, the better a team’s draft position.
Now, the Vikings find themselves in quite a different predicament. The team rattled off a three-game win streak. Yes, Minnesota lost to Dallas after that, but the Vikings pulled off a nice bounce-back victory against the Panthers.
The team has notched its record to 5-6. The Vikings have a reasonable shot at the postseason now, but that inevitably complicates things from a draft position perspective.
If the 2021 NFL draft happened today, the Vikings would pick No. 13 in the first round.
Here are some targets the Vikings should look at if their draft position ends up there: