In the second round, Edwards proposed Penn State edge rusher Arnold Ebiketie as a strong fit for Minnesota.
If the Vikings are looking for the best pairing at two premier positions, then it makes the most sense to go cornerback in Round 1 and edge rusher in Round 2. There should be several edge rusher options to consider around where Minnesota is picking: Florida State’s Jermaine Johnson, South Carolina’s Kingsley Enagbare, USC’s Drake Jackson, Michigan’s David Ojabo, San Diego State’s Cameron Thomas and Ebiketie.
The former Temple transfer is explosive off the snap and will challenge opposing offensive tackles around the corner. He is a hard-working player that has really improved his hand usage.
To see Edwards’ full list of Vikings draft predictions, click here.
Vikings 2021 draft class ranked bottom of the NFL
As teams turn the page to the 2022 NFL Draft and ensuing season, ESPN and analytics site Pro Football Focus teamed up to rank teams by their 2021 draft classes. ESPN wrote:
With the help of Pro Football Focus’ Wins Above Replacement (WAR) metric, we ranked all 32 teams on the value of their rookie class over expectation given where each player was selected in the 2021 NFL draft.
Listed with each ranking is an explanation of why they landed where they did, analysis over how their top pick fared and – in some cases – a look at the team’s best value pick. Some teams might not have a value pick listed, whether it be because few rookies saw significant time on the field for the franchise or that most rookies performed at or below expectations. Value picks can emerge from each team’s class over the next couple of years, but for this exercise, we are looking solely at 2021 rookie production.
