Since hiring Kwesi Adofo-Mensah as our new GM, there's been much anticipation regarding the 2022 NFL Draft. Is he going to take the Rick Speilman approach of trading away top-tier picks for a bag of chips? Or will he take a more pragmatic approach and put his Princeton education to good use? Just like a Blair Walsh field goal the draft came and went, this time in the right direction.
Love em':
The first pick that comes to mind is Brain Asamoah II out of Oklahoma. This dude is a prime example of what you call a modern-day NFL linebacker. With the innate combination of physicality and speed, he has the potential to make an immediate impact on the defensive side of the ball. Some scouts questioned if his size would be an issue, but from what I've seen on film, he plays with a tenacious ability to play bigger than what his measurables point out. Also, being able to carry out Running backs in the passing game is an imperative skill of his that translates well in a pass-happy league. The old days of run-stuffing linebackers are over. Nowadays you need linebackers that can go sideline to sideline and do both at a high level.
The obvious steal of this draft goes by the name of Andrew Booth Jr. Some experts had him going as high as 12 so the fact that we were able to trade back and get two for the price of one with him and Lewis Cine is monumental for our secondary. Everything that I've seen on film screams great pick. Reports claim that he hasn't been truly healthy since high school but if healthy he will be a great compliment to Patrick Peterson on the other side of the field.
With aging veterans such as Harrison Smith (Safety) Patrick Peterson (Corner) and Erik Kendricks (Linebacker) it seems Kwesi made a point of emphasis to not only draft players for this upcoming season but for the future as well. Cine, Booth, and Asamoah could inherit these three pivotal positions on our defense for years to come.
Hate em':
One of the picks I'm not thrilled about is offensive guard Ed Ingram out of LSU. On the field, he's a great player. Powerful, great in pass pro, and has been a winner at every level of his football career. Off the field is where I draw a line of concern. According to DeadSpin, court documents indicate Ingram sexually assaulted two minors over the span of a year when he was 16 years old. Ingram served a one year suspension at LSU before having all charges dropped in 2019. This is not a great look for Ingram or the Vikings as an organization. Just because the charges were dropped doesn't mean he's innocent. These are some serious allegations against Ingram and the risks don't outweigh the reward in my mind.
All in all, I give the Vikings an A- for a draft grade. We addressed immediate concerns on the defensive side of the ball and drafted for future years to come as well. Last years rookies are coming into their sophomore season and I think it's easy for people to write them off as busts if they don't show out like a Justin Jefferson in their first year. With the combination of this years sophomores and our current rookies, I think the Vikings have a lot of good young talent to complement our current star studded veterans. Tune in next time as I talk about some of our promising sophomores heading into the 2022 NFL season.
SKOL
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