Mock draft season is upon us and that means our mock draft roundup is back!
What we do every week is track the mainstream outlets mock drafts and aggregate how many times a player gets selected. Last season, we tallied up 173 mock drafts and only 10 of them were on offense. This season could end up being much of the same.
We will track them and try to determine trends and patterns, along with giving my own analysis on how they could fit with the Minnesota Vikings.
Arkansas LB Drew Sanders
Who:
This is the least likely route for the Vikings to take, especially with what Sanders is as a player. He’s basically Anthony Barr and, while that type of player would be better used in the 3-4, are you drafting him as an edge where he is still very raw and slender or is he part of your future as a middle linebacker? He’s too much of a hybrid for my preference.
QB pulls it but LB Drew Sanders’ burst is insane pic.twitter.com/e5y8tvkpx9
— Bobby Skinner (@BobbySkinner_) February 8, 2023
Penn State CB Joey Porter Jr.
Who:
If Porter Jr. is available at 23, it’s a slam dunk. He is his father if former Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker Joey Porter was a cornerback. His length, aggressiveness and athleticism make him a tremendous player, especially for what the Vikings are planning on doing on offense.
Penn State’s Joey Porter Jr. just absolutely smothering the WR on the slant… didn’t even react to the receivers footwork on the release.
Such a fluid, physical, and long press cornerback. Top-32 player in the NFL Draft that’s dripping with potential. pic.twitter.com/GqgDEd2B6f
— Bobby Football (@Rob__Paul) February 10, 2023
Ohio State WR Jaxon Smith-Njigba
Who:
The Draft Network’s Kyle Crabbs
CBS Sports’ Chris Trapasso
If you want to take a wide receiver in the draft, Smith-Njigba is going to be a popular choice for most analysts. Personally, I don’t view him as highly as others, as he ranks as my WR7. He is incredibly savvy in his route running but isn’t a very big guy and I’m not convinced that he will be able to beat press consistently, especially since he never faced it at Ohio State.
Jaxon Smith-Njigba sells the deep route really well and executes the hitch to perfection pic.twitter.com/ySTK5qNQM6
— Tyler Forness (@TheRealForno) December 6, 2022
South Carolina CB Cam Smith
Who:
The 33rd Team’s Scouting Report
24/7 Sports’ Blake Brockermeyer
Draft Wire’s Luke Easterling
Pro Football Network’s James Fragoza
Smith is a hyper athlete that is aggressive with the ball in the air and loves to thump runners. His physicality is something that is very appealing and one that Brian Flores would be able to maximize in his system.
One thing about Cam Smith: He's gonna bring it. pic.twitter.com/To8A6afexg
— Derrick (@Steelers_DB) February 7, 2023
Stanford CB Kyu Blu Kelly
Who:
Stanford didn’t have a great season this year, but they have a few prospects that are going to be drafted high and the best of them is Kelly. An aggressive corner that thrives in press-man, Kelly shined at the Senior Bowl and attacks the ball. His technique sets him up to be explosive toward the ball carrier.
Impressive backpedal smooth hip flip from Kyu Blu Kelly (#17) pic.twitter.com/7ovXgvBZTX
— Brian Maafi (@Bmaafi) February 12, 2023
Oregon CB Christian Gonzalez
Who:
Pro Football Network’s Ben Rolfe
The Sporting News’ Vinnie Iyer
Gonzalez is the smoothest cover cornerback in this class. He understands how to move with the receiver and plays in-phase incredibly well. In his matchup against Drake London in 2021, he played him incredibly well and made London earn every inch.
Love the recognition of Christian Gonzalez and how quickly he attacks the ball pic.twitter.com/FFOwH7TVoB
— Tyler Forness (@TheRealForno) January 14, 2023
Utah CB Clark Phillips III
Who:
The Athletic’s Diante Lee
Touchdown Wire’s Doug Farrar
The selection of Phillips III would be an interesting one. He isn’t a true outside cornerback, but he can do a little bit of everything. Having multiple cornerbacks that can play across the board is something that the Vikings would love to have.
Watching Clark Phillips III this morning and I love this play. He fights through the block to make the tackle pic.twitter.com/o1DwEkRhV2
— Tyler Forness (@TheRealForno) January 19, 2023
Illinois CB Devon Witherspoon
Who:
Pro Football Network’s Dalton Miller
A player that is technically sound that plays with the brain of Steve Atwater, Witherspoon plays with this controlled aggression that sets him apart from the rest of the class. If he ends up falling within the Vikings’ range, it would be a no-brainer for Minnesota.
Illinois CB Devon Witherspoon is a baller. Every game is just him flying around in coverage and as a tackler to make plays on the ball. My kind of DB. pic.twitter.com/FA9sQLPhpG
— Evan Lazar (@ezlazar) February 10, 2023
USC's Jordan Addison
Who:
I have been driving the train that the Vikings should prioritize taking a wide receiver with their first pick because cornerback can be addressed in free agency and later in the draft. Addison is a tremendous football player that will be able to create separation on all three levels of the field and take the pressure off of Justin Jefferson.
Jordan Addison watched his Davante Adams tapes during the summer. This is filthy pic.twitter.com/PjnBB2qokf
— Tyler Forness (@TheRealForno) December 17, 2022
Georgia CB Kelee Ringo
Who:
NFL.com’s Cynthia Frelund
CBS Sports’ Kyle Stackpole
Ringo is going to be a fascinating case study in terms of where he gets drafted. While he has a great set of size and athletic tools, Ringo has a lot of struggles with technique and can’t turn well at all. He will need to be rebooted from the ground up in order to reach his full potential, but his ceiling is the highest in the class.
Watching Kelee Ringo and this play epitomizes how he will have success in the NFL: playing in zone and reading the quarterback's eyes. He sees Will Levis wanting to hit the holeshot and drifts back in his zone for the interception pic.twitter.com/zQk02xEmoL
— Tyler Forness (@TheRealForno) January 19, 2023
Mississippi State CB Emmanuel Forbes
Who:
CBS Sports’ Tom Fornelli
The Draft Network’s Brentley Weissman
When you look at Forbes, Vikings fans will think that they already have that in Cameron Dantzler. Forbes is incredibly slender and looks like he weighs less than his listed 180 lbs. What he does have is excellent ball skills and is aggressive in attacking it.
I watched Mississippi St CB Emmanuel Forbes this morning.
He has that dawg in him for sure. An aggressive and physical CB despite his frame. His ball skills is impressive. pic.twitter.com/b4ECMUIpNp
— Full-Time Dame 💰 (@DP_NFL) January 9, 2023
Texas RB Bijan Robinson
Who:
The Vikings could need a running back this offseason, especially with Alexander Mattison a free agent and Dalvin Cook unlikely to play on his over $14 million cap hit. The selection of Robinson is less of a running back pick and more of a versatile weapon, as he can play in the slot and be a true dynamo.
Bijan Robinson is going to take the nfl by storm. He’s so gooood pic.twitter.com/kW86zhsIP6
— Adam Kahle 🥬 (@adamkahle) February 3, 2023
Overview
Through six weeks, we have tracked 118 total mock drafts and there have been 38 total players. 68 total selections have been for cornerbacks.
| CB Cam Smith | 16 |
| CB Devon Witherspoon | 9 |
| CB Christian Gonzalez | 8 |
| CB Clark Phillips III | 8 |
| WR Jaxon Smith-Njigba | 7 |
| CB Kelee Ringo | 7 |
| CB Joey Porter Jr. | 6 |
| WR Jordan Addison | 5 |
| CB Emmanuel Forbes | 5 |
| EDGE B.J. Ojulari | 4 |
| LB Trenton Simpson | 3 |
| CB/S Brian Branch | 3 |
| CB Deonte Banks | 3 |
| S Antonio Johnson | 3 |
| WR Rashee Rice | 2 |
| QB Anthony Richardson | 2 |
| EDGE Myles Murphy | 2 |
| NT Siaki Ika | 2 |
| EDGE Lukas Van Ness | 2 |
| DT Calijah Kancey | 2 |
| EDGE/LB Drew Sanders | 2 |
| OT Peter Skoronski | 1 |
| OT Blake Freeland | 1 |
| OT Anton Harrison | 1 |
| WR Zay Flowers | 1 |
| QB Tanner McKee | 1 |
| DL Mazi Smith | 1 |
| CB Jaylon Jones | 1 |
| WR Kayshon Boutte | 1 |
| OL Cody Mauch | 1 |
| CB Tyrique Stevenson | 1 |
| DT Bryan Bresee | 1 |
| EDGE Felix Anudike-Uzomah | 1 |
| WR Josh Downs | 1 |
| EDGE Keion White | 1 |
| OT Broderick Jones | 1 |
| CB Kyu Blu Kelly | 1 |
| RB Bijan Robinson | 1 |
