2013 NFL Draft: Should the Minnesota Vikings Draft Manti Te'o?

By Dan Parzych
(Brian Spurlock/USA Today Sports)

After reaching the playoffs last year as the No. 6 seed, there’s been plenty of talk surrounding which direction the Minnesota Vikings could lean towards in the 2013 NFL Draft in April. The Vikings could easily use their first-round pick on an offensive player, but there’s one college star may end up strongly considering–Notre Dame Fighting Irish linebacker Manti Te’o.

Last season, Te’o helped the Irish do the unthinkable by going undefeated during the regular season before falling to the Alabama Crimson Tide in the National Championship as he was the leader for one of the nation’s top defenses. However, Te’o has seen his fair share of criticism over the last couple of weeks for the hoax involving the fake girlfriend.

To make things even worse, Te’o decided to wait on telling the truth about his girlfriend being fake, which has killed just about any hope of teams trusting him heading into the NFL Combine.

How is any team supposed to trust a player like Te’o if he can’t even tell the truth over something as big of a deal like the hoax? Te’o may not think it will impact his draft stock, but the truth is that it’s going to be a huge issue for any team considering him in April, even the Vikings.

From a talent perspective, there’s no question Te’o would be a great addition for any team. However, whether or not Minnesota believes he’s worth the risk after all of the controversy from the hoax incident–only time will tell.

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