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Minnesota Vikings Have Rare Opportunity In 2015 NFL Draft

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Mike Zimmer

Trevor Ruszkowski-USA TODAY Sports

Not often is a team drafting in the top 11 allowed to pick the best player available. That is the exact situation the Minnesota Vikings will be in when they’re on the clock come Apr. 30, however, as they get to see which prospects fall and then make the decision to draft one or trade down and accumulate more picks.

Most teams around them will be reaching based on need, but with a franchise quarterback in place along with an improving defense, the Vikings can look at targeting their highest rated prospect regardless of position when they’re on the clock.

The Vikings already added some talent during free agency, mainly Mike Wallace at wide receiver and Terence Newman at cornerback, both moves that upgraded positions of concern but certainly leave room for improvement. A signing at left guard would have shored up all major needs, but the moves they did make will allow the Vikings to look at the future when drafting in the first few rounds.

It’s been reported the Vikings are high on cornerback Trae Waynes out of Michigan State. Whether this is true or not, the Vikings have the opportunity of trading down if they wish to draft a top two cornerback as either Waynes or Marcus Peters from Washington will be available in the late teens or early 20s.

Vikings GM Rick Spielman has been active trading picks in recent drafts, and with the Vikings picking in the top third of the draft, it’s realistic to believe they could drop a few spots and still grab a top tier corner, wide receiver, offensive guard or even defensive lineman. While it would make sense to keep building an offense around Teddy Bridgewater, with Adrian Peterson now likely to play for the team in 2015, it allows Spielman and Mike Zimmer to once again target defense with their first pick.

The league’s top teams are built around defense — just look where the Seattle Seahawks and New England Patriots spend their money. And if the Vikings are trying to follow that mold, then this is the perfect draft to do so. This is regarded as the year of the pass rusher, and with as many as five edge rushers graded in the top 20, the Vikings could add another talent for Zimmer to place on his top 15 defense.

The weeks leading up to the draft are filled with misinformation and smokescreens. But with the recent track record of Vikings management on draft night, fans can only imagine this year’s draft will be filled with movement around the first round and possibly making more than one pick on the first night.

Nick Baker is a contributing writer for Rant Sports and you can follow him on Twitter, Facebook, and add him to your network on Google.

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