All Things 2026 Vikings Mock Draft Thread

Donate To GopherHole


Seifert’s analysis, sans grade -

Why they picked him: First and foremost, there was a massive need at the position. The Vikings spent big at the position last season, signing veterans Jonathan Allen and Javon Hargrave, but neither made a big impact and were released after the season. That left a promising but inexperienced group of incumbents, including Jalen Redmond, Levi Drake Rodriguez and Tyrion Ingram-Dawkins, a fifth-round pick in 2025, and Elijah Williams. They did not sign a free agent at the position, so there is an immediate opportunity for Banks to play. That is, of course, if he is healthy.

Biggest question: Banks is a massive prospect at 6-foot-6 and 330 pounds, but he has had a series of injuries to his left foot. He recently underwent surgery to repair a broken bone in the foot, which he suffered at the NFL combine, and played in only three games last season because of an injury to the same foot. NFL teams received a letter last week about the condition of his foot and were told that Banks hopes to be back on the field for June minicamp. He's a potentially dominant player when healthy, but the injury history is worrisome. -- Kevin Seifert
 







Wilfs! Rob B's odds of getting the job go down....
 




Should have taken Lemon the WR from USC....
 

The crowd reaction from the Vikings Draft Party reminds me of what it was like in the MOA Rotunda when they passed on Warren Sapp for Derrick Alexander.
 





So jealous of the Jeremiyah Love pick. Didn't expect an RB to go that high.
 


upnorthkid said:
bad feet is a recipe for disaster with a big man
Click to expand...
Look how long it took Mara Braun to get over her foot injuries, and she weighs less than half of what Banks does. That's a lot of weight bearing down on that foot.
 

upnorthkid said:
bad feet is a recipe for disaster with a big man
Click to expand...
It's amazing that NFL coaches and executives don't know more than random internet message board posters about such things!

It's amazing that they didn't receive a medical report about his foot before the draft, allowing them to make an informed decision!

Oh well
 

howeda7 said:
Should have taken Lemon the WR from USC....
Click to expand...
You mean Stevie Wonder?? Dude took one too many edibles before going out there.


And this take is from the guy who said Addison and Greenard will be traded.

Great takes!
 

Some people here wanted McCoy with the first round pick, and he didn't even get taken in the first round.

Maybe he falls down to us. If that happened, what's the difference between taking McCoy with our fist and then Banks with the next pick? Literally nothing.

Shut your pie holes
 

"Teams that didn't have a 1st Round Pick last night in the Draft graded out better than the Vikings." 😂

A monumental reach and unnecessary risk taken IMO, especially without extracting value by trading back to add picks.
 

GopherGrit said:
Some people here wanted McCoy with the first round pick, and he didn't even get taken in the first round.
Click to expand...
Please cite a single poster here that wanted McCoy after it was revealed that he will most likely require a second surgery.
GopherGrit said:
Maybe he falls down to us. If that happened, what's the difference between taking McCoy with our fist and then Banks with the next pick? Literally nothing.
Click to expand...
This is such a moronic statement that it doesn't even require an additional comment.
GopherGrit said:
Shut your pie holes
Click to expand...
Buh-bye.
 

Well I guess they did "shock the world"...

 

From one of the articles in The Athletic today, regarding his potential -

Future Hall of Fame defensive tackle Chris Jones is a frequent comparison for Banks because of his exceptional size (Jones is also 6-6), eye-popping arm length (Banks has 35-inch arms) and lateral quickness. Two years ago, one AFC scout began his scouting report on Banks like this: “Pro Bowl-level talent. Super gifted. Very athletic. Interior pass rusher. He can run. He can bend. He has instincts. He uses his hands.”
 

I think Banks is gonna be more injured than Nine

Lewis Cine was happy to see this pick too 😁
 

Given our recent draft history with kwesi, i have to believe vikes did extreme due diligence on the injury situation with banks.
I wanted a def lineman so am really happy getting one of this caliber.
I trust the vikes and their medical team on this. Time will tell.
 

saintpauljeff said:
I think Banks is gonna be more injured than Nine

Lewis Cine was happy to see this pick too 😁
Click to expand...
Lewis Cine (1 career tackle) made Dimitrius Underwood (21 career tackles) look like an All Pro.

I'll say the same thing about Banks as I did JJM - at the end of the day, if he's a successful player, it doesn't matter where they drafted him (as in "reaching" for him will be forgotten). However, if he flames out, it just looks that much worse that you blew that high pick on him. Thieneman to me was a solid double. Not sexy, not overly dynamic, but looks like he could be a solid contributor for a while. Frankly, his value at 18 was pretty suspect as well. Banks is Miguel Sano - high flying home run, or putrid strike out; and nothing in between.

In retrospect, the Packers trade for Parsons looks better now. The top half of this draft had some good playmakers. The latter half of the first round, IMO, was really soft. A good year to ship off a first-rounder if you're outside the top 15-16.
 

Breakin' The Plane said:
The crowd reaction from the Vikings Draft Party reminds me of what it was like in the MOA Rotunda when they passed on Warren Sapp for Derrick Alexander.
Click to expand...
but the again, the crowd booed when Mike Tice came out after the Kevin Williams pick, and he's saying, "calm down, everyone calm down!"

I am baffled by the risk they are taking after drafting not much for years.
 

They could have easily traded back fir this guy. He wasn't getting drafted by anyone in Round 1.

It doesn't matter who is in charge, the drafting remains the same. It's ownership's fault for stuff like this.

They need to fix the scouting department and/or learn how to properly manage the NFL Draft. It should be a simple concept of economic principles to figure out value of a pick and a player, and then you draft or trade up/down accordingly.
 

TruthSeeker said:
They could have easily traded back fir this guy. He wasn't getting drafted by anyone in Round 1.

It doesn't matter who is in charge, the drafting remains the same. It's ownership's fault for stuff like this.

They need to fix the scouting department and/or learn how to properly manage the NFL Draft. It should be a simple concept of economic principles to figure out value of a pick and a player, and then you draft or trade up/down accordingly.
Click to expand...
something i found a little interesting in the above article was that they think they have the best doctors in the league/country. like its great and all if they say he's going to be cleared and ready to go, but that doesn't change the economic/social aspect of it/drafting. He was not this high on people's boards for the injury reason (so was someone else going to jump in on him in the 1st ahead of other available DTs) and the risk/benefit balance is the questionable part to me. I get the swinging on this level of talent, but it's not like there some run/pressure to take him prior to us selecting where we did.

Don't think it's the worst pick in the first round (Simpson is a super bizarre choice right there on a super bowl contender team), but an interesting choice from a social science standpoint
 

You must log in or register to reply here.



Top Bottom