Peter Schrager Has the Vikings Doing Something Different in New Mock Draft

So is ESPN’s Peter Schrager. He posted his first mock draft of the 2026 cycle this week, and instead of towing the industry line of selecting Thieneman, Schrager rolled with a different safety, Toledo’s Emmanuel McNeil-Warren . The latest projection moved Minnesota away from the usual first-round names.

McNeil-Warren is basically the Thieneman alternative for those who think the Vikings will draft a safety in Round 1 or ought to. McNeil-Warren Shows Up in the Vikings’ Round 1 Mix Cancel those Thieneman mock-draft takes … for a day. Dec 23, 2025; Boca Raton, Florida, USA; Toledo Rockets safety Emmanuel McNeil-Warren (7) celebrates a third-down stop against the Louisville Cardinals during the third quarter of the Boca Raton Bowl at Flagler CU Stadium, bringing energy to his defense in a key moment of the postseason matchup.

Mandatory Credit: Jeff Romance-Imagn Images. Schrager: EMW to MIN Sandwiched between guard Olaivavega Ioane from Penn State to the Detroit Lions and Georgia offensive tackle Monroe Freeling to the Dallas Cowboys, Schrager connected McNeil-Warren to Minnesota in his mock draft. He wrote , “McNeil-Warren is a tall, rangy safety who plays with high energy and is vocal in the defensive backfield.

We’re still not sure if Harrison Smith will be back at 37 years old, but McNeil-Warren can be the torchbearer once Smith does choose to call it a career. He had five picks over the past three seasons. ” Thieneman, the worldwide Vikings mock-draft darling, landed with the Miami Dolphins at pick No.