Who did the Vikings land in Peter Schrager's 2026 NFL Mock Draft?
Peter Schrager has the Vikings drafting a potential replacement for Harrison Smith.
The 2026 NFL Draft will take place in Pittsburgh this month, a city that could be where the Vikings select the next star they add to their roster in hopes of righting the proverbial ship. Before then, though, there will be plenty of speculation and buildup for the team and who they may add to the roster through the draft. Thankfully, we now have some added context for players now that the scouting combine has come and gone.
ESPN's Peter Schrager recently released the latest 2026 NFL mock draft of the cycle, which has the team going with a familiar name for fans. He has them going with Toledo safety Emmanuel McNeil-Warren, a pick we have started to see more and more as we get closer to draft day. Schrager explains the McNeil-Warren pick, writing, "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. " McNeil-Warren is a fun prospect to think about being a Vikings.
His skill set would complement the likes of Josh Metellus and Theo Jackson, so it is a pick that makes sense. However, if both he and Dillon Thieneman are on the board, they may have a tough decision to make. This article originally appeared on Vikings Wire: Vikings land Emmanuel McNeil-Warren in Peter Schrager's mock draft