2026 NFL Mock Draft: Minnesota Vikings select safety
With the 18th overall pick in the 2026 Bleeding Green Nation community mock draft, Minnesota Vikings GM The Player Formerly Known as Mousecop selects ...
EUGENE, OREGON - SEPTEMBER 6: Dillon Thieneman #31 of the Oregon Ducks looks on in action during a game between the Oklahoma State Cowboys and the Oregon Ducks at Autzen Stadium on September 6, 2025 in Eugene, Oregon. (Photo by Robin Alam/ISI Photos/ISI Photos via Getty Images) | ISI Photos via Getty Images Dillon Thieneman, S, Oregon Right off the bat, I’m sorry. What a boring pick.
Go find a mock draft site, look up their latest first round mock, and they have Thieneman going to the Vikings at 18. Other than Fernando Mendoza to the Raiders, this has to be the most common pick for mock drafters. The reasons why are pretty easy to identify: Harrison Smith, drafted in the first round in 2012 by the Vikings and holding down the back end of their defense ever since, is likely retiring.
Hence the need (If Smith decides to stick around another year, this whole analysis would change). Other than Caleb Downs, who probably won’t make it to pick 18 (and did not in the BGN draft), Thieneman is the best safety on the board. Most draft boards rank Thieneman between the 15th to 25th best player available, so pick 18 is right around where he could be drafted.
Maybe Downs slides and the Vikings can nab him, but Thieneman seems like a safe pick for them. He’s a smart ball-hawk with excellent college production in all three years. He’s on the smaller side for a safety but he’s quite agile, particularly running downhill (a 4.
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