The Vikings Have an Underrated Draft Class

Kirby Lee-Imagn Images Now that it has been a week, the Draft dust has started to settle a little bit. It will still be the primary talking point for a few weeks, as we enter the void that is May and June. The initial reaction wasn’t pretty for interim GM Rob Brzezinski and HC Kevin O’Connell, as many fans and analysts had Caleb Banks much lower on their board, mostly due to injury concerns.

A very good Day 2 improved the initial analysis, which, coupled with some interesting Day 3 selections, bumped the Vikings’ grade. Several Vikings Rookies Could Push for Real Roles Quickly With more time to look at the players and the overall Draft class, I can comfortably say that the Vikings improved a lot, and the big picture is clearer as well. If we look at the past 5 Super Bowl champions and the teams in the Championship games in 2025, they all had a disruptor in the middle.

Aaron Donald, Chris Jones, Jalen Carter, and Byron Murphy all helped lead their franchises to victories. And, even though Jalen Redmond had a spectacular 2025 season, Caleb Banks has the potential to be one of these elite defensive tackles. Assuming the medical staff gave the green light, there’s a real possibility that we look back at this pick as a slam dunk.

Jake Golday was my favorite pick in this class. I’ve seen a lot of fans on social media comparing him to Andrew Van Ginkel, but to me, they are similar but opposites. While Gink is an edge rusher who also excels dropping into coverage, Golday is an off-ball linebacker who can excel as a blitzer.