Purple Sixth Round: Center John Sullivan, WR Jaymar Johnson

The Vikings had two picks in the sixth round, and used them on center John Sullivan from Notre Dame, and wide receiver Jaymar Johnson from Jackson State.

Here’s what ESPN’s Draft Tracker had to say about Sullivan:

"Sullivan didn’t play in his first year at Notre Dame (2003). He became a starter in 2004 and didn’t miss a game until the end of his senior year. He finished his career having played in 43 of a possible 45 games (41 starts), missing only the final two games of last season because of a knee injury. Sullivan doesn’t have prototypical athletic ability for an NFL center and he gets caught lunging/diving at defenders too frequently in space. However, he does have the initial burst, power and tenacity to make up for that flaw. Despite a disappointing senior season at Notre Dame we still consider Sullivan as one of the top three center prospects in the 2008 class. He projects to be a mid-round pick."

He doesn’t sound like an obvious heir-apparent to Matt Birk. I still think Ryan Cook makes the most sense as a future center, with the team picking up a new right tackle at some point. But Sullivan gives you some options along the line. Obviously, there’s nothing out there at offensive tackle that interests the purple.

The Jaymar Johnson situation is a little more intriguing. He’s a 6-1 wide-out from Jackson State who didn’t put up big numbers his senior season (only 36 catches for 613 yards), but is veeeeery fast. If he has any kind of hands at all, he could provide another deep threat. Or, he could be another Troy Williamson…the difference being that, with Johnson, you didn’t throw away a top 10 pick if he doesn’t work out.

Here are some Johnson highlights: