The Minnesota Vikings will select TCU WR Josh Doctson according to Peter King’s mock draft.
Media heavy-hitter Peter King agrees with the majority of mock drafters that the Vikings will take a wide receiver with the #23 overall pick. King has the Vikes snapping up wide receiver Josh Doctson of TCU.
"The Vikings have no idea why the best receiver in the draft—according to several teams—fell to number 23, but they’ll take the gift. One of the things GM Rick Spielman wants to get for Teddy Bridgewater is an outside receiver with game-breaking speed and sure hands. Doctson has both."
If Josh Doctson truly is the best receiver in the draft, the Vikings will be happy to land him.
If Doctson isn’t on the board at #23, the Vikings could get Laquon Treadwell, Corey Coleman or Michael Thomas instead.
The Vikings could of course opt to pick someone who isn’t a wide receiver, but to me that prospect seems pretty remote.
The biggest obvious hole on the Vikings’ roster is at receiver. The Vikings let Mike Wallace walk and made no effort to pick up a receiver in free agency. Beyond Stefon Diggs and Jarius Wright, their current crop of receivers is very thin.
Unless you think Charles Johnson can have a huge bounce-back year, there really isn’t a sure #3 WR on the team. Some folks still have faith that Cordarrelle Patterson can make a contribution but that seems like a long-shot.
For these reasons and more, everything points to the Vikings going receiver in round one. Josh Doctson has been mentioned as the Vikings’ top target for several months and there’s no reason to believe anything has changed in that regard.
If Doctson is as good as advertised, he will provide the Vikings with a viable outside threat, maybe not a speed merchant but a player with great ball skills and leaping ability who can become a big-play target for Teddy Bridgewater.
If he’s not as good as advertised, the Vikings might be in for some severe offensive struggles.