Minnesota Vikings full 2016 NFL Draft class
By Adam Carlson
Round 4: OT Willie Beavers, Western Michigan
The Minnesota Vikings shouldn’t expect Beavers to step in and be a starter for the team, but he could be a guy to draft and develop. After struggling through much of his career at Western Michigan, the Vikings saw his combination of power and agility to be interesting enough to roll the dice on.
The good thing is that Beavers will get at least one year to hone his craft, as the team has many offensive tackles, including Matt Kalil, Andre Smith, and Phil Loadholt, in the final years of their contracts. This was another investment pick in the middle rounds of the draft where the a player has the physical talent to be an interesting prospect.
However, it isn’t all great when scouting Beavers, as he struggled mightily as a run blocker and didn’t maintain his technique well at all. He will be a project for the Vikings who might be better suited for the practice squad for a while until he’s ready to sniff NFL level competition.
"“This is the 2nd year in a row the Vikings have taken a developmental OT on early Day 3 (Clemmings, ’15). Beavers started 40 straight games at LT and has all the raw tools but he comes with a handful of technical deficiencies. He’s at least a year away from competing for a starting bookend spot on their OL.” —Mark Dulgerian of NFL.com"
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