Minnesota Vikings draft 2017: Post free agency mock draft
By Jordan Reid
The nature of the NFL business as a general manager is that you are going to have to salvage some players in order to keep others. This was the case as Cordarrelle Patterson moved on to the Oakland Raiders. Thus enabling room for a three-year, $27 million extension for ascending receiver Adam Thielen.
Patterson’s departure leaves a huge void in the Viking kick returning duties and the explosive gadget type threat among their receiving core. Alabama’s Ar’Darius Stewart is a receiver who has a similar skill set as Patterson, but he is a more polished route runner.
As is the case with many Alabama and LSU receivers, Stewart’s talents were hidden behind a predominantly run-first oriented offense. It is always astonishing at the talent that both SEC schools have on the perimeter, but there are many instances where you don’t get to see it to its full potential until they are in the NFL.
On-Field Drills #NFLCombine Alabama WR @neversleepon13 NFLNetwork pic.twitter.com/L6eGMwii98
— InsideBamaRecruiting Alabama Football (@RTRnews) March 4, 2017
Stewart’s late ascension up draft boards is due to this result. Alabama used him mostly as a gadget receiver, but when he was asked to be a factor in the passing game, he looked completely comfortable doing it.
He struggles at times with drops, but this could be attributed to the lack of in game repetitions as a pass catcher. Despite his drops, Stewart showed at the combine that he is a natural pass catcher.
Where Stewart could be extremely valuable to the Vikings is on special teams, as he has experience as a kickoff returner.
Combine Results:
- Height: 5-foot-11
- Weight: 204 pounds
- Arm Length: 32 1/2 inches
- Hand Size: 9 3/8 inches
- Best 40 Yard Dash: 4.49 seconds
- Bench Press: Did Not Participate
- Vertical Jump: 34 inches
- Broad Jump: 124 inches
- Three Cone Drill: Did Not Participate
- 20 Yard Shuttle: Did Not Participate