Round 6 (second selection)
Jason Sanders – K (New Mexico)
Original Pick: Ade Aruna – DE (Tulane)
We all know what happened with Daniel Carlson, and I actually thought about having the Vikings take him again in round five, but I don’t think the emotions of Minnesota’s fans could handle it.
In 2018 with the Miami Dolphins, Sanders was 18-for-20 on field goal attempts and he only missed one extra point all year. While Sanders was taken a round later than Carlson, he proved to be the real deal.
No doubt the Vikings will once again be looking for a kicker during the 2019 offseason and taking someone completely different than Carlson would have given Minnesota at least a fighting shot to squash the never-ending need at kicker.
Thoughts on original pick:
Aruna was looked at as an intriguing raw prospect when he was taken in the sixth round. So when he tore his ACL in the preseason, nobody really thought a ton into it since he was destined for the practice squad regardless.
We’ll see what Aruna brings in the future, but for now he’s expendable.