5 players the Vikings will watch closely at the 2019 NFL Combine

Hakeem Butler – WR (Iowa State)

The Vikings are in the market for a third wide receiver. Laquon Treadwell’s chance at that appears to be coming to an end and Aldrick Robinson is a free-agent this year so he’s not guaranteed to come back. Minnesota will take interest in all of the wide receivers at this year’s NFL Combine, but Butler is especially intriguing.

Butler, like a lot of guys on this list, is really ranked all over the map by draft analysts. He’s as high as in the 20s on some draft boards, while others have him as a third-rounder.

He has a great frame standing at 6-foot-6 and that size is something the Vikings’ receiving corps currently lacks. Butler uses that big body well to position himself between the defender and the ball and he appears to have pretty solid hands. He wasn’t asked to run real complex routes at Iowa State and there are questions about his overall straight-line speed.

This could be a case where Minnesota may hope a prospect doesn’t run that well at the combine.  If Butler posts a 40-yard dash time between 4.4 and 4.6 seconds, he’ll almost assuredly be a first-round choice. If he clocks in below that, he could begin to slide.

If the Vikings can bring in a free-agent offensive lineman who they think can start this year and use their 2019 first-round choice on another blocker, that will open up the door for them to use their second-round pick on a secondary need like wide receiver.

If Butler’s stock falls due to his overall speed, and Minnesota likes everything else about him after meeting him at the combine, he could end up in purple this year. A purple he’d look real sharp in.

(For more NFL Draft and Vikings-related content from Nik Edlund, head on over to SkolHole.com and check out his work.)