Yodny Cajuste – OT (West Virginia)
Cajuste is a big blocker out of the coal mines of West Virginia. This 6-foot-5, 312 pound behemoth was occasionally seen at the end of the first round in some pre-combine mock drafts. Others had him more as a round two or mid third-round prospect.
After his performance at the 2019 combine, the third-round projection seems to be the most likely outcome.
Cajuste elected not to participate in most of the testing drills in Indianapolis. He only did the bench press, where he did unsurprisingly well with 32 reps. His power was never in doubt, but his movement skills and overall agility were.
The reason he didn’t do any other drills at the combine was due to his continued recovery from an injury and that is a big concern.
Every single year, a borderline first-round prospect will fall on draft day because of an injury that comes to light during the medical testing portion of the combine. If his injury is worse than what it was initially believed to be, he could be in for a major tumble down the board this April.
Cajuste did take part in some of the on-field offensive linemen drills but looked slow and a little stiff.
The Vikings are clearly watching every single offensive lineman closely at the combine and throughout this scouting process. Cajuste’s injury and the fact that it didn’t allow him to fully workout is a red flag.
Hopefully for Cajuste, he heals enough to the point he can put in a full workout at his Pro Day in a few weeks. But for now, it’s hard to see Minnesota considering him with a selection before the third round this year.
(For more NFL Draft and Vikings-related content from Nik Edlund, head on over to SkolHole.com and check out his work.)