History indicates Vikings will use an early-round pick on a corner in 2019

It may not seem like a huge need to some, but the Minnesota Vikings could look to draft another cornerback with one of their early-round picks this year.

Heading into the 2018 NFL Draft, many assumed that the Minnesota Vikings would be using their first-round selection on a guard or a tackle to help improve a weak offensive line. However, this is not what ended up happening.

Instead, the Vikings went ahead and chose to use last year’s first-round selection on UCF cornerback Mike Hughes. It was not a choice that many saw coming from Minnesota. But with Mike Zimmer as their head coach, maybe it was something that actually shouldn’t have been so shocking.

This year, the Vikings find themselves in a similar position as they prepare for the upcoming NFL Draft. Minnesota is in need of upgrading their offensive line, but the temptation of using an early-round selection on a cornerback continues to exist with Zimmer as the team’s head coach.

During three of the last four years, the Vikings have used either a first or a second-round pick on a corner. Minnesota added Trae Waynes with their first selection in 2015, then the Vikings went ahead and picked Mackensie Alexander during the second round in 2016, and finally Hughes was taken by Minnesota with their first-round pick last year.

Interestingly enough, the Vikings have only drafted one cornerback outside of the first two rounds since 2015. So if Minnesota is going to add another a corner in this year’s draft, their recent past indicates that they will do so with a selection in either the first or second round.

Since Waynes and Alexander are entering the final seasons of their contracts, the Vikings do currently have a slight need for another cornerback.

Throw in the fact that Hughes is coming off a torn ACL and Holton Hill is suspended for the first four games of 2019 and Minnesota drafting a corner this year seems more likely than some may like to admit.

Considering the Vikings’ need for more offensive line help still exists as they head into the 2019 draft, them using their first-round pick on a cornerback would be even more shocking this year.

If one had to venture a guess, Minnesota using their first selection in the 2019 draft on a corner doesn’t seem very likely. But based on their recent draft history, the Vikings adding a cornerback in the second round this year wouldn’t come as a surprise at all.