Why the Vikings should draft T.J. Hockenson in the first round
By Chris Schad
The Minnesota Vikings could fill multiple boxes off their NFL Draft to-do list by selecting the Iowa tight end.
When I had the idea of a “pound the table” series regarding the first round pick of the Minnesota Vikings in the NFL Draft, I had a lot of the usual suspects in mind. Along with defensive tackle Ed Oliver, I sat there with a list of offensive linemen ranging from Jonah Williams to Cody Ford and started listing the reasons why the Vikings would take said prospect in the first round.
However, the more I started writing down the prospects and their strengths, the more I started saying to myself “Well, duh.”
We all know that despite his “short” arms that Williams will be an upgrade wherever the Vikings put him on the offensive line. We also know that if the Vikings selected Cody Ford, he’d slide in at guard and give the offensive line the mean streak that Tom Compton or Mike Remmers didn’t have last season. In other words, selecting an offensive lineman would be obvious and eliminate the need to pound the table.
So what if the Vikings thought outside of the box, upgraded their run blocking and added a threat for Kirk Cousins in the draft with the same pick?
One way for the Vikings to do that is to select a tight end and at the top of this year’s crop sits T.J. Hockenson. The Iowa tight end has a complete game and if Rick Spielman and company want to get crazy, Hockenson would be a guy worth pounding the table for.