5 best Vikings first-round picks of the Rick Spielman era

Harrison Smith (2012)

Spielman’s first ever NFL draft in 2012 was headlined with two first round picks. The first was Matt Kalil, and you all know how that turned out. But the second pick in the first round at 29th overall he took stud safety out of Notre Dame, Harrison Smith.

Smith has been an absolute force for the Minnesota defense. He’s a big reason that they’ve been so dominating for many years. During his seven-year career with the Minnesota Vikings, Smith has been very durable considering his hard-hitting playing style, missing just 13 games, most of which came during his second season in 2013.

He has a whopping total of 566 combined tackles which averages out to almost six a game and over 91 a season. Smith has made his name by roaming the entire field and putting big hits on opposing offenses.

He was a great pick by Spielman in his first ever draft as a general manager.