5 defensive prospects the Vikings should watch at the 2020 Senior Bowl

Javon Kinlaw – DT (South Carolina)

Defensive tackle isn’t the biggest need the Vikings have on defense, but Javon Kinlaw could be the best overall talent that is available at pick No. 25. This guy is a monster with a thick lower body and powerful upper half. He’s a slippery tackle who just slides off blocks and then destroys the quarterback or running back, whichever is the unlucky one who happens to be holding the football.

Kinlaw is a sasquatch of a human standing 6-foot-6 and tipping the scales at 310 pounds. He possesses almost superhuman strength and consistently blows by the poor chaps who are assigned to block him.

Kinlaw would fit perfectly as the three-technique in the Vikings defensive front. They currently don’t have one as both Linval Joseph and Shamar Stephen are run stuffers and don’t create a ton of interior pressure. That is what Kinlaw does, and why the Vikings could covet him at pick No. 25.

Kinlaw does have some weaknesses. He relies too heavily on the bull rush and doesn’t have a lot of pass-rushing moves in his arsenal. But that is where a coach like Andre Patterson comes in so handy. He can teach this raw beast some technique and the Vikings could find the next great defensive tackle in a lineage that has been chock full of them.

The biggest question surrounding Kinlaw is if he’ll be available when Minnesota is on the clock. How he performs during the week down in Mobile will go a long way in determining that.