This offseason has seen the Minnesota Vikings take some lumps on the defensive line, leaving the position with a lot of work to do before the 2026 NFL Draft.
So far in the offseason, the Vikings released defensive linemen Jonathan Allen and Javon Hargrave, as both have since found new homes with Allen going to the Cincinnati Bengals and Hargrave to the rival Green Bay Packers. The only move the Vikings have made on the defensive line was re-signing Jalen Redmond to his exclusive rights tender for one year.
That has left the Vikings with needing to use the draft to find the remaining pieces to the depth on the defensive line. Recently, NFL reporter Aaron Wilson shared that the Vikings had dinner scheduled with LSU defensive tackle Jacobian Guillory II before his Pro Day.
Minnesota Vikings met with LSU DL Jacobian Guillory II before NFL Draft
Guillory played six seasons with the Tigers, redshirting twice in 2020 and 2024. Last year at LSU, he racked up 20 tackles, nine pressures, eight hurries, and career-highs in tackles for loss (4.5) and sacks (1.5). Pro Football Focus graded him out at a 62.2 overall, ranking 626th out of 887 interior defensive linemen in the country.
There is going to be a lot of youth to the Vikings' defensive line going into the 2026 season, with Redmond the leader of the group.
Minnesota will also be rolling out guys like Levi Drake Rodriguez and Tyrion Ingram-Dawkins in the starting lineup with Taki Taimani, Jaylon Hutchings, and Elijah Williams as the backups.
Guillory is more likely to be a Day 3 pick in the NFL Draft if he is selected, and someone the Vikings could at least develop behind Redmond and the rest of the guys over the next year or two.
Over the last year, Guillory improved as a pass rusher and could continue to grow under Vikings defensive coordinator Brian Flores, who has had great success in recent years developing late-round defensive linemen.
More work will have to be done in the early rounds of the draft on the defensive line, but Guillory is a sleeper pick who could pay off for the Vikings.