For those who live and breathe the NFL Draft and the pre-draft process, they know mock draft season is all year long. Depending on how the 2024 season goes for the Minnesota Vikings, the 2025 NFL Draft could prove to be more crucial to the careers of general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah and head coach Kevin O'Connell.
To make our selections for this mock draft, we used the ever-popular NFL Draft Simulator from Pro Football Network.
In this mock, we have the Vikings slated to pick 10th in the opening round, with only four total draft picks (one first, one compensatory third, and two fifth-round picks). Adofo-Mensah is in a position where he is almost forced to trade down to acquire more draft assets for Minnesota's 2025 roster, which is exactly what happens in this mock.
With that being said, in this mock, the Vikings trade pick No. 10 to the Miami Dolphins for picks No. 21 (first), 53 (second), 210 (sixth), and a 2026 third round pick.
Let’s see how this goes.
2025 Minnesota Vikings Mock Draft: Pre-Week 1 of the 2024 NFL season
First-Round Pick (21st Overall via Miami Dolphins)
Denzel Burke - CB (Ohio State)
The top two options on the board at pick No. 21 were Kentucky interior defensive lineman Deone Walker and Ohio State cornerback Denzel Burke. Burke gets the nod and becomes the newest member of Minnesota's secondary.
Over The Cap projects the Vikings have just south of $67 million in cap space to work with for the 2025 offseason, which ranks sixth in the entire league. It’d be wise to assume Adofo-Mensah and his staff will target some of the top interior defensive linemen and cornerbacks on the free agency market in 2025 with this kind of change at their disposal.
However, there seems to be a trend when it comes to how Adofo-Mensah views the cornerback position. In the third-year general manager’s eyes, it appears that he believes the cornerback position is not necessarily a position that needs to have a veteran superstar in the mix.
In this case, Adofo-Mensah uses a premium draft pick in hopes of securing the team's next lockdown cornerback.
Burke fits the bill for what a Brian Flores cornerback should look and play like. The true senior cornerback would have been in the running as the top prospect at the position if he had declared for the 2024 draft, but he stunned a number of scouts and draft analysts when he decided to return for year four with the Buckeyes.
Burke has experience in both press-man and zone coverages while playing under defensive coordinator Jim Knowles. Burke's interception numbers won't make you jump out of your seat, as he's only had three in his college career. However, 26 pass breakups over three seasons is nothing to dismiss.
Burke’s biggest problem is his tackling ability. At times, he’s too tall when making tackles, causing his body to take more pop from receivers and running backs. Burke will also have lapses in his tackling that see his target gain an extra two to three yards after the catch. But with Flores as his defensive coordinator in Minnesota, it's safe to assume he would improve in this area.
Second-Round Pick (53rd Overall via Dolphins)
TreVeyon Henderson - RB (Ohio State)
This pick is predicated on the idea that Ty Chandler just doesn’t show enough to prove he should be the Vikings' RB1 heading into the 2025 season. With Aaron Jones clearly Minnesota's lead running back going into the 2024 season, the position group was not addressed in the 2024 draft.
The problem Minnesota has is that Jones, who turns 30 this December, is scheduled to be a free agent in 2025 and will most definitely be looking for potentially the last big payday of his career. The Vikings will have a number of other holes on their roster to fill next year, so can the team afford to pay top dollar to an aging running back? Probably not.
The market for running backs has become extremely saturated, and teams view the position as an ever-revolving door that can be filled with cheap, late-round draft picks or undrafted free agents. In this mock, Adofo-Mensah gets O’Connell the top running back in the draft pool.
Henderson, like Burke, is a true senior who surprised many people by returning for a fourth year in Columbus. Especially considering the other top 2025 running back prospect, Quinshon Judkins, decided to transfer to Ohio State earlier this year.
This should actually be a positive for both Henderson and potential NFL teams interested in his services in 2025. He's not going to shoulder the load of the Buckeyes's ground game this season, and the fourth-year team captain is going to have fresh legs going into his rookie year.
Interestingly enough, if you watch Henderson play, he's similar to Jones.
Both backs have similar body types, with Henderson carrying a couple more pounds than the former UTEP star. Both have top tier explosiveness and elite and cutting through defenses. Both are above-average receiving threats for the position and can maintain blocks at the point of attack even when outsized by oncoming defenders.
Henderson could make Minnesota's offensive backfield extremely dangerous when they enter what some assume will be their “Super Bowl window” in 2025.
Third-Round Pick (99th Overall Projected Compensatory Selection)
Walter Nolen - IDL (Ole Miss)
It is safe to assume that the Vikings will spend plenty of cash this upcoming offseason on the interior of the defensive line. Currently, the Vikings starting defensive line for Week 1 at the New York Giants is projected to be Jerry Tillery, Harrison Phillips, and Jonathan Bullard.
Minnesota's defensive line could potentially be a massive issue all season long. Veteran interior defensive linemen like Alim McNeill and Osa Odighizuwa will likely headline the 2025 free-agent class, and one could make a case for the Vikings to sign both. But Minnesota will still need good depth on the defensive line to be successful.
Ole Miss defensive tackle Walter Nolen is a former five-star recruit who hasn’t made quite the impact many believed he would at the college level. Nonetheless, there is still a ton of untapped potential in this young defender.
Nolen is your typical 3-4 defensive end and he's also improved each year as a pass rusher. He still experiences struggles as a run defender, but with time and proper coaching, he can improve in this area.
Under the guidance of Flores, Nolen should be able to carve out a nice rotational role to begin his career, with the talent to eventually emerge as a starter for Minnesota's defensive line.
Fifth-Round Pick No. 1 (141st Overall)
Tory Horton - WR (Colorado State)
The WR3 position has been a key talking point when referencing concerns with the 2024 Vikings. Outside of Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison, Minnesota's wide receiver room has yet to prove they can even supplant what K.J. Osborn was able to provide to the offense in the last few seasons.
We will get a great look at both Brandon Powell and Jalen Nailor in this role this year, but both will probably be temporary options. If the Vikings have a respectable record close to this season's trade deadline, it wouldn't be surprising if they looked to make a deal for another receiver.
Minnesota should absolutely bring in another talented pass-catcher that receivers coach Keenan McCardell can work with in 2025, assuming he does not get an offensive coordinator gig somewhere else next year.
Tory Horton from Colorado State is an interesting talent that the Vikings should look at. Horton is a very active, twitchy receiver and even though he doesn’t have elite speed or an extensive route tree, he looks like a receiver who is going to be playing on Sundays for a long time.
At 6-foot-1 and just north of 180 pounds, Horton's great understanding of attacking the soft spots in coverage and his good hands would make him a solid addition to any NFL wide receiver room.
Fifth-Round Pick No. 2 (146th Overall)
Xavier Truss - OG (Georgia)
The interior of the offensive line is once again a huge question mark for Minnesota entering the 2024 season. What kind of Garrett Bradbury are we going to get this year? Is Ed Ingram going to last another full season as a starter at right guard? Can the Vikings afford to start Ingram for an entire year?
Either way, Minnesota needs to bring in as much talent on the interior as possible. The Vikings may look to upgrade at either center of guard through free agency in 2025, but either way, a guard with the size of Georgia's Xavier Truss may be exactly what Minnesota needs.
At 6-foot-7 and 325 pounds, Truss is a mountain of a man who doesn’t get pushed back into his quarterback's lap very often like the current trio the Vikings plan to roll out in Week 1.
Minnesota seems to be shifting towards a power run scheme from their outside zone this year. A power-run scheme requires multiple massive interior linemen that can push opposing defensive lines back instead of getting out into space.
Truss has experience playing both guard and tackle during his time at Georgia. He is expected to be the Bulldogs' starting right tackle in 2024, but many pro scouts believe he will be better suited for a move inside at the next level.
Unless Ingram can carve out a borderline Pro Bowl-caliber season, expect the Vikings to pull the plug rather quickly on the Ingram experience if he continues to struggle, and a lineman with the versatility of Truss could be a solid replacement in 2025.
Seventh-Round Pick (210th Overall via Dolphins)
Malachi Moore - S (Alabama)
Many believe that 2024 is going to be the final season for future Vikings Ring of Honor inductee Harrison Smith. If this is the case, it will be hard to replicate the type of production that Smith has had over his career.
If this is indeed his final season, expect Minnesota to turn to Josh Metellus as his replacement. This means that Flores will need a new guy who he can move all over his defense.
This role is very similar to the “STAR” position that legendary Alabama head coach Nick Saban deployed over the years. The “STAR” is a guy who lines up at nickel corner, both safety positions, linebacker, and on the edge in certain packages.
Does this sound like a certain someone on the current Vikings defense?
Malachi Moore assumed this versatile role since his true freshman season at Alabama, and now, entering his final year at the school, he's looking to make himself into one of the top defensive back prospects in the 2025 draft pool.
Moore has failed to meet the expectations that were set for him as a highly-rated four-star recruit four years ago. Nevertheless, Moore is still a valuable chess piece for any defensive coordinator to use, and under Flores, he could take over the Metellus role and thrive.