Minnesota Vikings' Mock Draft: Updated Day 2 Predictions

Without many surprises in the first round, the Minnesota Vikings can proceed with their "we didn't trade" contingency plan in the 2015 NFL draft without too many interruptions, though expect them to find some ways to grab more picks.

In this case, we won't mock those trades, but we'll continue to look for players with traits the Vikings traditionally covet. The Vikings followed through on their draft history to some extent in the first round, once again grabbing an athlete with outstanding character, relying on their coaches to polish up technique and other weaknesses.

The Vikings will have a number of other needs to fulfill. Look for some (or all) of the following kinds of players:

• A guard with the opportunity to compete for the starting position
• A versatile safety
• A "Mike" linebacker
• A "Will" linebacker
• A pass-rusher
• A backup tackle
• A developmental quarterback

In addition to that, special teams standouts are a must, as they are every year.

Round 2

Mark J. Terrill/Associated Press

At the "Will" linebacker position, a position stacked behind the defensive tackle in Mike Zimmer's 4-3 defense, the demands for size are not nearly as important as the demands for speed. His starters have included 235-pounds Keith Rivers and 240-pound Manny Lawson, and the backups at that positions have featured Sean Porter (229 pounds), Emmanuel Lamur (232 pounds) and Vincent Rey (240 pounds).

The only linebacker the Bengals had acquired between 2009 and 2013 except for one (Vontaze Burfict) ran a 40-yard dash faster than 4.72 seconds (the average for a stack linebacker at the NFL combine), with most below 4.60.

It so happens that the Vikings' linebacker acquisitions in the past year met that requirement as well.

In addition to that pattern, linebackers acquired under Zimmer (except for Burfict) also had a vertical leap of at least 34 inches and a broad jump of at 9'10".

There are not many mid-round linebackers who fulfill those requirements, but Eric Kendricks, often not lauded enough for his athletic ability, certainly does—and with room to spare. In addition, Kendricks has other requirements for a Vikings player, namely outstanding character as an individual and incredible smarts on the field.

Billed as perhaps the most instinctive linebacker in the 2015 NFL draft, Kendricks has the preternatural ability to get in the minds of opposing offensive coordinators and has caused havoc in the Pac-12 for years. His speed on the field made him Pro Football Focus' best coverage linebacker.

His biggest weaknesses care hidden either by the scheme as a "Will" linebacker can be coached as a matter of technique. His take-on skills against opposing blockers are not great, but it's not a lack of natural strength—he possesses more than enough of that—but his extremely poor hand placement and lack of leg drive caused by bad footwork.

Productive and with the ability to contribute on all three downs, Kendricks would be an immediate upgrade for the defense.

Round 3

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Before the draft, it was easy to predict Chris Conley as a potential Minnesota Viking coming out of the third round, and there's nothing wrong about that prediction now. For the sake of variety, however, we'll move on to someone else.

Though in that piece I preferred Conley, it's just as possible that Minnesota targets a different standout athlete, Sammie Coates. A rocked-up athlete whose athleticism is a bit more obvious than Conley's, there wasn't an athletic drill asked of Coates that he didn't blow out of the water, doing them all at 212 pounds and nearly 6'2".

Coates, like Charles Johnson, Jarius Wright and Mike Wallace, has the ability to compete on vertical routes and spring open at a moment's notice deep downfield, but it's his work with the ball in his hands that's the most intriguing.

Fast, agile and strong, Coates' run-after-catch ability is unparalleled in this class, if only because he's one of the few receivers to combine vision, elusiveness, speed and strength—incredible strength—into one cohesive package.

An excellent person off the field, Coates has won an award for making a positive impact in the fight against rare diseases. CBSSports.com describes him as a genuine personality who won't get in trouble off the field.

With that athletic package, however, comes incredible inconsistencies. He fights the ball and demonstrates not just poor hands technique, but an inability at times to track the ball in the air. When he's on, he's on—he can outmuscle and box out opposing defensive backs vertically or on slant routes and can be a threat in the red zone in a way Johnson has not shown he can be, but that doesn't mean the ball always arrives in his hands.

He's a very rough route-runner who often looks like he plays stiff when really he's merely unpolished and tips off his route with alarming regularity. If that can be coached out of him, it'll be easy to live with his drops if only because of how open he'll be and how electric it will be to see him run after the catch.

There aren't a lot of big, athletic receivers this late in the draft, and Coates could be one of them.

Round 4

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The one position that the Minnesota Vikings don't seem to prioritize athleticism for is safety. Adding players like Ahmad Dixon and Antone Exum show at least to some extent that athleticism isn't as important as recognition or attitude.

Both Dixon and Exum are hard hitters, as is Harrison Smith. Adding an athlete with the physique of James Sample and the attitude of a bulldozer will contribute to that tradition.

More comfortable in the box than deep in coverage, Sample is aggressive in run support and hits receivers over the middle like they did him wrong. He's instinctive when reading run plays and can fill in his gap quickly, while also demonstrating the intuition to freelance when the play calls for it.

He does have weaknesses in coverage, though his range is adequate for a free safety—even if it doesn't rival some of the faster safeties in this draft. Average in terms of his reactiveness and instincts when in zone coverage, Sample isn't a liability when playing the deep third, but neither will he consistently be expected to make plays.

For a fourth-round pick, that's fine. A competition between him, Exum, Robert Blanton, Taylor Mays and Andrew Sendejo (assuming Dixon doesn't make a serious push as well) will produce a safety who is going to be better in the box than deep in the secondary, and being average in that capacity, like Sample is, could be more than enough to beat out Mays and Blanton.

he has some stiffness issues and is susceptible to play action, but he can continue the hard-hitting attitude of Xavier Rhodes and Harrison Smith and make sure opposing offenses leave bruised.

Round 5

Phelan M. Ebenhack/Associated Press

Without a sixth-round pick, this fifth-round pick has a high likelihood of being traded. If it's not, the first pick in the fifth round will be followed by dead silence for hours as the Vikings don't have a pick until the middle of the seventh. Hitting here may be important.

If a player like Ali Marpet falls, which is unlikely but possible given his small-school background, they'll run to the podium. Absent that, they could pick another Louisville product in John Miller.

Louisville may be used to pro-style concepts in the passing game, but the unusual running setup of the offense meant that Miller played strong-side guard, not left or right guard. The reason he was given this role was his fantastic strength at the point of attack.

Though knocked for his size at times, the Vikings have shown no issue with grabbing smaller guards—Jeff Baca was 302 pounds, while Brandon Fusco was 306. The key is a nasty attitude up front and some dominant attributes, like strength.

Another player with good football character and willingness to slog through the toughest parts of practice with enthusiasm, the Vikings will also like his durability and high-level conditioning, among the best in the class for offensive or defensive linemen.

He may not pull with the same quickness that Charlie Johnson did, and his agility could cause issues teaching him to improve on it, but with the Vikings' willingness to pull tackles, centers and more recently Fusco in the run game, it won't damage his fit in the offense too much.

His pass protection is somewhat suspect, though that could in part be due to a terrible center playing next to him as he was unwilling to move too far laterally away from center in order to provide help—defenses were targeting that center. Still, speedy defensive tackles get the better of him more often than you'd hope for a smaller guard.

Round 7

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Thursday, we predicted a Trenton Brown pick in the seventh round to shore up the weak backup offensive tackle spot, in part because of his size. We'll continue to pick length offensive lineman, but this time will pick someone who has shown a bit more movement in Laurence Gibson from Virginia Tech, one of the few athletic big guys this late in the draft.

Gibson may already be crossed off the Vikings' list because of his age (they haven't drafted a player 24 years or older in the past three years, and Gibson is 24), but his development potential is still there, especially because of his outstanding athletic capability.

He and John Miller had the two lowest body-fat percentages at the combine, per Nolan Nawrocki's NFL Draft 2015 Preview, and it shows up in their solid conditioning. Beyond that, however, is Gibson's sheer movement ability and strength.

Agile working up to the second level and strong at the point of contact, even on the move, Gibson can knock some heads in the run game because he'll blindside linebackers with unforgiving angles. Given Matt Kalil's high-level screen-blocking ability, Gibson could be an ideal backup who can perform the same role.

Unfortunately, he also shares with Kalil some weaknesses, which include strength as a drive-blocker in the run game. Many of his weaknesses are the result of poor technique and he doesn't get to the edge in pass protection with confidence, nor display high-level technique with his hands.

If he can be stopped from playing with too high a pad level, a lot of things may click into place for him, however, and he'll be a phenomenal backup.

He also has two degrees, one in sociology and the other in psychology. It's probably not relevant, but it's a little interesting.

With the other second-round pick, the Vikings could select a developmental quarterback or a special teams linebacker. Having selected one linebacker already, it may make sense to get that quarterback. But the most athletic linebackers will likely be gone by undrafted free agency, while some intriguing talents will remain at quarterback, so they'll double-dip at the linebacker position.

Unless Bryce Hager or Ben Heeney drop, it will be difficult to find athletes as it is, but a player like Alani Fua from Brigham Young is possible.

Fua had good workouts, with a fast 40-yard dash and the fastest short-shuttle and three-cone drills of any linebacker at the combine.

Primarily a pass-rusher at BYU, he would convert to an off-ball position in Minnesota, making his slight weakness in taking on blocks in the run game significantly less important. He's not extremely instinctive but he does move quickly upon diagnosis, and his athleticism allowed him to cover slot receivers for the Cougars.

He's a solid blitzer from the A-gap and can do so from the slot as well, with a lot of experience rushing the passer from the outside shoulder of offensive tackles.

His contribution on special teams will come not just from his speed but solid tackling skills. His take-on strength and limited instincts will force him to fall, but he can slip past blockers and provide excellent special teams play in the meantime.