the leading theory. That title belongs to Oregon’s Dillon Thieneman, the athletic Duck who would get tasked with working as an air-traffic controller for Brian Flores. If, however, there’s a desire to move down, then a few teams jump off the page.
The NFL’s website offers a helpful listing of each team’s draft selections. Minnesota finds itself with the following picks: No. 18 (1st), No. 49 (2nd), No. 82 (3rd), No. 97 (3rd), No. 163 (5th), No. 196 (6th), No. 234 (7th), No. 235 (7th), and No. 244 (7th). Seeing the Vikings push the total higher wouldn’t be at all surprising, meaning the Dolphins, Patriots, and Jaguars look like nice trade partners.
A Vikings Draft Trade: Watch MIA, NE, & JAX
Moving down sometimes hits as a buzzkill.
Onlookers want to see elite, high-end talent grafted onto the roster. And, to be sure, there’s good reason for that desire. What needs to be remembered, though, is that Minnesota’s roster is aching for more youth all over the place. Indeed, this Vikings team is not a single piece away from contention but, rather, several pieces.
 warms up before the game against the Baltimore Ravens at U.S. Bank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeffrey Becker-Imagn Images.</p>
<p>” data-large-file=”/cdn-cgi/image/width=1180,height=655,fit=crop,quality=80,format=auto,onerror=redirect,metadata=none/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/Justin-Jefferson.jpg” src=”http://vikingsterritory.com/cdn-cgi/image/width=788,height=444,fit=crop,quality=80,format=auto,onerror=redirect,metadata=none/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/Justin-Jefferson.jpg” alt=”Vikings WR Justin Jefferson in November 2025″><figcaption>Nov 9, 2025; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Justin Jefferson (18) warms up before the game against the Baltimore Ravens at U.S. Bank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeffrey Becker-Imagn Images.</figcaption></figure>
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<p>Moreover, there’s wisdom in the realization that excellent talent can be found later on, as the Vikings’ roster demonstrates. Some will quibble with the ranking, but consider the Vikings’ five best players alongside where they were picked: </p>
<ul>
<li>Justin Jefferson — No. 22, RD1</li>
<li>Andrew Van Ginkel — No. 151, RD5</li>
<li>Christian Darrisaw — No. 23, RD1</li>
<li>Jalen Redmond — UDFA</li>
<li>Brian O’Neill — No. 62, RD2</li>
</ul>
<p>The point, folks, isn’t to get into a fight about the team’s best players. Instead, the idea is that great players can be found all over the place. In fact, there’s a pretty good case to be made that the Vikings’ sweet spot lately has been in the low-to-mid 20s since that’s where the team found Jefferson, Darrisaw, Jordan Addison, and Donovan Jackson. </p>
<p>Picking high increases one’s odds of <a href=)
landing that game-changing talent. Another way to increase the odds of choosing that talent is to increase the amount of picks a team makes. Sounds basic, but the rationale is worth highlighting: drafting ten players often gives a team a better shot at landing more starters than drafting five players.
As it relates to teams that could reasonably be interested in climbing, consider the Miami Dolphins, New England Patriots, and Jacksonville Jaguars.
 would obviously help, so it’ll be fascinating to see if somebody like <a href=)
Oregon’s Kenyon Sadiq or a promising WR could lead to a bold trade.
Check out the Dolphins’ draft picks:
- No. 11
- No. 30
- No. 43
- No. 75
- No. 87
- No. 90
- No. 94
- No. 130
- No. 151
- No. 222
- No. 238
No doubt, dropping down to 30th would sting. No doubt, the Dolphins have the firepower to make it worth the drop. Sitting on top of seven top-100 selections will make Miami a busy team. That’ll mean being busy drafting promising players and/or busy pulling off trades.
Likewise, the Patriots are sitting atop a huge amount of picks, though they don’t have the same ammunition over the opening trio of rounds. Even still, the No. 31 selection could theoretically get partnered with No. 63, No. 95, or some combo of the other eight picks to move up. Drake Maye needs more help at receiver.
Do the Steelers with their twelve picks — No. 21 being the highest — call? Kansas City is at No. 29 and then has seven more picks afterwards. They, too, need WR help.
Senior Editor for Vikings Territory & PurplePTSD . Twitter & Bluesky: @VikingsGazette. Email: k.joudry[at]vikingsterritory[dot]com. Canadian. Jude 1:24-25.
