Vikings 2022 NFL draft preview: Where does Minnesota stand at DE?
The 2022 NFL draft is rich with pass-rushing talent, and that’s a good thing when considering the insatiable need to wreak havoc against opposing offenses.
Count the Minnesota Vikings among the teams looking to add another potential game-breaker to set the edge on defense.
A team can never have too many talented defensive ends on a roster. Particularly with the Vikings, with all of the uncertainty right now in the secondary, they’re going to need playmakers up front that can get home for sacks or—at the very least—disrupt the timing of offenses.
There are several players within reach for the Vikings that could do exactly that in this draft. Here is where the team stands right now at the defensive end position.
Who's on the roster?
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The biggest domino to fall into place with this group is the team avoiding the temptation of trading former All-Po defensive end and two-time Pro Bowler Danielle Hunter.
He’s easily one of the best pass rushers in the league when healthy, but his body has shown signs of breaking down over the last two seasons. No, that isn’t to suggest he can’t bounce back to his 14.5-sack years without any major injuries in 2022.
At only 27 years of age, he’s still in the prime of his career with plenty of good football left to play.
But D.J. Wonnum is clearly the player to watch in this group. He burst onto the scene with three sacks as a rookie before nearly tripling that production with eight sacks, four pass deflections, 15 quarterback hits and 47 tackles last season.
Who departed this offseason?
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Tashawn Bower
The reunion with Everson Griffen could be a one-and-done thing for the Vikings.
After contributing five sacks last season, the 34-year-old defensive end is still a free agent, while the Vikings are apparently moving on with the combination of Wonnum and Hunter to bookend the defensive front.
That doesn’t mean the team wouldn’t explore an opportunity to bring Griffen back into the fold if he’s ready to return to football.
But of course, some things are bigger than sports. The former four-time Pro Bowler stepped away from the game late last season to deal with mental health issues.
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Positional need: Medium
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What team doesn’t need another pass-rusher?
There’s always going to be a need at defensive end for NFL teams, and the Vikings are no exception, even with Hunter and Wonnum sitting at the top of the depth chart.
There are still a lot of question marks pertaining to the depth at the position and Hunter’s availability. Despite being one of the premier pass-rushers in the league, Hunter has only played in seven games in the last two seasons combined.
There were even talks that the team could potentially trade him in the offseason. Granted, none of those rumors actually came to fruition, but the chatter was enough to start a legitimate conversation in Minnesota. It’s time to start looking for the next player that can potentially step in and fill the void when Hunter isn’t on the field.
Top draft prospects
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Aidan Hutchinson, Michigan
Kayvon Thibodeaux, Oregon
Jermaine Johnson II, Florida State
Travon Walker, Georgia
George Karlaftis, Purdue
Boye Mafe, Minnesota
Hutchinson is probably the only name on this list completely out of reach for the Vikings at No. 12 on the draft board.
Kayvon Thibodeaux is likely to be unavailable as well, but there’s still a small chance that he could fall. All it takes is one team going off the path early in the draft.
Cornerback is still the greatest position of need for the Vikings, but if a dynamic playmaker like Thibodeaux was miraculously still on the board when they pick on day one, it would be hard to pass up selecting him.
The first couple of days in this draft will be especially interesting to see who falls on the board and if its a player capable of swaying the Vikings to take him.
2022 NFL draft position previews
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Quarterback
Running back
Wide receiver
Tight end
Offensive line
Defensive end
Defensive tackle
Linebacker
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