Much has been made about the Minnesota Vikings‘ defense over the past two seasons. And for good reason. The defense was the main reason for the Vikings being in playoff contention as long as they were last season, despite a frankly absurd quarterback carousel through more than half the season.
Once again, the defense was the backbone of the Vikings’ success this past season. While the offense certainly put up its fair share of the work, the defense stymied opponents all year and forced at least one turnover in every game they played — excluding their final game of the season, a devastating playoff loss to the Los Angeles Rams.
Still, if there was one flaw in defensive coordinator Brian Flores’ defensive scheme, it was a lack of consistent play from the defensive line. That figures to be a point of emphasis for the team in the offseason, and it was a point of emphasis for NFL Draft analyst Kyle Crabbs of The 33rd Team in his latest mock draft.
Crabbs has the Vikings taking South Carolina defensive lineman T.J. Sanders with the 24th pick in the 2025 NFL Draft, saying:
Minnesota appears to have another year of Brian Flores calling the defense on deck. With that in mind, the team would benefit from more dynamic, young talent for Flores’s aggressive pressure scheme. TJ Sanders is one of the most disruptive interior talents in this year’s class. Putting him in positions to play in a loaded front or base looks like a complement to Harrison Phillips, giving Minnesota another dangerous weapon to force mistakes from opposing quarterbacks.
Minnesota also needs help along the offensive line and in the defensive backfield, so those could also be options for the team at pick 24. However, with just over $60 million in projected cap space to spend in free agency, the Vikings may be better served filling those positions outside the NFL Draft and trying to inject some young talent along the defensive line.