The Vikings' season has been over for less than a week, and already the talk has turned from a late run at the playoffs to the draft. The St. Paul Pioneer Press' Charley Walters, who never makes it clear if he has actual sources or is just making stuff up, offers this:
The Vikings, who have the No. 17 overall pick in April's NFL draft, are expected to consider defensive end Derrick Harvey of Florida. There is virtually no chance they'll draft a quarterback in the first three rounds.Like I said, no idea where this is coming from, but in any case, Harvey seems like a reasonable pick. According to NFLDraftScout.com, he is ranked second behind Virginia's Chris Long for draft-eligible defensive ends, Harvey registered 11 sacks in 2006, and was named All-SEC second team this season.
Given the Vikings' biggest weakness has been on pass defense, the pick would make sense. Of course, the team drafted Kenechi Udeze and Erasmus James in the first round in back-to-back years, so it's not like they haven't tried to address the issue the last few seasons.
Perhaps more interesting, though, is the "news" that Minnesota won't take a quarterback on the first day of the draft. If true, that says that either the team is willing to start 2008 with Tarvaris Jackson, or there's a good chance they trade for a veteran this off-season. I'd guess the latter, but at this point, four months out from the draft, who really knows.
