#6

It's mid-week, that means it's time to mock draft!

Here is last week's edition.

Now onto the new one

With pens meeting paper today the needs list will finally, officially begin to change over the coming hours and days. Instead of going on an indefinite pause this week, waiting for news, the verbal agreements were factored in but all other moves will have to wait til next week to impact the fantasy drafting.

And so the picks started to roll by.

As proof of the unpredictability of the draft, both Jaylen Waddle & DeVonta Smith were up for grabs at 14. Wideout is far from a first round need but that kind of value was too enticing to bypass. I went with Waddle but between the two don't think there's a wrong answer. If the real thing were to somehow unfold like that then I would heavily favor the chance that the Purple would trade down but that option wasn't available to me.

The downside of such a move is that it puts even more of a spotlight on offensive line than it already has had, if that's possible. The team has reportedly made inquiries with several free agents but so far has not improved the line from that pool of players. They'll add some but the quality of those additions already seems like it will be questionable. So even if another highly-unlikely player was still available at 78 they would need to add a protector. In this run the best option to help bring it around would provide the mental acumen of a center (& insurance for Bradbury if he doesn't improve) while being a physical option at all four other spots. Say to hello to "THE" university's Josh Myers.

On the opposite line defensive tackle needs more young talent. Dalvin Tomlinson is a start, but just a start. There's also the ongoing rumor-saga surrounding Danielle Hunter, so edge rusher is at least an equal need and could be considered more pressing. With Ifeadi Odenigbo now set to join a different club adding a Hunter-esque prospect makes too much sense. In this case that meant picking Dayo Odeyingbo from Vandy.

Going with the top tackle at 119 was considered. In this case that would have been Robert Hainsey from South Bend. But with all sorts of uncertainty behind Harrison Smith on the roster, safety took precedent. And so a swing for another Southern California win was taken, this time in the form of Talanoa Hufanga.

Then, from the fog came a name from previous iterations of the simulation. Again in the mold of the Hunter, Janarius Robinson from Florida State to help solidify the once-great pass rush.

At 134 the option to select a player who hadn't been on the field for two years arose. If you're like me then you probably said some version of no just on the basis of that last sentence but Stanford's Walker Little has the one thing you can't train - size. As an option to help seal the edge of the offensive line I chose to go with the big man.

Nine picks later and it was time to double-down at safety. The latest one came from the Ozark state and seems like another great player to develop under Smith's masterful eye - Josh Bledsoe, Missouri.

Forgive me for being a broken record, but Minnesota needs to go quarterback in the third or fourth round. And the more of these I do, the more convinced I become that it will have to be the former. This time both Kyle Trask & Kellen Mond were taken early in third. There are several names that would be familiar to college football fans but the most intriguing at this point came from a lesser program, Jamie Newman - Wake Forest. At 157 he's a bit of a reach but considering the lack of draft investment the team has made since Teddy, I'm okay with reaching.

Then came Zimmer's pet position. Going for upside, Shakur Brown could come from East Lansing and eventually help as a backup corner. Another promising draft & develop corner was on the board at 198 and just as in previous runs I opted for Marco Wilson, Florida.

The one area that had yet to be mentioned, much less addressed, despite the restructure with Anthony Barr is linebacker. Even with some of the young guys already on the roster it warrants more than sixth-round investment. That's the struggle of having so many needs to address. The best option at that point was Grant Stuard from Houston but more should be expected next month.

With the last pick came yet another unaddressed need - returner. South Dakota State's Cade Johnson was still available and so the exercise closed just like it opened, with a receiver. That position was yet again available in quantity late so the trend has been firmly established. Now it's a matter of how the reality will sink up with the projections.

In either case, the roster retooling has begun so mock drafts can begin to get closer and closer to what may really happen.

Until next week, enjoy the madness!