2024 NFL Draft: Minnesota Vikings select Levi Drake Rodriguez

A defensive lineman finishes things off for the Vikings

With their final pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, the Minnesota Vikings have added a player to the interior of their defensive line, a place that they could use a little more competition.

With the 232nd pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, the Minnesota Vikings have selected defensive lineman Levi Drake Rodriguez from Texas A&M-Commerce.

The Vikings have a serious need on their defensive line, and taking a flier on a small-school player like Rodriguez could be something that helps them out a bit. He started out at an NAIA school (Southwest Assemblies of God) and transferred to Texas A&M-Commerce for his final two seasons of football. In addition to being a member of the All-Southland Conference team and an FCS All-American, he was also the MVP of the Tropical Bowl, one of the offseason all-star games that is a pretty diverse gathering of college football talent.

Dane Brugler of The Athletic has Rodriguez as the #26 defensive lineman in this year’s draft class. Here’s what Brugler has to say about Rodriguez:

Levi Drake Rodriguez grew up in central Texas and started playing baseball and football at age 4. At East View High, he played both ways and was an All-State right tackle as a senior. He signed with NAIA Southwestern Assemblies of God (Texas) to be a dual-sport athlete (baseball, football) and moved back to defensive end. After earning NAIA All-America honors in 2021, he transferred to FCS Texas A&M-Commerce and moved inside to defensive tackle (added 30 pounds). As a three-technique, Rodriguez’s game is built on quickness and a relentless, violent temperament. His hands are underdeveloped, but he throws them around (crosschops, double swipes) to gain his freedom. He needs technical refinement to maximize leverage points and control gaps in the run game. Overall, Rodriguez is still in the development process and doesn’t have elite length or strength, but his athletic urgency and promising hand use give blockers all they can handle.

Rodriguez is also sportswriter Kalyn Kahler’s “Prospect X” for this year, and you can read a really insightful profile of him at that link. This will be the second time the Vikings have had “Prospect X” in camp for them. They signed Idaho LB Christian Elliss back in 2021 but he did not make the team.

That wraps up the 2024 NFL Draft for the Minnesota Vikings, folks. We’ll have more for you on this entire draft class over the course of the coming days and weeks.

Welcome to Minnesota, Levi!