Vikings drop the Verse in latest ESPN Mock Draft

Yes, we’re still talking about mocks

Another day, another new mock draft to take a look at as we try to figure out what the Minnesota Vikings are going to do when the 2024 NFL Draft gets underway here in a couple of months.

Behind the great E$PN paywall, analyst Field Yates has put together his first mock of 2024, and he has the purple not addressing the quarterback position, but rather bolstering the defensive side of the ball with Florida State edge Jared Verse.

Retaining Danielle Hunter — soon to be a free agent — would change the outlook on this pick, but losing Hunter, D.J. Wonnum and/or Marcus Davenport in free agency would leave Minnesota razor thin at pass-rusher. Verse is long, has great in-line power and shows a growing set of pass-rush moves to get home. After surprising many and returning to Florida State for the 2023 season, he helped catalyze what was on the short list for the best defense in college football last season, racking up nine sacks.

I mean, to be clear, Davenport isn’t exactly a “loss” and the odds of him being back in Minnesota for anything more than minimum wage (if that) in 2024 are pretty low. But the larger point still stands. . .whether the Vikings lose Hunter in free agency or not, they’re likely going to need pass rushing help, and Verse is a player that would help provide that. He’s Yates’ third edge defender off the board, behind Dallas Turner of Alabama (who goes at #8) and UCLA’s Laiatu Latu (taken at #9).

So, let’s answer the question that people are going to have about every mock where the Vikings don’t take a quarterback: Who did take them? Well, as we’ve seen in almost every mock, the top three picks all go to quarterbacks, with Caleb Williams, Jayden Daniels, and Drake Maye going off the board in that order. The next quarterback, J.J. McCarthy of Michigan, goes to the Denver Broncos with the pick immediately after Minnesota’s at #12, and Oregon’s Bo Nix goes to Pittsburgh at #20.

What do you think of the Vikings addressing defense in Round 1 rather than jumping on a quarterback, folks?