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Vikings general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah
One of the Minnesota Vikings‘ top needs this offseason is a dominant interior pass rusher who can be the final piece to a vaunted defensive front.
Unfortunately, a top target in the draft for the Vikings has turned heads and may climb out of reach in the first round.
Sports Illustrated’s Will Ragatz recapped the top Senior Bowl performances and noted Ole Miss star defensive lineman Walter Nolen may have had “too good” of a performance to be realistic for Minnesota to land.
“Nolen might’ve had too good of a week for the Vikings to have a realistic shot at landing him. After recording 6.5 sacks this past season and shining at the Senior Bowl with his power and quickness, he could wind up as a top-20 pick in a draft with a bunch of intriguing defensive tackle,” Ragatz wrote on January 31. He’s the kind of player who, if he makes it to 24, should make Minnesota think otherwise about trading down.”
GettyOle Miss defensive tackle Walter Nolen during the first half of a game against the LSU Tigers
According to A to Z Sports’ Tyler Forness, Nolen is the defensive tackle mocked most by the Vikings with the No. 24 pick in the first round. Seven draft experts have mocked him to Minnesota early in the draft evaluation process.
Nolen was ESPN’s top-rated recruit in the country coming out of high school in 2022, while other sites were not far off in their assessment of the Memphis, Tenn., native, ranking him No. 2 behind only Travis Hunter.
Athlon Sports’ Luke Easterling called him an “all-world” talent as a proponent for him landing in Minnesota in his three-round mock draft.
“It’s a tough call here for the Vikings between help for the defensive line or the secondary, but in this scenario, the value is more plentiful in the trenches,” Easterling wrote. “A five-star recruit coming out of high school, Nolen has all-world talent, but he’s still figuring out how to maximize it. He could be a dominant, disruptive force for Brian Flores in Minnesota, even if it takes a little patience.”
Nolen has shown all the talent in the world.
He tallied 10.5 sacks in his final two seasons between Texas A&M and Ole Miss. His 91.6 run defense grade from Pro Football Focus (PFF) ranked second in the country, evidence he is an all-around talent that be plugged into any defensive front.
However, A to Z Sports’ draft analyst Ryan Roberts reported there are effort and character concerns in respect to Nolen.
“The major questions surrounding him are effort and character. According to multiple sources, the latter is especially concerning,” Roberts wrote. “There are multiple NFL teams that have already taken Nolen off of their board. He is not consistently enough of a disruptive player to have as many concerns as he does.”
Nolen confirmed his talent at the Senior Bowl, but his interviews during the combine will have the final say if he is worth the risk of a first-round pick.
Regardless, he should remain on Minnesota’s radar.
Trevor Squire is a sports journalist covering the NFL and NBA for Heavy.com, with a focus on the Minnesota Vikings, Minnesota Timberwolves and Milwaukee Bucks. Trevor studied journalism at the University of Minnesota — Twin Cities, making stops at the Star Tribune and the St. Paul Pioneer Press. You can reach him at trevor.squire@heavy.com and follow him on Twitter @trevordsquire. More about Trevor Squire
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