The mock drafts for the Minnesota Vikings have been about as easy and straightforward as the mock drafts for the Indianapolis Colts: They'll pick Matt Kalil, the offensive tackle unless the St. Louis Rams already did that. If the Rams do that, then the Vikings go for Justin Blackmon.
It's been made that simple in mocks, though there is the theory that they could trade out of the pick so a team can get to Robert Griffin III.
Now there's a new wrinkle to the mix, as the Pioneer Press reports on Twitter that Rick Spielman, the general manager of the Vikings, is open to drafting a quarterback:
Spielman:
#Vikings "very, very confident" in Ponder, but won't rule out drafting QB if one is "too good to pass up."
There's a couple possible meanings to this. One meaning is that the Vikings are suggesting the possibility that Andrew Luck actually is not selected by the Colts and that anybody who passes him up is a doddering fool. Another possibility is that the Vikings value Griffin that highly. Or, as the first thought that comes to mind when general managers talk about potential draft moves, it's a bluff.
If the Vikings make other teams feel like they'll take a quarterback, that puts Robert Griffin in jeopardy and a desperate team could then target the Rams as their trade partner at No. 2 to draft him. What does this accomplish for Minnesota? It means that both Kalil and Blackmon would then likely be available, giving them their choice of both players.
At any rate, it's hard to imagine the Vikings actually would consider drafting someone a year after making Christian Ponder the No. 12 overall pick in the 2011 draft. He made mistakes in his rookie season, but he didn't have much of an offseason at all and was playing on a team with no chance at the playoffs. It will be interesting to see if this move makes any kind of difference in regards to the trade landscape.
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