NFL.com's Michael Lombardi wrote an article Monday asking which of the Minnesota Vikings' multitude of needs can be addressed through the 2012 NFL Draft.
Lombardi says many of the Vikings' holes stem from the 2009 season and the team's run to the NFC championship game. That season, he claims, gave the Vikes an unwarranted sense of security that came crashing down the past two seasons.
That's why Lombardi understands general manager Rick Spielman's willingness to trade the No. 3 pick:
With such a large number of concerns, though, it's easy to see why Spielman would make the third pick available. The Vikings are not a few players away from competing. Spielman, who was promoted to general manager in January, must recognize this is not a one-year fixer-upper. He has to have a two-year plan to patch up the team's numerous holes. He must take a broad look at the talent pool in the next two years -- both in the draft and in free agency -- and then decide where the answers might come from....
Lombardi goes on to say that while cornerback Morris Claiborne makes sense -- the Vikes were tied for last in the NFL with just eight interceptions a year ago, and Claiborne had six in 2011 at LSU -- he expects the Vikes to take offensive tackle Matt Kalil.
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