NFC North Draft Recap: What Did Vikings' Rivals Do This Weekend?
We've done quite a bit of analysis on the Vikings' draft class — now let's take a look at what their NFC North rivals did over the weekend. Spoiler: The Bears and Lions seemingly did very well. This division is loaded.
Chicago Bears
* 1.1: Caleb Williams, QB, USC
* 1.9: Rome Odunze, WR, Washington
* 3.75: Kiran Amegadjie, OT, Yale
* 4.122: Tory Taylor, P, Iowa
* 5.144: Austin Booker, EDGE, Kansas
The Bears are about to be more relevant in the NFC than they have been in a while. A franchise with just one winning season in the last 11 years has a ton of reason to be optimistic heading into 2024 and beyond. Thanks to a genius trade with the Panthers for the No. 1 overall pick in last year's draft, the Bears ended up with the much more valuable No. 1 overall pick in this year's draft. To no one's surprise, they selected Williams, who has all the tools to become an elite NFL quarterback. Then they used the No. 9 pick on Odunze, a high-floor and high-ceiling receiver prospect who joins Keenan Allen and D.J. Moore in giving Williams perhaps the best WR trio in the league.
The Bears used their other picks on a raw offensive tackle with a lot of potential, one of the best punting prospects to ever enter the NFL, and a rotational edge rusher with some juice. Taylor will legitimately be a weapon for them from a field position standpoint. But it was primarily Williams and Odunze that caused The Athletic's Dane Brugler to rank the Bears' draft class as the best in the league this year.
Detroit Lions
* 1.24: Terrion Arnold, CB, Alabama
* 2.61: Ennis Rakestraw Jr., CB, Missouri
* 4.126: Giovanni Manu, OT, British Columbia (Canada)
* 4.132: Sione Vaki, RB/S, Utah
* 6.189: Mekhi Wingo, DT, LSU
* 6.210: Christian Mahogany, G, Boston College
Brad Holmes, Dan Campbell, and the Lions have drafted at an extremely high level over the past three years, which is the primary reason why they came close to a Super Bowl berth last season. They might've done it again this year. Arnold is a stud cornerback prospect who many thought would go even earlier, and Rakestraw has plenty of potential as well. They both play with the tenacity that Campbell wants from his corners. Detroit also added some very interesting pieces on Day 3. Manu is a 6'7" developmental tackle from Canada, Vaki was a rare two-way player in college, and both of their sixth-rounders have legitimate starting potential. Brugler ranked the Lions' draft class at No. 3, meaning the NFC North had two of the top three hauls on his list.
Green Bay Packers
* 1.25: Jordan Morgan, OT, Arizona
* 2.45: Edgerrin Cooper, LB, Texas A&M
* 2.58: Jonathan Bullard, S, Georgia
* 3.88: MarShawn Lloyd, RB, USC
* 3.91: Ty’Ron Hopper, LB, Missouri
* 4.111: Evan Williams, S, Oregon
* 5.163: Jacob Monk, C, Duke
* 5.169: Kitan Oladapo, S, Oregon State
* 6.202: Travis Glover Jr., OT, Georgia State
* 7.245: Michael Pratt, QB, Tulane
* 7.255: Kalen King, CB, Penn State
Only the Cardinals (12) made more picks than the Packers' 11 in this draft. There aren't any obvious stars here, but the draft is always a crapshoot in which more volume means more shots at finding players who could become contributors. Morgan, their first-round pick, is a versatile offensive lineman with plenty of talent. Cooper, Bullard, and Hopper will help the defense, while Lloyd will fill the void left by Aaron Jones' departure to Minnesota. There were some intriguing Day 3 dart throws here as well, including Monk and King. The odds suggest that several of these prospects are going to pan out, but how many? This does feel like the weakest haul of any NFC North team in this draft, even with the necessary caveat that post-draft analysis is mostly just guesswork.
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WILL RAGATZ
Will Ragatz is the publisher of Inside the Vikings, an SI.com channel in the Fan Nation network. He's in his fourth season as a credentialed Minnesota Vikings beat writer, covering the team at practices, games, and all offseason long. Will posts daily Vikings articles year-round. Not only is he on top of all the latest news, he provides the analysis and context to put the news into perspective. He knows the team inside and out, which allows him to bring depth and quality to his coverage. From free agency to the draft to training camp and the NFL season, Will covers every relevant story surrounding the Vikings. Prior to taking this role in 2019, Will attended Northwestern University and studied at the renowned Medill School of Journalism. As a student, he covered Northwestern Wildcats football and basketball, among other sports, for SB Nation's Inside NU. Will was a co-editor-in-chief of the site during his junior year. In the fall of 2018, Will interned at Sports Illustrated's newsroom in New York City, writing articles primarily on Major League Baseball, college football, and college basketball for SI.com. A native of Minneapolis who still resides in the city, Will grew up a diehard Minnesota sports fan. He played baseball at Southwest High School and wrote for the student newspaper.