The 2020 NFL Draft is in the books, and that means it’s time for us to fully turn our attention to the 2020 NFL season and fantasy football. While COVID-19 means we can’t guarantee an NFL season, our league mates want us to be on our heels, unprepared for the season. Never you fear, Football Absurdity is here to cover all of the 78 fantasy football eligible players drafted in the 2020 NFL Draft. Keep in mind, most of these guys won’t get selected in your draft, but you’ll want to know these 2020 NFL draftees when your fantasy football draft comes around. We finish our look around the NFC North with the Minnesota Vikings.
The Minnesota Vikings are at a crossroads with their offense. They traded mercurial star wide receiver, Stefon Diggs, to Buffalo, and they are hoping Adam Thielen returns to form. Of course, their run game is fine with Dalvin Cook, and Kirk Cousins is more than serviceable at quarterback. All told, the Minnesota Vikings made 15 (!!!) picks in the 2020 NFL Draft. Ultimately, only three of them are relevant for 2020 fantasy football: two wide receivers, and a quarterback. Let’s break down their guys for 2020 fantasy football.
FULL MINNESOTA VIKINGS DRAFT RESULTS
| Rd | Pick | Player | Pos | School |
| 1 | 22 | Justin Jefferson | WR | LSU |
| 1 | 31 | Jeff Gladney | CB | TCU |
| 2 | 26 | Ezra Cleveland | OT | Boise St |
| 3 | 25 | Cameron Dantzler | CB | Mississippi St |
| 4 | 11 | DJ Wonnum | DE | South Carolina |
| 4 | 24 | James Lynch | DE | Baylor |
| 4 | 26 | Troy Dye | OLB | Oregon |
| 5 | 23 | Harrison Hand | CB | Temple |
| 5 | 30 | K.J. Osborn | WR | Miami |
| 6 | 24 | Blake Brandel | OT | Oregon St |
| 6 | 26 | Josh Metellus | S | Michigan |
| 7 | 11 | Kenny Willekes | DE | Michigan St |
| 7 | 30 | Nate Stanley | QB | Iowa |
| 7 | 35 | Brian Cole II | S | Mississippi St |
| 7 | 39 | Kyle Hinton | OG | Washburn |
Round 1, Pick 22: Justin Jefferson, Wide Receiver, LSU (6’1” 202 lbs)
| 40-yd Dash | Bench Press | Vertical Jump | Broad Jump | 3 Cone | 20-yd shuttle | 60-yd shuttle |
| 4.43s (u) | — | 37.5 in | 126.0 in | — | — | — |
Courtesy: NFL.com, (u) = unofficial.
Depth Chart:
WR1 Adam Thielen
WR2 Justin Jefferson
WR3 Bisi Johnson
WR4 Tajae Sharpe
WR5 K.J. Osborn
TALENT
Justin Jefferson sits just a smidge below the big boys of the 2020 NFL Draft when it comes to wide receiver talent (Lamb/Jeudy/Ruggs). In a weaker class, he might be a top-three receiver, but not with those guys hanging around. He has exceptional hands and ball skills, excellent route running talents, and an otherworldly ability to find the hole in zones. Jefferson flashes athleticism, but rarely uses it. He doesn’t much shed tackles once he has the ball, but he more than makes up for that with his other skills. Predraft I said he could be one of the best WR2s in the league, but not a true WR1. His knack for finding big holes in zones and his touchdown upside make him one of those eight touchdowns a year guys.
2020 OPPORTUNITY
The Vikings jettisoned Stefon Diggs and used the pick they received for him on Jefferson. Diggs averaged 7.6 targets per game in his time in Minnesota, and while I’ll always take the under on rookie wide receiver targets, few wideouts found themselves in a better position than Jefferson after this draft. He has all the opportunity in the world, but the Vikings don’t run a particularly explosive passing game, and a second-year jump from Irv Smith and/or Bisi Johnson would limit his target volume, and his upside.
2020 FANTASY FOOTBALL OUTLOOK
Justin Jefferson represents a great value pick at the second half of a PPR fantasy football draft or a priority free agent off your waiver wire. He carries a current Fantasy Pros expert consensus ranking of WR46 in half-PPR, between fellow rookies CeeDee Lamb (WR44) and Jerry Jeudy (WR47). Ultimately, that’s a great spot for Jefferson, and I might even take him before Lamb, given his PPR upside and the opportunity vacuum in Minnesota. Don’t expect WR1 numbers, but expect a nice return on your investment with Jefferson.
TALENT:
OPPORTUNITY:
2020 FANTASY FOOTBALL OUTLOOK: 
Round 5, Pick 30: K.J. Osborn, Wide Receiver. Miami (5’11” 203 lbs)
| 40-yd Dash | Bench Press | Vertical Jump | Broad Jump | 3 Cone | 20-yd shuttle | 60-yd shuttle |
| 4.48s (u) | 18 reps | 37.5 in | 123.0 in | 7.0s | 4.35s | — |
Courtesy: NFL.com, (u) = unofficial.
Depth Chart:
WR1 Adam Thielen
WR2 Justin Jefferson
WR3 Bisi Johnson
WR4 Tajae Sharpe
WR5 K.J. Osborn
TALENT
K.J. Osborn is Just A Guy, in the purest sense. There isn’t much he does exceptionally well, but he definitely belongs on an NFL roster. Osborn’s best suited for the slot, where he can find the soft spots in zone coverage and take advantage of open holes in man coverage. His best skills are as a return man, which doesn’t do much in fantasy football circles. He’ll stick around the league for a few years, but there isn’t anyone on any NFL roster that can’t do what he does.
2020 OPPORTUNITY
I don’t expect more than 50 targets going towards Osborn, as his likely primary role is as a kick returner and punt returner.
2020 FANTASY FOOTBALL OUTLOOK
Fifth wide receiver, at best, in a run-first offense with two quality tight end targets? You tell me.
TALENT:
OPPORTUNITY:
2020 FANTASY FOOTBALL OUTLOOK: 
Round 7, Pick 30: Nate Stanley, Quarterback, Iowa (6’4” 235 lbs)
| 40-yd Dash | Bench Press | Vertical Jump | Broad Jump | 3 Cone | 20-yd shuttle | 60-yd shuttle |
| 4.81s (u) | — | 28.5 in | 108.0 in | 7.26s | 4.48s | — |
Courtesy: NFL.com, (u) = unofficial.
Depth Chart:
QB1 Kirk Cousins
QB2 Sean Mannion
QB3 Nate Stanley
TALENT
The best thing you can say about Stanley is that he rarely threw interceptions (1.9% interception rate in college). Whether or not that’s due to him putting the ball where nobody can catch it is up to you to decide. Overall, Stanley is okay at throwing on the run and throws a decent deep ball. His intermediate passes have good enough zip, but he is far too skittish and unsure of things to make it at the NFL level as more than a backup.
Stanley frequently mistimes pressure, getting sacked while blissfully ignorant of pressure or abandoning absolutely spotless pockets. He is a Fitzmagic runner—willing, but not overwhelmingly capable. a strong arm but scattershot accuracy. Let me rephrase that: Stanley is wildly inconsistent. He keeps his eyes up when scrambling and does a good job of protecting the ball, despite his accuracy issues. He wants to try really hard to be an NFL quarterback, but he’s going to peak as a middling backup.
2020 OPPORTUNITY
The Vikings need to completely fall apart for Stanley to get a shot. If he does, he will be barely relevant, even in two-quarterback leagues where everyone is relevant.
2020 FANTASY FOOTBALL OUTLOOK
Third-string QB on a run-first offense. I wouldn’t think too hard trying to make this anything more than it is.
TALENT:
OPPORTUNITY:
2020 FANTASY FOOTBALL OUTLOOK:
For more 2020 NFL Draft coverage, check out these:
The Rookie Roundup… Roundup
Fantasy Football Fallout: 2020 NFL Draft Round One
Football Absurdity Podcast: First Round Recap
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