The Minnesota Vikings are set on offense. They have Justin Jefferson, Adam Thielen, and Bisi Johnson leading the way at wide receiver, and Dalvin Cook & Alexander Mattison holding down running back. The Vikes also gave Kirk Cousins a big contract extension for some reason, and Irv Smith has his backers. So, it makes a lot of sense that they didn’t really draft any sort of fantasy football-relevant players in the 2022 NFL Draft. Note, they drafted three players at fantasy football-eligible positions, but a fifth-round running back, a sixth-round wide receiver, and a seventh-round tight end are unlikely to make fantasy football waves this season, not with the depth chart ahead of them in Minnesota, at least.
FULL MINNESOTA VIKINGS DRAFT RESULTS
| Rd. | Pick | Player | Pos. | College |
| 1 | 32 | Lewis Cine | DB | Georgia |
| 2 | 42 | Andrew Booth | CB | Clemson |
| 2 | 59 | Ed Ingram | G | LSU |
| 3 | 66 | Brian Asamoah | LB | Oklahoma |
| 4 | 118 | Akayleb Evans | DB | Missouri |
| 5 | 165 | Esezi Otomewo | DT | Minnesota |
| 5 | 169 | Ty Chandler | RB | North Carolina |
| 6 | 184 | Vederian Lowe | OL | Illinois |
| 6 | 191 | Jalen Nailor | WR | Michigan St. |
| 7 | 227 | Nick Muse | TE | South Carolina |
Round 5, Pick 169 Overall: Ty Chandler, Running Back, North Carolina (5’11” 204 lbs)
TALENT
Ty Chandler took over a backfield decimated by the double-tap losses of Javonte Williams and Michael Carter, and he performed well enough in that role. He finished 2021 with 182 rushes for 1,092 yards and 13 touchdowns, as well as 15 catches for 216 yards and a score. This is thanks to his good vision and burst. Unfortunately, he is a limited back at the next level because he plays as small as he measures. He wants to avoid contact, which he simply isn’t shifty enough to facilitate a successful whiff from would-be tacklers. He’s fine and will provide good depth in the NFL.
2022 OPPORTUNITY
The Vikings have three running backs more talented than Ty Chandler on their roster, with Dalvin Cook, Alexander Mattison, and Kene Nwangwu. He’s also already 24 years old, which is downright ancient in running back years.
2022 FANTASY FOOTBALL OUTLOOK
You don’t need to worry about Ty Chandler unless a lot goes wrong in Minnesota. Cook/Mattison/Nwangwu should handle about 95% of the running back touches and snaps, especially when you consider that Chandler doesn’t really catch passes. He’s just a decent all-around back who will help the Vikes more than he helps fantasy football teams.
TALENT
2022 OPPORTUNITY
2022 FANTASY FOOTBALL OUTLOOK
Round 6, Pick 191 Overall: Jalen Nailor, Wide Receiver, Michigan State (5’11” 186 lbs)
TALENT
Nailor’s number one trait in draft profiles is his speed, with NFL.com even noting his high school nickname was “speedy.” Unfortunately, I fear that injuries have caught up to him, which include a broken foot. He posted an unexciting combine 40-yard dash for a player nicknamed “speedy” (4.5 seconds) and was just a big-play threat at Michigan State. If you want to know why injuries might be a concern at the next level, Nailor played four seasons at Michigan State and failed to notch 10 games played in any of those seasons.
2022 OPPORTUNITY
Nailor will fulfill one role for the Vikings in 2022: balls that go way downfield, and hopefully into his hands. Full disclosure, I’m writing these a division at a time and the Vikings went last for the NFC North with Velus Jones, Romeo Doubs, and Jameson Williams so I was looking for a new way to say “deep threat receiver.” Anyway, He won’t have enough opportunities to shine in that role, with Justin Jefferson and Bisi Johnson getting more (and more useful) medium-to-deep targets in this offense.
2022 FANTASY FOOTBALL OUTLOOK
You can safely ignore Nailor for 2022 redraft leagues.
TALENT
2022 OPPORTUNITY
2022 FANTASY FOOTBALL OUTLOOK
Round 7, Pick 227 Overall: Nick Muse, Tight End, South Carolina (6’5” 259 lbs)
TALENT
Nick Muse is primarily a blocker, totaling 67 catches for 805 yards across 27 games across three seasons for South Carolina. He has good size and athletic ability, which he mostly uses to slam defenders into the ground. He has a ton of issues as a receiver, which means that for our purposes, we can mostly ignore him. He could develop into a Kyle Rudolph for Kirk Cousins, but he’s going to need Irv Smith to get out of the way and for him to take a step forward as a pass-catcher. He’s proficient there, but not very speedy, agile, or strong at the point of the catch. He’s Just A Guy in the passing game, and he won’t force the issue with Smith in front of him.
2022 OPPORTUNITY
Muse is most likely a rotational tight end, coming in as a blocker who can disconnect from the line to get a pass or two. His versatility will come into play, as the Vikings can line him up as a blocker all over the formation to help hide (or even lie about) their intent to run the football. But, I doubt he gets nearly enough targets to matter for 2022 fantasy football leagues.
2022 FANTASY FOOTBALL OUTLOOK
You can safely ignore Muse for 2022 redraft leagues.
TALENT
2022 OPPORTUNITY
2022 FANTASY FOOTBALL OUTLOOK
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