The Minnesota Vikings have been busy, making a pair of trades, selecting a pair of LSU Tigers and a developmental quarterback on the final day of the NFL Draft.
The Vikings opened the day by trading the 119th pick in the draft to the Kansas City Chiefs in exchange for the 134th pick and a fifth-round pick in the 2024 draft.
With the 134th selection, the Vikings selected Ward, who spent time at cornerback and safety during his time with the Tigers, but he projects as a slot cornerback at the next level.
Vikings selections in the 2023 NFL Draft:
Round 1, Pick No. 23: WR Jordan Addison, USC
Round 3, Pick No. 102: CB Mekhi Blackmon, USC
Round 4, Pick No. 134 (from Kansas City): CB Jay Ward, LSU
Round 5, Pick No. 141 (from Indianapolis): DT Jaquelin Roy, LSU
Round 5, Pick No. 164 (from San Francisco): QB Jaren Hall, BYU
Round 7, Pick No. 222 (from San Francisco): RB DeWayne McBride, UAB
At 6-foot-1 and 188-pounds, Ward is a former three-star recruit that had 162 tackles, six interceptions in four seasons with the Tigers and was a former teammate of Justin Jefferson on the 2019 team that won the national championship.
A stout run defender, Ward has the versatility that Brian Flores wants in the secondary and adds athleticism to a group that ranked 31st in the NFL in passing yards allowed last season.
Jay Ward is an aggressive player. Listed as a safety, he’s a better fit as a nickel. He has an elite 10-yard split and fits in well with what the Vikings will be running pic.twitter.com/ElJlAOQpeo
— Tyler Forness (@TheRealForno) April 29, 2023
The Vikings continued to deal their way through the draft when they traded the 158th and 211th pick in the draft to the Indianapolis Colts to select LSU defensive tackle Jaquelin Roy with the 141st overall pick.
Roy collected 49 tackles, 3.5 tackles for loss, 0.5 sacks and a fumble recovery during his senior season with the Tigers and projects as a pass rusher on the interior. Roy fell into the draft thanks to a lackluster RAS score of 4.58 and needs work as a run defender.
Jaquelin Roy is a DT prospect in the 2023 draft class. He scored an unofficial 4.58 RAS out of a possible 10.00 after his pro day. This ranked 860 out of 1585 DT from 1987 to 2023. https://t.co/RiKr4Y46il #RAS pic.twitter.com/lS2XnWc67u
— Kent Lee Platte (@MathBomb) April 7, 2023
NFL.com’s Lance Zeirlein also compared Roy to Dalvin Tomlinson, who left the Vikings to sign with the Cleveland Browns in free agency.
“The more you watch, the more you like the way Roy plays the game,” Zierlein wrote. “He’s a little tight in his lower body, which prevents consistent gap leverage as a run defender, but he has outstanding upper body power and plays with unbridled energy. Roy has one-gapping snap quickness and two-gapping potential if he can become more consistent with taking on blocks. Despite limited starting experience at LSU, he already displays signs of a rush plan and the athletic talent to execute it. Roy is an ascending talent with the potential to become a quality starter.”
While the Vikings two important pieces to their defense, their most intriguing selection might be BYU quarterback Jaren Hall.
Hall spent the last two seasons as the starter for the Cougars, throwing for 51 touchdowns, 11 interceptions and a 65 percent completion percentage in that time frame. Hall has battled several injuries throughout his career and enters the NFL at age 25 but with a big arm and added mobility, he’s a solid prospect for Kevin O’Connell to develop.
New #Vikings developmental QB Jaren Hall is a poised dual-threat player who had 51 TD passes, 11 INTs, and 655 rushing yards over the past two seasons at BYU. Well worth a fifth-rounder. pic.twitter.com/oyGbt5IQOD
— Will Ragatz (@WillRagatz) April 29, 2023
The Vikings wrapped up their day by selecting running back DeWayne McBride with the 222nd pick of the draft. McBride was a machine at UAB, racking up 3,268 yards and 35 rushing touchdowns. He was a second All-American and was the Conference USA Offensive Player of the Year in 2022.
McBride is unproven as a pass-catcher and had five fumbles last season but he has plenty of traits that can help improve the efficiency of the running game. With the Vikings signing Josh Oliver, extending C.J. Ham and re-signing Alexander Mattison, McBride is a player who could carve out a role in the backfield.
With Dalvin Cook’s future with the #Vikings up in the air, RB DeWayne McBride could very well be this year’s Isiah Pacheco 🏃♂️💨
At the worst, he splits work with Alexander Mattison pic.twitter.com/KPTRVbzIew
— Jack Caporuscio (@Caporuscio_Jack) April 29, 2023
