Minnesota Vikings Senior Bowl targets highlighted by explosive pass rusher and a bevy of defensive backs

The Senior Bowl kicks off the NFL Draft process with a lot of talent for the Minnesota Vikings to evaluate.

Tyler Forness — NFL & College Football News Writer
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Nov 29, 2025; Gainesville, Florida, USA; Florida Gators defensive tackle Caleb Banks (88) celebrates recovering a fumble during the second quarter against the Florida State Seminoles at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium.
Bob Kupbens-Imagn Images

The Minnesota Vikings are heading to Mobile, Alabama for the Senior Bowl this week.

Each year, the Senior Bowl kicks off the NFL Draft process, giving around 150 NFL Draft prospects the chance to showcase their skills for teams, scouts, and media over the course of the week. The Vikings will be in attendance throughout the week and they’ve taken many players over the course of general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah and head coach Kevin O’Connell‘s tenure in Minnesota.

Who are the players the Vikings should be keeping an eye on this year? Four players fit the bill, with three of them being in the secondary.

Caleb Banks, DT, Florida

This is not a strong defensive line class. At the top of the draft, you have Peter Woods of the Clemson Tigers, he didn’t have the strongest season, but is still projected to potentially go in the top-10. After Woods, there is only one defensive tackle worthy of being a first-round pick: Florida Gators DT Caleb Banks.

He’s a mammoth of a man, at 6-5 and 335 pounds with 35″ arms. He’s incredibly difficult to move on the interior and thrives as both a pass rusher and run defender. At his size in 2024, Banks had 7.0 sacks and flashed that same explosiveness in 2025, but he only played in three games due to a foot injury. Having a great Senior Bowl week could prompt the Vikings to make a move for him in the first round.

Keionte Scott, CB, Miami

Cornerback is a really weird position for the Vikings. They have done everything with their scheme to hide their cornerbacks. It’s also clear that Flores doesn’t like to use young cornerbacks due to the nature of the defense he runs as it requires a level of experience that most rookies don’t have. In fact, the only two cornerbacks that have been drafted by the Vikings were over 24-years-old in Mekhi Blackmon and Khyree Jackson.

Scott fits that bill, as he turns 25-years-old on Aug. 11. He also carries a lot of experience with him, playing over 2,000 snaps in his career for the Auburn Tigers and Miami Hurricanes. Scott has mostly been a slot corner throughout his career, and that could be intriguing for the Vikings, especially with the condensed sets we see consistently in the NFL.

Davison Igbinosun, CB, Ohio State

Igbinosun transferred to the Ohio State Buckeyes after a season with the Ole Miss Rebels, and he’s one of the more experienced cornerbacks in this draft with 2,801 career snaps. There have been some serious struggles over his career, but he took a big step forward in 2025, allowing a completion percentage of just 47.8 percent for 207 yards and no touchdowns. Igbinosun also had two interceptions and five passes defended.

Here’s where things get really interesting. Igbinosun is a very talented player, but it’s his size at 6-2 and 195 pounds with really long arms that will intrigue teams, especially one who can play a lot of man coverage. The one-on-ones, which aren’t normally designed for cornerbacks to thrive, is a place where Igbinosun can showcase his skills and improve his draft stock.

Chris Johnson, CB, San Diego State

As we talked about earlier, experience is paramount for Flores with his cornerbacks. Johnson is another very experienced cornerback with 1,732 snaps played, the majority of which came in the last two seasons. He’s a plus zone cornerback who has ability to carry in man coverage down the field. A drill like one-on-ones isn’t going to be his forte, but a good showing will do more for a player like Johnson coming from a Group of Five school.

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