The Minnesota Vikings are going to be an interesting team to watch when it comes to the NFL Draft. Like with every team, free agency has changed things for the Vikings because of general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah's savvy moves.

After the first two weeks of free agency, the Vikings no longer have a dire need on the roster. It changes the mentality of the Vikings as they move forward and they really do anything.

One of the interesting things in regards to the NFL Draft is how things have shifted with the media. Each week, I do a mock draft roundup by tracking how draft media has the Vikings pick. There are some interesting trends.

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Vikings NFL Draft trends

Each week gives us more data about how the Vikings might pursue the NFL Draft. Through 11 weeks, there have been 43 unique prospects taken across 367 mock drafts. The majority of the prospects have been at both cornerback and defensive tackle.

Positions	Players	Selections
Offensive Lineman	11	46
Cornerback	9	123
Defensive Tackle	8	85
Running Back	5	20
Edge Rusher	5	9
Safety	3	75
Linebacker	1	7
Wide Receiver	1	1
Total	23	367

Considering the needs ahead of free agency, these selections make a lot of sense. It makes even more sense when you look at the breakdown based on the unit with the majority on the defensive side of the football.

Unit	Players	Selections
Offense	17	67
Defense	27	300

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None of this data is overly surprising. What is really intriguing is how things have changed over the last two weeks with the data of free agency. Over the last two weeks, the biggest gainers have been at safety with 36 of the 79 picks.

In the last 20 picks, 10 of them have been sent to the Vikings one time:

• DT Walter Nolen
• DT Kenneth Grant
• CB Trey Amos
• LB Jihaad Campbell
• CB Azareye'h Thomas
• EDGE Shemar Stewart
• OT Josh Simmons
• S Xavier Watts
• EDGE Jalon Walker
• EDGE Mike Green

The biggest gainers have been South Carolina safety Nick Emmanwori and Georgia safety Malaki Starks having doubled their selection totals with 18 each to 37 for Emmanwori and 36 for Starks.

Prospects	Selections in Last 2 Weeks
S Nick Emmanwori	18
S Malaki Starks	18
DT Derrick Harmon	7
CB Jahdae Barron	6
CB Shavon Revel Jr.	5
OT Kelvin Banks Jr.	5
CB Maxwell Hairston	3
CB Will Johnson	3
OG Tyler Booker	2
OL Grey Zabel	2

When you look at the last two weeks, it's becoming more clear what direction the Vikings could be going with six defensive backs and three offensive linemen. Harmon is the only defensive tackle on the list, which makes sense. Harmon is one of the few players currently scheduled for a top 30 visit.

Ahead of the start of free agency, the top 10 players looked much different.

Prospect	Selections
CB Jahdae Barron	35
DT Derrick Harmon	28
CB Shavon Revel Jr.	27
DT Walter Nolen	22
CB Benjamin Morrison	22
S Nick Emmanwori	19
S Malaki Starks	18
DT Kenneth Grant	17
OG Tyler Booker	16
RB Omarion Hampton	9

The shift is significant toward safety, which makes sense considering how in limbo the safety room is. Plus, both Starks and Emmanwori play a position that is often devalued in the first round of the NFL Draft.

Things are likely to continue changing, but secondary being the focus is likely to continue.

South Carolina S Nick Emmanwori could elevate Brian Flores’ defense with his elite athleticism

A safety with athleticism could be a game-changer

Vikings GM Kwesi Adofo-Mensah can right a wrong from the 2022 NFL Draft by doing the same thing in round one

The selection of Lewis Cine shouldn’t cloud your opinion on Malaki Starks