1.31 - MIN: Jeff Gladney CB/TCU (Jersey #20)

[Robbroy45]

1 hour ago, battle2heaven said:

So when the Vikings traded down from 25 to 31, I presume they had gladney at the top of their corner board and pretty much got their guy. 
 

but what if Miami took gladney at 30 instead of Noah. Who do you think was next on the Vikings cb list?

I would think Jaylon Johnson, there was a lot of buzz connecting him to the Vikings in the week leading up to the draft. Noah himself would've also been on the table, I think Wolfson mentioned the team had some interest in him

[RpMc]

I’m not sure if Igbinoghene would have been on our list or not. Seems like we targeted players who might be able to contribute immediately, and Noah will likely have a transition time given he’s only played the position for two years. he does have similar length when compared to Gladney though, so he does fit that profile. Johnson is someone that I mocked to us, but I’m not sure if they go that direction without medical rechecks.
 

i wonder if they would have pushed the position altogether, and selected a safety like McKinney/Winfield who could play in the slot, or an interior defensive lineman like Blacklock - because I’m not sure a Fulton or Diggs was going to be on our radar at that point. 

[CriminalMind]

14 hours ago, Robbroy45 said:

I would think Jaylon Johnson, there was a lot of buzz connecting him to the Vikings in the week leading up to the draft. Noah himself would've also been on the table, I think Wolfson mentioned the team had some interest in him

I had Noah ahead of Gladney, so i would have been pulling for Noah being the selection (if CB)

[Krauser]

14 hours ago, RpMc said:

I’m not sure if Igbinoghene would have been on our list or not. Seems like we targeted players who might be able to contribute immediately, and Noah will likely have a transition time given he’s only played the position for two years. he does have similar length when compared to Gladney though, so he does fit that profile. Johnson is someone that I mocked to us, but I’m not sure if they go that direction without medical rechecks.
 

i wonder if they would have pushed the position altogether, and selected a safety like McKinney/Winfield who could play in the slot, or an interior defensive lineman like Blacklock - because I’m not sure a Fulton or Diggs was going to be on our radar at that point. 

There were a few reports linking them to Jaylon Johnson (Chad Graff said so, and Doogie IIRC). Fulton might have been on the list depending on what they thought of his character. I doubt they would’ve taken Diggs given the family connection.

Zimmer priorizes corners far more than safeties. Can’t imagine they would’ve drafted a safety with their first pick.

They basically had nothing at corner coming into the draft: Hughes was very inconsistent last year and got hurt again, Hill is in Zimmer’s doghouse and remains one mistake away from a very long suspension, and Boyd is a special teams player who doesn’t seem likely to contribute much otherwise. There’s a very real chance that Gladney and Dantzler will be the starters, by midseason if not week one, if Hughes continues to struggle covering outside receivers, and/or if Hill gets in trouble again.

Spielman only trades down when he has confidence he can get his guy anyway (like Mattison last year) or when there’s more than one player at a similar level on his board. The fact that they stood pat and drafted Jefferson (who could’ve been a target for several teams below them) but traded down before taking Gladney indicates they had Jefferson clearly ahead of the other receivers on the board and either had more than one corner ranked similarly to Gladney or were confident that he would still be there at 31. 

[SteelKing728]

1 hour ago, Krauser said:

There were a few reports linking them to Jaylon Johnson (Chad Graff said so, and Doogie IIRC). Fulton might have been on the list depending on what they thought of his character. I doubt they would’ve taken Diggs given the family connection.

Zimmer priorizes corners far more than safeties. Can’t imagine they would’ve drafted a safety with their first pick.

They basically had nothing at corner coming into the draft: Hughes was very inconsistent last year and got hurt again, Hill is in Zimmer’s doghouse and remains one mistake away from a very long suspension, and Boyd is a special teams player who doesn’t seem likely to contribute much otherwise. There’s a very real chance that Gladney and Dantzler will be the starters, by midseason if not week one, if Hughes continues to struggle covering outside receivers, and/or if Hill gets in trouble again.

Spielman only trades down when he has confidence he can get his guy anyway (like Mattison last year) or when there’s more than one player at a similar level on his board. The fact that they stood pat and drafted Jefferson (who could’ve been a target for several teams below them) but traded down before taking Gladney indicates they had Jefferson clearly ahead of the other receivers on the board and either had more than one corner ranked similarly to Gladney or were confident that he would still be there at 31. 

All the more reason to pick up a veteran at that position.

Edited May 16, 2020 by SteelKing728

[SteelKing728]

Very good. We needed that. Now if only the other corners stepped up!!

[vikesfan89]

Doesn't Gladney play inside and out? That's not easy to do in Zimmers defense, especially as a rookie

[whitehops]

11 hours ago, vikesfan89 said:

Doesn't Gladney play inside and out? That's not easy to do in Zimmers defense, especially as a rookie

normally yes but zimmer has simplified things this season to accommodate for his personnel.

either way it's good to see a positive performance from gladney.