Inside The Vikings

Several post-free agency mock drafts have Vikings taking a safety at 24

The Vikings could look to target Harrison Smith's successor in the first round of this year's draft, with Malaki Starks and Nick Emmanwori the two main names to know.

Will Ragatz

Oct 12, 2024; Athens, Georgia, USA; Georgia Bulldogs defensive back Malaki Starks (24) on the field against the Mississippi State Bulldogs at Sanford Stadium.
Oct 12, 2024; Athens, Georgia, USA; Georgia Bulldogs defensive back Malaki Starks (24) on the field against the Mississippi State Bulldogs at Sanford Stadium. / Dale Zanine-Imagn Images
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Following last week's free agency frenzy, a growing number of national mock drafts have the Vikings taking a safety with their first-round pick next month.

On paper, it makes sense. When you look at Minnesota's roster, interior offensive line is less of a clear need now that Ryan Kelly and Will Fries have been signed. Same with interior defensive line, where Jonathan Allen and Javon Hargrave are set to play major roles alongside Harrison Phillips. At running back, they brought back Aaron Jones and traded for Jordan Mason to complement him.

The Vikings are set with their three 2025 starters at safety as well — Harrison Smith, Josh Metellus, and Theo Jackson — but there's a good chance Smith's 14th NFL season will be his last. There's also some uncertainty involved with Jackson making the leap to full-time player for the first time. Thus, this draft could provide an opportunity for the Vikings to find Smith's successor by adding a young, playmaking safety in the first round.

The two names to know here are Malaki Starks from Georgia and Nick Emmanwori from South Carolina. Some evaluators are very high on Starks, who was an All-American in 2023. Emmanwori is coming off a big season for the Gamecocks and absolutely lit it up at the NFL combine in Indianapolis a few weeks ago.

Starks is the pick for the Vikings in a new mock from Mike Renner at CBS Sports.

"I just can't fathom the Vikings passing on Malaki Starks given how his versatility would play in Brian Flores' defense," Renner wrote. "The only thing stopping it is general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah's track-record with Georgia safeties."

There will be fans who shudder at the idea of Minnesota taking another Georgia safety in the first round, considering how poorly the Lewis Cine pick in 2022 turned out. But the draft is about evaluating players, not the logo on their helmet. Starks is a very dynamic playmaker (6 INT, 6 TFL, 17 PD over the last three seasons) who would seemingly fit quite nicely in Flores' scheme. He can line up at deep safety, in the box, or in the slot.

FOX Sports' Joel Klatt also has the Vikings going with Starks.

"The Vikings bolstered their interior on both sides of the ball in free agency, allowing them to draft Starks here," Klatt wrote. "You've got to strengthen a pass defense that gave up the fifth-most passing yards last season. Starks can help there, showing great instincts."

NFL Network's Daniel Jeremiah has the Vikings taking Emmanwori in his latest mock, calling him "a young safety with the ability to impact the game in a variety of ways." Jeremiah has Starks going 13th to the Dolphins.

Emmanwori had six interceptions, 11 passes defended, and four tackles for loss in his college career, including two pick-sixes last season. He's another versatile playmaker who is simply a ridiculous athlete, which he showed in the tests at the combine, earning a perfect 10 Relative Athletic Score.

ESPN's Mel Kiper Jr. has the Vikings taking a different kind of defensive back at 24, projecting that Texas corner Jahdae Barron will be the pick (with Starks, but not Emmanwori, still on the board). Barron had an incredible season for the Longhorns last year with five interceptions, 11 passes defended, and three tackles for loss. He was primarily an outside corner in 2024, but he previously spent a lot of time in the slot, including a 2022 season where he had 12 TFLs.

"I really like this fit," Kiper said of Barron landing with Flores and Minnesota.

The beauty of the Vikings' free agent haul is that they have the flexibility to go in any number of directions with their first pick in the draft. It'll be about taking the best player available on their board across several different positions. But defensive back might be the leader in the clubhouse among the various position groups at this point, with Starks, Emmanwori, and Barron among the logical options in the first round.

A trade down from 24 also remains very possible, given Minnesota's lack of picks. If that happens, keep an eye on the next tier of safeties, which includes players like Xavier Watts (Notre Dame), Kevin Winston Jr. (Penn State), and Barron's Texas teammate Andrew Mukuba.

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Will Ragatz
WILL RAGATZ

Will Ragatz is a senior writer for Vikings On SI. He is a credentialed Minnesota Vikings beat reporter, covering the team extensively at practices, games and throughout the NFL draft and free agency period. Ragatz attended Northwestern University, where he studied at the prestigious Medill School of Journalism. During his time as a student, he covered Northwestern Wildcats football and basketball for SB Nation’s Inside NU, eventually serving as co-editor-in-chief in his junior year. In the fall of 2018, Will interned in Sports Illustrated’s newsroom in New York City, where he wrote articles on Major League Baseball, college football, and college basketball for SI.com.

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