Minnesota Vikings: 2019 NFL Draft prospects who belong on team’s radar

4. Jeffery Simmons, DT, Mississippi State

There’s a very real chance that Sheldon Richardson departs this upcoming offseason. When that happens, the Vikings will be left with a dearth of exciting options to replace him at the three-technique. Suffice it to say, a replacement may be needed.

Now why would the Vikings spend their first-round pick on a defensive lineman? They’ve already got one of the best defensive fronts in the NFL, with Everson Griffen, Danielle Hunter and Linval Joseph all supplying nightmares to opposing quarterbacks. That may be the case, but we’ve seen in recent memory that a loaded defensive line leads to very good things.

Just look at the Philadelphia Eagles’ Super Bowl run from a season ago if you need proof.

That’s why targeting Jeffery Simmons in the first round makes some sense. Now there are the obvious concerns — the Bulldogs’ uber-talented defensive tackle was caught on video hitting a woman repeatedly. Although the claim is that he was trying to break up a fight (iffy, but you can decide for yourself), Simmons owned up to his mistake and took a plea deal.

The Vikings proved they’re willing to work past character issues when they gave Holton Hill a chance this year. If they’re convinced Simmons has his head on straight, they’d be getting a potentially elite interior pass rusher — assuming he even lasts long enough to fall to Minnesota.