ESPN’s Mel Kiper authored his second mock draft of the offseason on Thursday, and this time was really no different than his first mock for the Minnesota Vikings.
With the 14th pick of the 2021 NFL Draft, Kiper sent offensive tackle Alijah Vera-Tucker from USC to Minnesota.
Vera-Tucker would presumably become a day-one starter for the Vikings – a team beset by longstanding offensive line suffering. During head coach Mike Zimmer’s tenure, Minnesota has only had a serviceable pass-protecting offensive line once. That was 2017. As a result, the Vikings reached the NFC Championship, just one game away from hosting a Super Bowl at U.