He Must Go: Vikings owner Zygi Wilf slammed G.M. Kwesi Adofo-Mensah as the worst G.M. ever in the history of NFL

He Must Go: Vikings owner Zygi Wilf slammed G.M. Kwesi Adofo-Mensah as the worst G.M. ever in the history of NFL

Holding the 24th overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft, the Minnesota Vikings are in the ideal territory to land a premiere defensive prospect.

The Vikings’ defensive line has lacked a true interior pass rusher for years, and with three of their four main contributors pending free agents, the time is now to find a future building block.

Athlon Sports’ NFL Draft expert Luke Easterling released an updated three-round mock draft on Jan. 23 and linked the Vikings with an “all-world” prospect in the trenches.

But there are some concerns.

Easterling mocked Ole Miss defensive tackle Walter Nolen to the Vikings at No. 24 overall.

“It’s a tough call here for the Vikings between help for the defensive line or the secondary, but in this scenario, the value is more plentiful in the trenches,” Easterling wrote. “A five-star recruit coming out of high school, Nolen has all-world talent, but he’s still figuring out how to maximize it. He could be a dominant, disruptive force for Brian Flores in Minnesota, even if it takes a little patience.”

Nolen was ESPN’s top-rated recruit in the country coming out of high school in 2022, while other sites were not far off in their assessment of the Memphis, Tenn., native, ranking him No. 2 behind only Travis Hunter.

Nolen tallied 10.5 sacks in his final two collegiate seasons between Texas A&M and Ole Miss. His 91.6 run defense grade from Pro Football Focus (PFF) ranked second in the country — proving he can be an all-around contributor in Minnesota.

However, some murmurs could hurt Nolen’s draft stock.

A to Z Sports’ draft analyst Ryan Roberts reported that there are some effort and character concerns regarding Nolen.

“The major questions surrounding him are effort and character. According to multiple sources, the latter is especially concerning,” Roberts wrote. “There are multiple NFL teams that have already taken Nolen off of their board. He is not consistently enough of a disruptive player to have as many concerns as he does.”

Nolen’s interviews should be telling for any team considering taking him. However, if his draft stock seemingly takes a hit, Minnesota could consider trading back and landing Nolen later in the draft.