The Minnesota Vikings finally ended his wait by selecting the Ole Miss receiver with the 23rd overall pick. A year to get bigger and stronger would do him some good, which Minnesota’s offensive line can likely provide. We just felt like with this football team it was important for us to get some size out there, ” said coach Mike Zimmer.
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The former Ole Miss star ran a 4.63 40-yard dash at the Rebels’ pro day in March, and scouts wondered if he had the speed to get separation in the NFL.
Many observers believed Minnesota would pick either Treadwell or wide receiver Josh Doctson of Texas Christian.
“I think Cris would be a valuable asset to him, because Cris wasn’t the fastest player coming out, either”, Spielman said. He strolled with 3-year-old daughter Madison and his mother, Tami, earlier Thursday on the red carpet at Draft Town.
One of the biggest problems was that the Vikings didn’t have any explosive offensive options once opposing defenses figured Diggs out.
“There’s nothing you can really rush, ” Treadwell said. He’s also perhaps the best downfield blocker at the position.
Translation: Treadwell has a wonderful opportunity to seize playing time and produce. Will it be first-round pick Laquon Treadwell?
Also available at No. 23 was UCLA linebacker Myles Jack, who initially was projected to be a top-10 pick before teams were scared off by his knee injury. But no position says “Feed me!”
The offense needed more help, though. Doctson is an acrobat, and Treadwell is more of a bully.
“I know from a philosophy standpoint, we are looking for safeties that are interchangeable; they have to be able to do both” safety spots, said Spielman, who hopes Griffin fits that bill at least for next season. Brothers could have limitations in pass coverage at the National Football League level, something director of college scouting Jamaal Stephenson acknowledged over the weekend.
“You always want to go as high as possible, so I was surprised, ” Treadwell said on a conference call with Minnesota reporters. “Every time I go, he tells me bits and bits and bits”.
“Just travelling”, Treadwell said, asked what’s been the hardest part of the past four months.
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Spielman and Zimmer aren’t the only ones excited to see Treadwell in purple.
