2020 NFL Draft: Ezra Cleveland fits well with Minnesota Vikings

The Minnesota Vikings crushed the first round of the 2020 NFL Draft and take an interesting developmental talent in the second round.

The Minnesota Vikings did a great job of finding value in the first round of the 2020 NFL Draft. The selection of Justin Jefferson in at No. 22 was fantastic and being able to trade down and still get Jeff Gladney was also rather impressive. They filled their two biggest needs in the first round and are set up for success for the rest of the 2020 NFL Draft.

In the second round, the Vikings added Boise State offensive tackle Ezra Cleveland to the mix. Cleveland is an extremely athletic offensive tackle prospect who moves well in space and shows plenty of promise in pass protection. I am not the biggest Ezra Cleveland fan, mostly due to his lack of functional strength for the position. However, it is impossible to ignore his athletic upside at the next level.

This is not a terrible value selection for the Minnesota Vikings, but there were certainly players on the board who I liked better for them. That being said, it is hard to argue with this schematic fit.

The Vikings run a wide zone rushing scheme so they need offensive linemen who can move in space. Because of that, I understand taking a chance on Cleveland, but Josh Jones is a better player if they wanted to go with an offensive tackle. Interior defensive lineman Justin Madubuike and edge rusher Julian Okwara also would have made a ton of sense for the Vikings here at No. 58.

While the Vikings could have done better here, Cleveland is at least an interesting developmental player who could grow into a great asset for this team. I cannot pretend to love this 2020 NFL Draft selection, but the Vikings could have done worse.