Vikings select Antoine Winfield Jr. in Mel Kiper’s mock draft

ESPN’s Mel Kiper put together a mock draft on Tuesday, and the first-round pick for the Vikings was a familiar face.

With the 25th pick, Kiper has the Vikings selecting University of Minnesota safety Antoine Winfield Jr., the son of former Vikings cornerback Antoine Winfield.

The younger Winfield was named an All-American and an All-Big Ten First Team selection in 2019. He was also named the Big Ten Defensive Back of the Year.

Here’s a bit of what Kiper wrote about the pick:

Let’s hope he’s past the hamstring and foot injuries that prematurely ended his 2017 and 2018 seasons for the Golden Gophers. Safety might not appear to be a priority position for the Vikings, but they have salary-cap issues and could lose Anthony Harris to a big offer in free agency.

This seems like the perfect fit for the Vikings. Most imporantly, they’ll bring in a talented defensive back (something the team needs desperately). On top of that, they’ll bring in the son of a player who had so much respect not just in Minnesota, but around the entire NFL.