Metellus, Jay Ward, Theo Jackson. Haliesse and possibly harrison smith. I think theres actually a 6th safety on the roster.

The thought behind needing a safety. Was to replace the hitman. Yet, it seems the lean is. Harry is coming back for 1 more season.

If anything. They need an upgrade at cb or grab a free safety- true centerfielder. Thise 2 "positions"can be filled by cornerbacks .

If this were the zimmer defense. Or any other traditional defense. Yes, maybe college safety that can transition to the nfl is a need.

The Toledo safety ran 4.6 at the combine. Theres quite a few cornerbacks available that can run similar, possess better cover skills.

Stopping the run is the priority in this draft.
2 dline starters left. Right now. After drafting Banks. Theres 2 starters for a 3 man d-line. Redmond, who was junk until last year. Vikings signed him out of the ufl. And he played great theres 3 or 4 other d-line players but not really anyone capable of 35 snaps focused on stopping the run. Maybe Ingram-Dawkins. But at 6-5 290. I think hes more a 3rd down rush end for the 3-4. Theres levi rodriguez. 6-2, 307. Maybe, if he steps up. He can be a bigger part of a rotation. Theres also youngsters Elijah Williams & Taki Tamani. But neither has shown much in their young careers. The same can be said about the safties I listed. Other tham Metellus, they havent shown much. Flores has expressed confidence in both jackson & ward. And since his safties dont play in traditional roles. You have to believe this is the season one or both show they can be assetts in the flores scheme.

Cashman and wilson are both 30. Behind them is undersized ivan pace. Adding a downhill inside lber into that mix feels more pressing to me than a safety... As does Guard/center.

Thats not to say, adding a Kyle Hamilton or Nick Imanworri on day 2 wouldnt be sweet. But? Idk that that player was available in this draft. I think downs has a chance to be similarly disruptive. Thieneman is probabbly a bit less likely. A bit thin like mettellus with better speed.

The biggest need seems obvious here. DT and 3-4 DE. Right now it feels like its redmond, a rookie and projects that have yet to show. I wish they has kept Khyiris Tonga. He wasnt a star. But he held up at poa. So far Rodriquez & Taimani get swept out of the play in the wash.

To run a 3-4 effectively. I think 4-5 that can rotate and hold poa is the minimum required.
If we assume banks can. And redmond continues. Thats 2. With hope that at least 1 of Taimani, Williams or Rodriguez steps up this their 2nd/3rd seasons. I kinda feel. They should have already done so if its going to happen. All 3 feel to me more like adequate backups in a 4-3. Hence in 2025- in crunch time. 3rd & 2. 4th & 1. Opponents mostly ran for a new set of downs. As well. Many 5-12 yard gashers right up the muddle on 1st down...

Vikings run d dropped from #2 in 2024 to #32 in 2025... And i dont think 2024 was an accurate picture of the defense. The pass d was too easily abused. So teams didnt run as often.
2025 might also be skewed by the schedule & lack of offense by the vikings making teams content to just run, eat clock abd hold the lead.

To the eye? Both seasons seemed a big run from the opponent was coming.