The Vikings recently met with Ohio State defensive lineman Kayden McDonald, one of college football’s top run defenders in 2025.
Most mock drafts currently have the Minnesota Vikings taking a defender with the 18th overall pick in next month's draft. While the popular pick has been to select a defensive back, the Vikings could look to bolster their defensive line after releasing Jonathan Allen and Javon Hargrave earlier this month.
Recently, Minnesota met with behemoth Ohio State defensive lineman Kayden McDonald. McDonald stands 6'2", 326 pounds with 32 1/4" arms, potentially providing his new team with a run-stopping presence in the middle of the defense.
McDonald didn't do any athletic workouts at the Combine last month, but his college production showed he was one of the nation's best run defenders. His 91.2 run-defense PFF grade ranked first among all qualifying interior defensive linemen in 2025. He was also a reliable tackler, only missing 3.3% of tackle attempts.
Only five interior linemen produced more "stops" – plays that constitute as offensive "failures" – than McDonald in 2025, but he did so with limited reps. He had 33 stops on 448 defensive snaps. The five linemen with more stops all logged at least 611 defensive snaps.
Although the Vikings ranked third in total defense, they struggled against the run at times in 2025. Six times, they allowed opponents to rush for over 140 yards. This conservative offensive approach often prevented the Vikings' defense from getting into exotic pressure looks on third-and-long situations.
McDonald is less spectacular against the pass, posting a 63.1 grade. He only generated 15 pressures, although he did accumulate three sacks.
The question then becomes whether the Vikings should use the 18th overall pick on a potential two-down player.
Minnesota's defense ranked second in rushing yards allowed in 2024 and first in EPA allowed per run (-0.17). They ranked seventh in EPA allowed per pass (-0.10) in part because opponents struggled so much on early downs, forcing third-and-longs.
Brian Flores didn't use many defensive tackles in obvious pass situations that year. Harrison Phillips led all traditional interior linemen with 358 pass-rush snaps, garnering only a 60.0 grade.
Instead, Flores used unconventional players on the defensive line in passing situations. Jihad Ward, primarily an EDGE rusher throughout his career, lined up outside the offensive tackles on only 58 of his 467 defensive snaps. 395 of his total snaps came on passing plays.
Although he generated only one sack, Ward ranked third on the team with 31 pressures. Minnesota's traditional starting three defensive linemen combined for 38 pressures.
This is a long-winded way of saying that McDonald's three-down impact could still be felt even if he is primarily utilized as a two-down player. Ward is no longer on the team, but the Vikings used linebacker Eric Wilson in a hybrid role that had him blitz from different alignments.
McDonald is the 25th-ranked prospect on Pro Football Network's Industry Consensus Big Board. That is 10 spots higher than Florida's Caleb Banks, another defensive lineman who has been mocked to the Vikings.
With less than a month to go before the draft, it feels as if Minnesota is destined to select a defender at pick 18. Drafting McDonald could go a long way toward fortifying the Vikings' defense.