Vikings fans are often salivating about the upcoming draft by now, but this year there are other things keeping them occupied. You know, a chance to advance to the Super Bowl in Minneapolis. No biggie.
But if you are a multitasker who is able to keep most of your attention on the game Sunday in Philadelphia while also taking a peek at the future, this might interest you: ESPN's Mel Kiper Jr. on Thursday released the first version of his 2018 first-round mock draft.
Kiper has the Vikings taking Connor Williams, an offensive tackle for Texas. The Vikings have only used one first-round pick on an offensive lineman — tackle Matt Kalil in 2012 — in the past 15 drafts.
But Kiper reasons that "the Vikings spent a lot of money last offseason on free-agent tackles Mike Remmers and Riley Reiff, and the duo had a solid season, but Remmers moved to guard late in the year because of injuries. Could he stay there in 2018 and beyond?"
Read Michael Rand's blog at startribune.com/randball. michael.rand@startribune.com.
