The last time the Vikings won the division before 2015 was 2009. In the draft following that season, the Vikings acted like a team that already had plenty of good players on their roster and didn't need much immediate help.

They traded out of the first round, chose cornerback Chris Cook with the second-round pick acquired in the deal, and later traded back into the second round to take running back Toby Gerhart — even though they already had an in-his-prime Adrian Peterson. The most productive player ended up being fourth-round pick Everson Griffen, who really didn't do much until 2012 and didn't become a major impact player until 2014.

The Vikings cannot afford to hold a similar opinion or strategy about this year's draft. Because while the 2009 and 2015 Vikings are quite different the current Vikings 1) have plenty of holes to fill and 2) soon will start to feel the intensified burden of expectations.

Read Michael Rand's blog at startribune.com/randball. michael.rand@startribune.com.