By: Aj Mansour | KFAN.com
@AjKFAN

1. KC – Eric Fisher (OT, Central Michigan)
2. JAC – Dion Jordan (DE, Oregon)
3. OAK – Ziggy Ansah (DE, BYU)
4. PHI – Luke Joeckel (OT, Texas A&M)
5. DET – Dee Milliner (CB, Alabama)
6. CLE – Geno Smith (QB, West Virginia)
7. ARI – Chance Warmack (OG, Alabama)
8. BUF – Lane Johnson (OT, Oklahoma)
9. NYJ – Barkevious Mingo (DE, LSU)
10. TEN – Sharrif Floyd (DT, Florida)
11. SD – Jonathan Cooper (OG, North Carolina)
12. MIA – Kenny Vaccaro (SS, Texas)
13. NYJ – Tyler Eifert (TE, Notre Dame)
14. CAR – Star Lotulelei (DT, Utah)
15. NO – Jarvis Jones (OLB, Georgia)
16. STL – Tavon Austin (WR, West Virginia)
17. PIT – Xavier Rhodes (CB, Florida State)
18. DAL – Sheldon Richardson (DT, Missouri)
19. NYG – D.J. Fluker (OT, Alabama)
20.  CHI – Alec Ogletree (LB, Georgia)
21. CIN – Eddie Lacy (RB, Alabama)
22. STL – Cordarrele Patterson (WR, Tennessee)
23. MIN – Manti Te’o (MLB, Notre Dame)
24. IND – Desmond Trufant (CB, Washington)
25. MIN – Bjoern Werner (DE, Florida State)
26. GB – Eric Reid (FS, LSU)
27. HOU – Justin Hunter (WR, Tennessee)
28. DEN – Sylvester Williams (DT, North Carolina)
29. NE – John Cyprien (FS, Florida International)
30. ATL – D.J. Hayden (CB, Houston)
31. SF – Jesse Williams (DT, Alabama)
32. BAL – Arthur Brown (MLB, Kansas State)

Aj Mansour covers Minnesota Sports for KFAN.com. Feel free to leave comments and questions regarding this post in the space provided below. For Vikings' updates and breaking Vikings' news, follow Aj on Twitter. @AjKFAN

Photo - Aj Mansour (KFAN)

By: Aj Mansour | KFAN.com
@AjKFAN

Minneapolis, MN - With the first round of the 2013 NFL Draft kicking off later this evening, the Vikings 23rd and 25th overall selections remain COMPLETELY up in the air. Will they go wide receiver? Will they snag a defensive tackle? Will they turn to a young cornerback to help out the secondary?

It's very possible that Minnesota could turn in any of these directions, but one of the positions that continuously falls to the Vikings in most of the mock drafts is middle linebacker.

Following the departure of Jasper Brinkley (Arizona), the middle of the Minnesota Vikings linebacking corps is currently sitting in the hands of Marvin Mitchell and second year player Audie Cole. With the main portion of the free agency period already behind us, the Vikings will continue looking to sure up the middle of their defense and will have to do it by bringing in a rookie through the Draft.

The options for the Vikings are actually fairly numerous, but most of them occur in the first few rounds of the draft.

Tuesday afternoon, Vikings General Manager Rick Spielman called this year's draft "one of the more intriguing drafts that I'm going to be associated with." Much of that feeling comes from the flexibility that the Vikings have in the early rounds.

Armed with the 23rd and 25th picks in the first round and the 52nd overall selection coming in the second round, the Vikings are likely in a position where players will be dropping to them and other teams will be calling them looking to move up or down.

"A lot of it will be predicated on who comes down to us," Spielman said.

Another variable that the Vikings are looking at is the flexibility that linebacker Erin Henderson offers the defense.

"[Erin] is flexible," Spielman told the media on Tuesday. "[What we do with him] depends what happens in the draft. What if we go outside and Erin can slide inside? What if we go inside and Erin can play outside? That's what is great about this linebacker thing; we have the flexibility to go either way."

Focusing in a little deeper on the potential of Erin Henderson moving to the middle, Henderson's teammate and fellow linebacker Chad Greenway thinks that Erin is fully capable of making the switch.

"Erin does have some experience [at middle] so obviously we have an option right now with experience that can play at that position," Greenway said. "He's sort of built like if you use a cover/Tampa two. Guys like Urlacher are a similar size, kind of rangy, long arms and I think that's really going to help him in pass coverage and the drop in the deep middle."

Last season, Henderson was stuck in the Will Linebacker slot where oftentimes he was charged with taking on the lead blocker as the back came through the line of scrimmage. That position takes a lot of heat and a lot of punishment. If Erin moves inside, Greenway believes he will be able to utilize his best attribute, his instinct.

"He's probably not the fastest or the most athletic but he's going to get to the ball," Greenway added. "If he's in a position to make a lot of plays, he will do that."

Moving Erin to the middle opens up the Vikings to draft from what might be a little deeper class of outside linebackers. Doing this puts them right in the mix to draft guys like Jarvis Jones (Georgia, may have to trade up), Alec Ogletree (Georgia, flexible MLB & OLB) and Arthur Brown (Kansas State).

But let's say they didn't move Henderson to the middle. Would a rookie linebacker really be able to step right into a starting job as a middle linebacker in the NFL? Chad Greenway seems to think that with this team, it could work.

"You've got to start somewhere," Greenway said. "Obviously if you drafted him, it would need to be one of those things where we're going to see how he is in OTAs and see how he'll build up to be that role starting in training camp and be the guy at the front of the huddle making the calls and kind of taking that leadership role from the middle linebacker standpoint. Obviously we have guys in the room that can handle those responsibilities if need be, but that's the role of the middle linebacker."

Leaving Henderson on the outside would allow for the Vikings to take a chance on names like Manti Te'o (Notre Dame), Alec Ogletree (Georgia, flexible MLB & OLB) and Kevin Minter (LSU).

In reality, as much as we want to speculate, it's going to come down to exactly where Spielman left it on Tuesday, "a lot of it will be predicated on who comes down to us."

KFAN will kick off draft coverage at 3PM with Dan Barreiro and Justin Gaard LIVE from Mall of America Field and the Vikings Draft Party. KFAN Draft Party coverage will then take over at 6:30pm with Paul Allen.

If players slide, they may have the opportunity to move forward or move back.

Aj Mansour covers Minnesota Sports for KFAN.com. Feel free to leave comments and questions regarding this post in the space provided below. For Vikings' updates and breaking Vikings' news, follow Aj on Twitter. @AjKFAN

By: Aj Mansour | KFAN.com
@AjKFAN

Minneapolis, MN - Already armed with eleven picks in the 2013 NFL Draft, the Minnesota Vikings fully expect to be active in the trade market on draft night. Tuesday afternoon, Vikings general manager Rick Spielman met with the media and admitted that accumulating value (no matter what form that comes in) is of the utmost importance to the Vikings immediate and long-term future.

"As we go through this draft, don't be surprised if we accumulate more [picks]," Spielman said. "If I think we can move down to 'X' spot in the first round and still get the same quality of player and accumulate another pick for next year, we'll definitely be looking to do that."

Spielman went on to credit the depth of this year's draft and the Vikings positioning at picks 23 and 25 as the reason why he expects there to be a large amount of movement throughout the first few rounds.

"Whether you believe me or not, I'm telling you [the phone has] been the most active it's been in a while because of where we're picking," Spielman explained. "There are a lot of teams potentially jockeying from the top of that second round. There's some teams jockeying potentially in the bottom of the first round to come up to one of our picks at 23 or 25. That's something that we're going to be very open to because I think if we decide to go ahead and trade back in this draft. Because of the depth at the positions of need that we have, we can still get a very similar player and potentially pick up some [picks] either this year or next year."

For the Vikings, one of the key positions to watch during Thursday's first round is quarterback. While this isn't a draft class littered with top prospect quarterbacks, there are still teams who are in need of making some sort of change behind center. Prospects like Geno Smith, Ryan Nassib and Matt Barkley are projected to be chosen anywhere between the fourth overall selection and as late as the second round. If one of those quarterbacks were to begin to slide (a la Aaron Rodgers in 2005 or Brady Quinn in 2007), look for a team like Buffalo, Philadelphia or Jacksonville to swoop into the backside of the first round and ship a few picks over in the direction of Minnesota.

"We've prepared ourselves for what if they're no quarterbacks taken before our pick and what kind of scenario we could be facing," Spielman said. "I think that this is going to be one of the most intriguing drafts that I'm going to be associated with."

As much as we want to speculate and try our best to predict where and who the Vikings will end up drafting on Thursday night, most of what Minnesota ends up doing is going to be predicated on what happens during the first twenty-two picks of the draft. If both Ogletree and Te'o are available at 23, the Vikings may trade back and accumulate future picks. If a certain player who they have targeted falls into the late teens, the Vikings may even end up trading up to snatch them up. The possible scenarios are endless, and that ladies and gentlemen, is why we love the NFL Draft so very much.

As draft day approaches, speculation continues to run rampant. Much of that speculation is fueled by the chat rooms, reporters and bloggers who don't have much of an idea of what really goes on behind the scenes at Winter Park during draft weekend.

Earlier this week, Vikings general manager Rick Spielman took fans on a behind the scenes tour of the Minnesota Vikings Draft War Room.

Click the image above or CLICK HERE to check out the full Beyond The Gridiron feature at Vikings.com.

Photo - Vikings.com

By: Aj Mansour | KFAN.com
@AjKFAN

Minneapolis, MN - I think it's safe to say that it's been an interesting offseason for the Minnesota Vikings. After finishing the 2012 season 10-6 and fighting their way into the playoffs, a few dramatic departures and a couple ancillary additions have shaken things up quite a bit over at Winter Park. No single position group took as much of this turnover as the wide receiving corps.

Goodbye Percy...
On March 11th, the Minnesota Vikings announced that they had traded wide receiver Percy Harvin to the Seahawks for a first round pick in 2013, a seventh round selection in 2013 and a third round draft choice in 2014. After public displays of discontent and rumored issues behind the scenes, Harvin had seemingly worn out his welcome in Minnesota. Still, the loss of a skilled player will surely effect the Vikings as they head into 2013.

Among those who took Harvin's departure to heart, Adrian Peterson sounded off initially on twitter saying, "I feel like I just got kicked in the stomach. Several times!!!"

The best all around player I ever seen or you'll ever see! Goes to Seattle! I feel like I just got kicked in the stomach. Several times!!!

— Adrian Peterson (@AdrianPeterson) March 11, 2013

Approximately one month after the trade went down, we caught up with Peterson outside of Portland, Oregon and he elaborated on his feelings towards the Harvin situation.

"I'm adjusting to it now," Peterson said. "That's part of the business, it kind of goes like that sometimes unfortunately. We lost probably one of the best players that will ever play or suit up...I know the type of talent that he is because I know talent. It's going to be hard not to have him around."

Welcome Greg Jennings...
Shortly after the Percy trade, the NFL free agency period kicked off. A handful of days later, the Vikings began their rebuilding process by landing the second rated overall wide receiver on the board, Greg Jennings.

Jennings is not the dynamic player that Percy Harvin was, but he is equally dangerous and may prove to be a better fit for the type of team that Rick Spielman and Leslie Frazier are looking to piece together.

"You've really got some weapons to explore," Peterson said on the addition of Jennings. "Not only [Greg's] talent but his leadership skills but his knowledge of the game...I'm excited about the new addition of Greg Jennings and I'm just excited to see the way that things pan out."

With the addition of Jennings to the wide receiver group, the Vikings are currently sitting with Jennings and Jerome Simpson who have decent NFL experience, Stephen Burton and Jarius Wright who have limited NFL experience, and then a complete wild card in last year's fourth round selection Greg Childs who injured his knees last preseason. It's no secret that they will be looking to bolster the depth and acquire some young, talented wide receivers through the draft this week.

Replacing Percy through the Draft...
With the 23rd and 25th picks in the first round of the 2013 NFL Draft and eleven picks overall, it's a pretty safe bet to assume that Minnesota will look to add at least two wide outs to the list above. Focusing in on the Vikings' first round picks (23rd & 25th), it becomes very possible that a wide receiver (or multiple wide receivers) may be on the Vikings radar.

Tavon Austin has emerged as the top wide receiving prospect out of this year's class and would be the most likely to replace the multiple-facets that Percy Harvin brought to the table last season. At 5'8", Austin grades out as an effective slot receiver who has the ability to run out of the backfield and return kicks/punts. If the Vikings have interest in Austin they will likely have to trade up in the draft and land right around the 14th or 15th pick.

As recently as last week, Keenan Allen was supposedly the next receiver thought to have been taken off the board. Questions surrounding a drug-test at the combine and a potential ankle issue have added question marks to Allen's draft status, but for the purpose of our arguments, we'll assume he will still be the next wide receiver taken. At 6'2", Allen has the size to develop into a big-time, number one receiver in the NFL but needs to work on consistency (on both route running and solidifying catches in traffic). Allen would be a good outside receiver fit for the Vikings and his draft stock may be falling right into Minnesota's wheelhouse in the early twenties.

Maybe the most likely and most interesting option for the Vikings is Cordarrelle Patterson from Tennessee. Patterson was initially the top receiver on the board when mocks were first released. As we stand today, he will likely be the third (sometimes fourth) wide receiver taken in this year's draft. Still, he grades out higher than Keenan Allen and may fall into the laps of the Minnesota Vikings at 23 or 25. Patterson is tall (6'2") and fast but his strength in contention has been called into question. He has developed a reputation as a "body catcher" rather than meeting the ball at it's highest point with his hands which is viewed as a negative in the NFL. Armed with breakaway speed, Patterson may be the blazer that would complement the Vikings lineup of Jennings, Rudolph and Wright.

Other names to note as the draft approaches include DeAndre Hopkins (graded in second round), Quinton Patton (second), Terrance Williams (second), Robert Woods (second/third) and Justin Hunter (second).

A lot can, and probably will, change between today and the start of the Draft Thursday night. However, we know that the Vikings will be targeting wide receiver (because they have to).

Stay tuned to 100.3FM KFAN, @AjKFAN on twitter and KFAN.com for the latest draft coverage and analysis throughout the week.