Vikings' draft board an education, starting with Peterson pick

Round 2

OK, so they had a back to complement Chester Taylor. Where was their next wide receiver?

Patience, people. The Vikings targeted South Carolina's Sidney Rice in the second round and found him with the 44th choice. Taking Rice meant not taking USC's Dwayne Jarrett, the Pac-10 record holder for career touchdown catches, and Spielman explained why.

"We felt very strongly about Sidney Rice," he said. "He's a big receiver, and he had a 38½-inch vertical jump. When you have a guy with that size and that vertical jump it means he has unique skills to go up and get the ball, especially in the red zone.

The Vikings had a strong conviction about WR Sidney Rice. (Getty Images)

"He ran fast at the combine -- in fact, he probably ran faster than we expected him to -- and he has some things to work out in his game. But he's only 20 years old. We say the definition of a receiver is to receive. We feel very strongly he has unique ability to go up and get the ball in the air."

To acquire Rice, the Vikings moved backward three positions, from the ninth spot in the second round to the 12th. The move was as smart as it was safe. The Vikings acquired an extra draft pick to choose the player they would've taken anyway.

That wasn't luck. They were confident Rice would be there because Indianapolis and Detroit -- teams with the next two choices -- drafted wide receivers in the first round.

"I took us through 12 different scenarios," said Spielman. "Everything from the offensive linemen (Arron) Sears and (Justin) Blalock to the wide receivers."

But Sears and Blalock were gone. Rice, Jarrett and Steve Smith were not. Minnesota chose Rice one spot ahead of Jarrett.

"I think it's a little bit of a speed thing," said Spielman. "I think both (he and Jarrett) will excel in the league, but we just felt Rice will fit us better in what we do from a schematic standpoint."

Round 3

Finding Fresno State cornerback Marcus McCauley in the third round was fortunate -- if, that is, you believe he's the player he was his junior year and not his senior season. The Vikings do. Plus, they had no concerns about a concussion that sidelined McCauley early last season.

"We're very thorough on the medical and character background checks," Spielman said. "We had 90 guys on our whole board -- including our last free agent -- that we turned over, that we would not touch for one of those two reasons.

"We felt very strongly (about McCauley) because he's a big, physical corner. He didn't play as well as he did his junior year, but we have a scout on our staff (Mike Sholiton) who was his recruiting coordinator at Fresno State. He had very strong feelings for the kid, not only as a player but as a person.

"I know Fresno had a down year, and some things happened. But you know what you see in the talent part. You see he performed well in the Senior Bowl when you watch the one-on-one practices and the game, and then you see he performed well at the combine. As the process went along we felt very comfortable, and we felt we had very good value at this pick in the third round."

McCauley could step in to replace salary-cap casualty Fred Smoot, but I wouldn't expect it. Too much competition, and that's good for the Vikings.

"We feel very strong about (Antoine) Winfield and (Cedric) Griffin, who was taken last year in the second round," Spielman said. "But you're in nickel so much in this day and age in the NFL you have to have three players of starter caliber at the corners."

Now they do.

Round 4

It's hard to talk about Texas defensive end Brian Robison without talking about his ability to block kicks. He snuffed six of them. But that's not why Minnesota traded up to acquire him.

"You don't draft a field-goal blocker in the fourth round," said Spielman.