It only took until the end of the third round, but the Minnesota Vikings finally addressed the secondary by selecting safety Jakobe Thomas out of Miami with the 98th pick in the 2026 NFL Draft. Many believed the Vikings would go safety in round one, and when they passed, the clock began ticking on when they would finally address the void left by Harrison Smith.

What does the draft grade look like? Let's talk about it.

No knock on Jakobe Thomas, but the decision to pass on multiple safeties leading up to this pick, and landing on Thomas instead of someone like Jalon Kilgore, who would've been a stellar scheme fit, has to play a factor into this. Thomas' aggressive playstyle will fit well into this Brian Flores defense, but he is more of a rotational piece and core special-teamer than a future starter.

The pick gets a C+, but could have been much higher had this been a better scheme fit.

This article originally appeared on Vikings Wire: NFL Draft: Grading the Vikings selection of Jakobe Thomas