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They entered the weekend in dire need of a productive draft, with glaring holes at receiver, defensive end and playmakers on offense.
Check, check and check.
While it's impossible to predict what kind of production will eventually come from this class one day after the picks were made, Minnesota took players at positions of need without reaching too far to get them.
The Vikings drafted three receivers — South Carolina's Sidney Rice in the second round, East Carolina's Aundrae Allison in the fifth round and Florida International's Chandler Williams in the seventh round — to bolster a corps that is short on experience and reliability.
Bobby Wade, and all 101 of his career catches, is the senior member of the group. Unknowns Cortez Hankton, Randy Hymes and a former Division-III high-jump champion named Todd Lowber don't exactly strike fear into the hearts of opposing defensive backs.
They join Billy McMullen and Troy Williamson, whose two disappointing seasons in purple have been filled with dropped passes after he was taken with the seventh overall pick out of South Carolina in 2005.
Oddly enough, the Vikings went back to the Gamecocks for help this year. Rice is only 20 years old, but flourished under coach Steve Spurrier. He caught 142 passes for 2,233 yards and 23 touchdowns in two years at South Carolina, the kind of production that Williamson didn't have on his resume.
With the bills piling up, Rice left school early to help out his mother, who has been out of work since breaking her back in 1991. Money won't be an issue anymore after the Vikings selected him over USC's Dwayne Jarrett.
``I'm going to come in and give 100 percent and be ready to go when I get there,'' Rice said. ``I'm going to fight for a starting position, and I'm not going to count myself out.''
Allison was considered a much higher pick when the season began, but an ankle injury cut his production. That might be a plus for the Vikings, who are getting a receiver who has something to prove.
``I already had a chip just because, coming from the school I came out of, we don't play a lot of nationally televised games,'' Allison said. ``So you are already off the radar, so I already had a chip on my shoulder. Whoever was going to take me was going to get more than the best of me.''
After grabbing Fresno State cornerback Marcus McCauley in the third round to help replace the departed Fred Smoot, the Vikings traded up in the fourth round to get Texas defensive end Brian Robison. Coach Brad Childress said Robison likely won't start right away, but he ran the second fastest 40-yard dash time among defensive ends at the NFL Combine and should help as a situational pass rusher.
Linebacker Rufus Alexander (sixth round) was very productive at Oklahoma, and Williams and seventh-round quarterback Tyler Thigpen add depth.
But the biggest pick of the weekend, of course, was Sooner running back Adrian Peterson in the first round. If he can stay healthy, he will be the cleanup hitter the Vikings have been missing since Randy Moss left.
He is a threat to score anytime he touches the ball and should provide the perfect complement to workhorse Chester Taylor.
Almost as important, when Peterson's name was called with the seventh overall pick on Saturday, Vikings fans attending a draft party at team headquarters roared with approval. Coming off a 6-10 season, and an offseason where the biggest signings were Wade and tight end Visanthe Shiancoe, the Vikings needed to add a ``jersey seller.''
Peterson has been a star since his freshman season at Oklahoma, and the name recognition he brings will make him an instant hit with a disillusioned fan base.
Vice president of player personnel Rick Spielman used the draft clichés of ``staying true to our board'' and ``picking the best player available'' when summing up the weekend on Sunday night, but it's clear that the team also took players at positions that needed filling.
``I just like how they play the game,'' Childress said of his draft class. ``They're good football players; they have good numbers. They're good people, and they have a chance to help us. I think as a team you embrace those people. If they're a part of helping us win games, they'll be welcomed with open arms.''
