Tough guys don’t cry, right? Well, not exactly.
The Vikings on Saturday selected University of Minnesota edge rusher Esezi Otomewo with the No. 165 pick in the fifth round of the NFL draft in Las Vegas. It didn’t take him long to get emotional.
“When I first got the phone call, I looked down at the phone and saw it was a 612 number,’’ Otomewo said. “I instantly knew Minnesota. I just looked around, tears came down my face and I picked up and it was emotions flying left and right. It hit me. I haven’t cried like that in a minute. I was just ecstatic.’’
Otomewo became the first Golden Gophers player drafted by the Vikings since they took linebacker Nate Triplett in the fifth round in 2010. Triplett didn’t make the team, but Vikings’ first-year general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah obviously hopes it will be different with Otomewo.
“I think he’s got a bright future,’’ said Adofo-Mensah, who had Otomewo in for a pre-draft visit. “He’s gritty, he’s tough, he’s got a quiet leadership presence about him. I haven’t gotten to meet (Gophers) coach (P.J.) Fleck yet, but he sent me the purple rower thing with all the team’s signature on it. I’m excited to meet him. I’ve heard so much about their culture.”
Entering the draft, Otomewo wasn’t certain where he stood with the Vikings.
“I didn’t know how much they were heavily watching me,’’ he said. “I kind of like knew they liked me a lot, but I didn’t know how much.”
Otomewo redshirted as a freshman in 2017 and didn’t start any games in 2018 or 2019 until moving into the lineup in 2020. In 2021, he had 4 ½ sacks while starting all 13 games.
Otomewo didn’t go through the pre-draft process since he hurt his knee in the Gophers’ bowl game last December, and he figured that would drop him to the fourth or fifth round. He said he didn’t need surgery and that he’s “good to go.”
UNDRAFTEED SIGNEES
The Vikings were expected to bring in a punter to compete with Jordan Berry, and that’s what will happen.
Following the conclusion of the draft, the Vikings announced they had agreed to terms with Ryan Wright, an undrafted free agent from Tulane who averaged 47.5 yards per punt in 2021. He will look to beat out Berry, who has a minimum contract with no guaranteed money.
The Vikings announced they had agreed to terms with eight other undrafted free agents: Miami of Ohio safety Mike Brown; Appalachian State wide receiver Thomas Hennigan; Toledo running back Bryant Koback; Miami of Florida linebacker Zach McCloud; Sacred Heart center Josh Sokol; Tulsa defensive tackle Tyarise Sevenson, Virginia Tech wide receiver Tre Turner; and Wake Forest linebacker Luiji Vilain.