Marcus Johnson 2nd Round Pick

I would have liked to get Mike Nugent, now it looks like the Vikings could go into the season with Aaron Elling as their starting kicker. They did alright in getting possibly the best guard prospect in the draft in Marcus Johnson. But to sure up the last major weakness on the team in Kicker would have been nice. I wanted Justin Miller of Clemson with this pick. He would have made a great nickle/dime back. But it sounds like character concerns dropped him. So I wanted Merriman got T.Will, At 18 I was indifferent. Justin Miller and got Marcus Johnson. At 80, I look for another player on the Defensive side of the ball. I could see a Brandon Browner going there to bring a more physical presence to the Defensive backfield. Corey Webster of LSU is another possibilty. Terrence Murphy of Texas A$M could upgrade the return game. I stated that they would take CJ Moseley Dt of Missouri. If a Chris Henry is still on the board, you have to consider such a talented player. Well, here's a scouting report on Marcus Johnson.

Strengths: Has terrific size and the frame to continue to get bigger. He has the size to engulf most DL if he gets in position. Takes good angles, is technically sound and disciplined. He plays with good toughness and is a feisty blocker that will work to finish. Shows good initial quickness for his size. Plays with leverage and fires off the ball low for such a tall offensive lineman. He is an experienced and durable player with very good savvy and awareness in pass pro. He has good quickness in his pass pro set. Is extremely difficult to get around in the short area because of his size and wingspan. He plays with good balance and body control in pass pro. He has long arms and shows good hand placement. If his upper body strength improves he can really become dominant after he locks on.

Weaknesses: He has adequate quickness in the short area but he's not a great athlete. Doesn't have great speed and the more room he's asked to cover the less effective he will become. Will struggle at times in space as a reach blocker. Has very minimal experience at OT position. Is quick in the short area but lacks great mobility. Will he be able to hold up on an island against NFL pass rushers if he moves outside to ROT at the next level? Has improved his strength but it's still not ideal. He can engulf defenders but doesn't show enough explosive initial pop or power.

Overall: Johnson redshirted in 2000 and played in a rotation at right guard as a redshirt freshman in 2001 before taking over as a fulltime starting right guard in his 2002 sophomore season. Johnson finished his career at Ole Miss as a four-year fulltime starter with 48-consecutive starts to his credit. He spent some time at OT because of injuries in 2004 but he spent the majority of his collegiate career at right guard. Johnson has impressive feet for his size and he is a technically sound, durable and consistent lineman with the size to engulf most defenders. He is coming off his most complete season and really improved his draft value as a senior. The big question now is whether or not Johnson can make the transition to tackle in the NFL? While we think there's a decent chance of him making it as a right tackle, we do believe that he's a much better fit inside. He doesn't have explosive upper body power and he also is much more comfortable in the short area than he is playing on the perimeter, where he doesn't have great mobility in that much space. Regardless, Johnson projects as a second round prospect with some versatility to back up both positions early in his career and the potential to develop into a solid starter in the near future.