Mel Kiper's First Mock Draft Has Surprise For Minnesota Vikings

In the midst of Zimmermania. . .because ZIMMERMANIA IS RUNNIN' WILD, BROTHER. . .ESPN's Mel Kiper has put out his first Mock Draft of the off-season. Yes, it has the Minnesota Vikings selecting a quarterback. No, it's probably not the one you think.

Kiper has Louisville signal caller Teddy Bridgewater. . .the guy that several NFL teams were allegedly supposed to dump the entire 2013 season for. . .falling right into Minnesota's lap with the eighth overall pick. The entire draft is behind the ESPN In$ider paywall, but I can tell you what he had to say about this selection.

In terms of his ability as a passer, Bridgewater could go higher. But while I currently have him rated as the top QB on my Big Board, Bridgewater will need to prove to teams that he can command an NFL huddle and be the face of a franchise. I think he has the necessary physical tools to succeed, and shows an advanced approach with his footwork, anticipation, pre-snap command and ability to improvise. He's a very good value here for a team with a huge need at the position. Whether he can start right away is a question we'll need more time to answer.

Kiper has Bridgewater as his third quarterback off the board (despite him being the top quarterback on his "Big Board"). He has Texas A&M's Johnny Manziel going #1 overall to the Houston Texans and Central Florida's Blake Bortles going at #4 overall to the Cleveland Browns.

In the interest of full disclosure. . .I don't think there's a snowball's chance that this happens. But it would be pretty cool if it did, wouldn't it?