In just over three weeks we can all ignore the 2023 NFL Supplemental Draft

Not that anybody has noticed, but for the past few years the National Football League has not held their Supplemental Draft. The last time the league did so was in 2019, with the festivities. . .such as they are. . .being called off for various reasons.

However, the Supplemental Draft is coming back with a vengeance this year, as the league announced that it will take place on 11 July. There is only one player that is confirmed to be a part of this year’s Supplemental Draft, that being Purdue wide receiver Milton Wright.

In case you had forgotten about it, the Supplemental Draft is a selection meeting for those who, for whatever reason, were declared ineligible for the actual Draft back in April. If a team chooses to select a player in the Supplemental Draft, they lose the corresponding pick in the 2024 NFL Draft. For example, if our Minnesota Vikings lost their minds and used a fourth-round pick to select a player in the Supplemental Draft, they would lose their fourth-round pick this coming April.

One of the most famous players in Vikings’ history was a Supplemental Draft choice, though not by the Vikings. Wide receiver Cris Carter was selected by the Philadelphia Eagles in the Supplemental Draft in 1987. After a couple of seasons with the Eagles where he, apparently, caught nothing but touchdowns, the Eagles let him go and he found his way to Minnesota and, ultimately, to the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

The Vikings have only made one selection in the Supplemental Draft in franchise history. That came back in 1988 when the team used a fifth-round pick on South Carolina wide receiver Ryan Bethea. Bethea wound up never playing a regular-season down for the Vikings.

As you can probably tell from the tenor of this e-mail, we’re not really expecting much from the Vikings. . .or anyone else. . .in the 2023 NFL Supplemental Draft. If something weird does happen, however, we’ll tell you all about it.