If you paid attention to the mock drafts leading up to the 2026 NFL Draft, the trend was that the Minnesota Vikings would use one of their day two picks on a running back, with guys like Jonah Coleman or Jadarian Price often being mocked to the Vikings. However, the organization would wait to draft a running back until round six, where they would select Demond Claiborne out of Wake Forest.
According to The Athletic's Alec Lewis, Claiborne is drawing some very high praise around NFL circles, with some comps to a division rival's star back, which should make Vikings fans happy:
Claiborne brings juice immediately to this running back room, as he does move similar to Gibbs in the open field. When training camp opens, we shouldn't be surprised if we see Claiborne taking RB2 snaps early, with a real shot to win the starting job in his rookie year. His playstyle could be just what the doctor ordered for this Minnesota offense.
This article originally appeared on Vikings Wire: Demond Claiborne draws comparison to All-Pro runningback
