According to Essentially Sports’ Tony Pauline, there may already be some doubts in Minnesota about first-round DT Caleb Banks just months after he was selected with the No. 18 overall pick.
Pauline has heard from his sources in the scouting community that some members of the new front office hired after the draft think their predecessors may have erred in taking Banks over other players more equipped to make an immediate impact.
He says so far, Banks has struggled to make a consistent impact and his conditioning has been a focus. In comparison, third-round DT Domonique Orange has made a strong first impression, per Pauline, and is primed to play more than Banks this year.
Pauline notes the Vikings obviously aren’t throwing in the towel on Banks this early but it does reflect the weird situation the team put itself in this offseason.
The Vikings fired former GM Kwesi Adofo-Mensah after last season and elected to wait until after the draft to hire a replacement. EVP of football operations Rob Brzezinski served as the interim GM and was a finalist for the full-time role before Minnesota hired former Seahawks assistant GM Nolan Teasley.
Brzezinski stayed on in his former role while Teasley made some other shakeups to the front office, bringing in Andrew Healy from the Browns, Trent Kirchner from the Seahawks and former Bears GM Ryan Pace while letting go of former Vikings assistant GM Demitrius Washington and senior exec Jamaal Stephenson.
This is how the Vikings found themselves in a situation where just months after a draft, they have a new regime in place that didn’t make the call to draft those players.
Banks was one of the biggest surprise picks of the first round in this past draft, generally being viewed as a second-round prospect due to questions about his injury history and consistency, although most viewed him as a rare athlete.
Pauline notes Vikings DC Brian Flores has significant influence in personnel decisions for Minnesota and Banks is one of his guys.
Banks, 23, was a three-star recruit and the 99th-ranked defensive lineman in the 2021 recruiting class out of Southfield, Michigan. He committed to Louisville and remained there for two seasons before transferring to Florida.
The Vikings selected him with the No. 18 overall pick in the first round of the 2026 NFL Draft. He signed a four-year, $21,570,956 rookie contract that included a $12,147,968 signing bonus and a fifth-year option for the 2030 season.
In his collegiate career, Banks appeared in 34 games over five years at Louisville and Florida. He recorded 48 total tackles, 10.5 tackles for loss, 6.5 sacks, three forced fumbles, two fumble recoveries and one pass defended.
We’ll have more on Banks as the news is available.
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