Legendary former Dallas Cowboys personnel guru Gil Brandt has ranked players for the past 57 years.
Now with NFL Media, Brandt continued his ritual with a "**Hot 150**" before the draft.
A total of 253 players were selected last weekend, so Dan Parr is using a reverse-scoring system based off rankings to determine "teams that added most talent" at this year's draft. The first player drafted, Myles Garrett (Cleveland), is worth 150 points, and the final player ranked by Brandt, C.J. Beathard (San Francisco) is worth one point.
The Vikings drafted a total of 11 players, and six were listed by Brandt, which tied with Seattle for the second-most selections.
Dalvin Cook was rated the highest at 25th overall, which translated to 126 points in this scoring system. Brandt had Pat Elflein at No. 52 (99 points), Jaleel Johnson at No. 95 (56 points), Eric Wilson at 107 (44 points), Danny Isidora at 119 (32 points) and Ben Gedeon at 148 (three points). The total points for the Vikings six players was 360, which **ranked 17th**, but that was without a first-round pick.
Brandt added write-ups on each player in his top 50. Here is what he wrote about Cook:
Exceptional vision as a runner, a trait Bill Parcells believes is the most important for a running back. Has strength and is tough. Plays fast. Good but not great hands, and some questions linger about his pass-protection skills. Has had some off-field problems in past, but seems like a good kid when you meet him. Has had three shoulder surgeries since high school.
Cook was rated third-highest among running backs by Brandt, behind top 10 picks Leonard Fournette and Christian McCaffrey.
PFF stats about Vikings draft picks
Matthew Coller of ESPN1500.com used a Pro Football Focus Draft Pass to dig up **10 stats on Vikings draft picks**.
Coller noted that Cook ranked second in the nation and tops among schools that are members of the Power-5 conferences in yards after contact in 2016 with 4.19 of his 6.1 yards per carry occurring after first contact.
*The Vikings' second-round pick isn't as physically strong or heavy as LSU's Leonard Fournette, but he made more happen after first being hit than the No. 4 overall pick. Cook isn't the type to dance around in the backfield. He waits for a hole, then explodes, making it difficult for linebackers and safeties to take him down on the first try. In the NFL, averaging 2.5 Yards After Contact is a good mark. *
Coller also wrote that the 1,112 snaps in route, 238 targets, 133 receptions and 1,755 yards by Bucky Hodges since 2014 make him the most experienced receiving tight end in the draft. It's worth noting that Virginia Tech used Hodges at receiver instead of tight end prolifically in 2016.
