The Official Dallas Turner thread

[VikingsVictorious]

I've been studying up on the draft for a couple months now and Turner was 9 times out of 10 the first defender taken. He is a defensive QB sacking machine.

[VikingsVictorious]

Here's an excellent evaluation of the Turner Pick. They only give it a B grade because of the high price we paid to get him, but they also call him the best defender in the draft.

17. Minnesota Vikings (via Jacksonville): Dallas Turner, EDGE, Alabama
Strengths: Lightning-quick, fluid defender off the edge, excellent flexibility, quickness to disrupt the run, pop in his hands to employ bull rush and stack blockers

Weaknesses: Can add strength and bulk, gets hung up on blocks once engaged, still developing pass-rush technique

Dallas Turner's upside is extraordinary. He didn't really even start to realize his immense potential until this past season with the Alabama Crimson Tide.

Turner originally joined the program as a 5-star recruit, but he played second fiddle to Will Anderson Jr. during his first two seasons with the Crimson Tide. Turner always had plenty of natural ability, but he had to get out of Anderson's shadow.

"Honestly, like the main thing he told me, just relax," Turner told reporters in August. ".. It's all about football now. It's not, just don't put so much pressure on yourself. Because you know, the type of name and all the hype you have to quote-unquote, live up to. You know, just relax, and be you. Everything will fall in place."

Anderson was right. Turner registered 14.5 tackles for loss and 10 sacks on his way to become the co-SEC Defensive Player of the Year and a consensus All-American.

The 21-year-old is only scratching the surface considering his ample athletic profile, which includes a 4.46-second 40-yard dash, a 40.5-inch vertical and a 10'7" broad jump. He's going to get better as he continues to evolve his technique and add strength.

The Minnesota Vikings didn't need to burn their extra first-round pick to land their new franchise quarterback in J.J. McCarthy. That gave them the ability to move around later in the first round.

The Indianapolis Colts started a run on defensive prospects by selecting Laiatu Latu, and the Seattle Seahawks followed with Byron Murphy II. At No. 17, Minnesota saw the moment to strike for arguably the defensive player with the most upside overall in this year's class.

The Vikings needed to move a fifth-round pick and a pair of 2025 middle-round picks to trade up, but they're gaining an explosive edge to pair with the offseason additions of Jonathan Greenard and Andrew Van Ginkel. That should help them replace the production of Danielle Hunter and DJ Wonnum, both of whom left this offseason.

Turner's upside justifies the risk of giving up a few later-round picks.

Grade: B

[Cliff]

KOC's reaction to Dallas Turner:



His face when he's told is hilarious.

[VikingLord]

I can't recall a single pre-draft mock that had Turner falling out of the top 10. When I saw he was still on the board after pick 15 I was thinking could he fall to 23? And then when the Vikings moved up I was sure it was for Turner.

In KAM's first draft he moved down, passing up some objectively good talent and didn't get all that much in return. In this draft, KAM seemed to understand the need to grab falling talent and was willing to spend the later round resources needed to do it. I think the Turner pick particularly was a great move. This guy is going to be an absolute wrecking ball and he can move in space and cover as well.

[VikingLord]

I have to say again how stunned I am that the Vikings drafted Dallas Turner at all, much less where they did. There is no reason this guy should have still been on the board past the 10th pick, and there were scenarios where I thought if both Turner and one of the top QBs were both available at 11 I would not have been upset had KAM used that pick on Turner. He's that good with that level of potential to impact a game.

And while I love what Turner can do physically off the edge, by all accounts he is a super hard worker and great teammate. The kind of person that others rally around. He's like another Ivan Pace. I really can't wait to see what he's able to do and I think Flores is going to find all sorts of different ways to get him involved. Totally, totally psyched with this pick.

[VikingsVictorious]

Dallas Turner Presser.

[VikingsVictorious]

Doesn't anybody want to talk in the Dallas Turner thread? He was the consensus best defender in the draft. That is freaking exciting.

[VikingLord]

I'm really excited to see how Flores deploys Turner. The edge players in Flores' defense often drop back and cover. Hunter did a pretty good job of that when he was asked to do it, but in my opinion Hunter wasn't really comfortable in that role. Turner is lighter and quicker than Hunter IMHO, and I suspect he'll be better in the coverage role even if he's not making splash plays right away. Turner's sideline-to-sideline speed also is impressive. If he holds the edge he can chase down plays from the backside that a lot of other edge defenders can't reach. He's just very versatile and disruptive and he can create pressure in multiple ways. A lot of edge rushers win with speed or hands or strength, but can be neutralized if their go-to move doesn't work. Turner has a lot of different ways he can win. My favorite highlights of Turner are when he simply gets up under the pads of an OT and just walks him back into the QB. Talk about raw power and leverage. It's like he's working with a blocking sled or something.

[JJBreaksRecords]

If Turner doest get hurt, can bulk up, and learns our D, There are going to be a lot of happy Vikings fans. Turner has the ability to change a team by himself. Cant wait for some football.

[VikingsVictorious]

If Turner doest get hurt, can bulk up, and learns our D, There are going to be a lot of happy Vikings fans. Turner has the ability to change a team by himself. Cant wait for some football.

I've taken you off Foe and am willing to start over. Kirk is gone and that was the primary cause of our contention. You are correct that Turner could be a total game changer. I really don't think Turner is more likely to get injured than anybody else. He's 15 pounds lighter than Hunter, but Hunter is a freak. Turner should add 5 to 10 pounds, but any more would be too much.

[cogitator]

I was thinking a comparison is Micah Parsons, hopefully? About the same size and same position.

BTW, position now informally known as edge rusher, seems relatively new to call a player that, not an official designation, any of you football scholars know when that came along?

[JJBreaksRecords]

I was thinking a comparison is Micah Parsons, hopefully? About the same size and same position.

BTW, position now informally known as edge rusher, seems relatively new to call a player that, not an official designation, any of you football scholars know when that came along?

I sure hope so!

[CharVike]

I was thinking a comparison is Micah Parsons, hopefully? About the same size and same position.

BTW, position now informally known as edge rusher, seems relatively new to call a player that, not an official designation, any of you football scholars know when that came along?

I did some research and there really isn't a sole creator. Basically a media creation. But certain things did happen for the media to think of it. This example below makes the most sense to me.
--------------Example---------------------------------------------------------------------
2008-9
Terrell Suggs contract dispute as the creation of the Edge designation. In 2008 he wanted to be tagged as a DE while the Ravens wanted to pay him as a LB. They eventually settled on a price exactly in between and Suggs signed a huge contract in 2009. The term edge rusher started coming into vogue not long after.
---------------End---------------------------------------------------------------------
In terms of NFL history sacks weren't even recorded for that long. The NFL began to keep track of sacks in 1982.

[IIsweet]

I am hoping for Micah Parsons play making ability too. He measures up great with him, imo. Saw the comparison to Von Miller...that would be awesome as well. Brian Burns is another comp. They rave about the 83" arms. The 4.46 40 and the 40.5" vertical. Even a Derrick Thomas comp.
Looking forward to reports from camp

[Cliff]

Lots of good comments out of camp from him. He's currently odds on favorite for defensive RoY.