Caleb Banks isn’t a normal defensive lineman in more ways than one, but he’s perfect for Brian Flores
The Minnesota Vikings shocked the world on Thursday night by selecting Florida Gators defensive tackle Caleb Banks in the first round of the NFL Draft. It was a relatively surprising selection with the multiple injuries to his foot.
We can parse out multiple elements of his selections. Was it a good pick based on all the information? Did the Vikings reach on Banks? How concerned should we be with his injury history? Luckily for us, Banks answered multiple questions about his future with the Vikings.
The biggest issue with the selection many have is the injured foot. Banks opened up about it, including admitting that he got a shot in his foot to continue playing against the LSU Tigers .
“I love the game. I love everything that comes with it, from the work to the long nights to early mornings, like the hard work in the weight room. I love it all. So none of my mind was telling me, like, shut it down. You know what I mean? I knew it was broken in second quarter against LSU, went in there, got a shot of my foot, didn’t work, still went out there, and then it completely broke through. But I was fighting, you know what I mean, and I’m falling in the Combine as well. I’m competitive as hell. So that’s just me. That’s the type of guy I am.”
That in itself is an interesting factor. That will endear him to coaches everywhere, as he wants to go out and play for his teammates. Banks highlighted that to me at the Senior Bowl.
What we didn’t know was Banks took a visit to Minnesota. That wasn’t a surprise, but it hadn’t been reported before. It makes complete sense because those visits are often used to maximize information gathering, especially with his foot injury. Banks also revealed where he will be playing on the defensive line, among other things.
“When I went on a 30 visit, I remember he shot us all. He set all the players down, and he said, I’m just telling y’all, right now we pick you. Like, I’m going, I’m going, I’m gonna get, we gonna get after it. That’s just, like, first thing he said, and I was like, oh yeah. Like, I’m all for that. You know what I mean? And I love it. And scheme wise, defensive end, playing the big end. So 4i kind of around there through technique, five technique kind of just being able to use my abilities. I feel like I’m a freak athlete. I’m one on one. Not a lot of guys have the skill set that I have, but I feel like I feel like if I develop my tools the way that I know I could, I could be, I could be dangerous.”
Banks also said he wants to get down to around 323 pounds for his playing weight. That will hopefully help prevent the foot injuries from recurring. It will also help him play outside of nose tackle. That’s where Banks played the majority of his reps at Florida in 2024, his last full season. Only four of his snaps were played on the true inside.
Flores is going to deploy him in an explosive way. He loves to ask his defensive tackles to penetrate upfield and exploit gaps in the run game. That fits with what Banks does well.
It’s going to be a controversial pick for some time, but once Banks ends up taking the field, he will likely calm those quickly.
