General manager Rick Spielman made his first trade of the 2019 NFL draft Friday night and made three consecutive trades minutes later, moving down four times in the third round. In the end, the Minnesota Vikings used the final pick of the third round (No. 102 overall) to select former Boise State running back Alexander Mattison, while picking up a flurry of Day 3 selections in the process. From 2016-18, Mattison rushed 581 times for 2,829 yards and 33 touchdowns. He became the first Boise State player to win the Mountain West rushing title last season with 1,415 yards, posting 100+ yards in six of 13 games, and ranked seventh in the nation with 17 touchdowns. Mattison averaged 4.9 yards per carry in his collegiate career. At 5-foot-11 and 211 pounds, Mattison can also catch the ball out of the backfield. He tallied 60 receptions for 511 yards and one score in college. Mattison joins Vikings running backs Dalvin Cook, Mike Boone, Roc Thomas and Ameer Abdullah on the roster. Spielman originally traded the Vikings’ third-round pick (No. 81 overall) for Detroit’s third-rounder (No. 88) and a sixth-rounder (No. 204). He then packaged that third-round pick (No. 88) and a sixth-rounder (No. 209) for Seattle’s slot at No. 92 overall and a fifth-round pick (No. 159). Hungry for another trade, Spielman traded out of No. 92 and move down a spot to 93rd, picking up a seventh-round pick (No. 217) from the New York Jets. And to finish off the night, he sent the No. 93 pick to Baltimore in exchange for No. 102, used to draft Mattison, as well as two sixth-round selections (No. 191, No. 193). Through three rounds of the NFL draft, the Vikings have selected three players — center Garrett Bradbury (18th overall) tight end Irv Smith Jr. (second round) and Mattison. Barring more trades, the Vikings own nine picks heading into Day 3: a fourth-rounder (No. 120), a fifth-rounder (No. 159), four sixth-round picks (No. 190, No. 191, No. 193, No. 204) and three in the seventh (No. 217, No. 247, No. 250). Day 3 of the NFL draft begins Saturday at 11 a.m.<doc-sep>Well, it was a lot earlier than most pundits thought but two rounds too late for us homers. Let’s just split the difference and say that Mattison—like a wizard—arrived just when he meant to. With the 102nd overall pick of the draft, the Minnesota Vikings liked what they saw enough with AM to give him the call, and considering a lot of folks thought Mattison was anywhere from a 5th rounder to an UDFA, Boise State fans (and I’m sure Mr. Mattison himself) couldn’t be happier. Mattison showed up big and strong at the NFL Combine, but left a little on the field by way of 40 time. Well, Alex erased spot-welded that chink in his armor by dropping his 40 time considerably at Boise State’s pro day, and Vikings GM Rick Spielman didn’t need any more convincing. “I know when we went through our meetings, our coaches and our scouts felt very strongly about what he can do and what he can bring to our football team.” - GM Rick Spielman on @AlexMattison22 — Minnesota Vikings (@Vikings) April 27, 2019 Mattison leaves the Broncos with 2,829 rushing yards to his name and 33 TDs—and a tidy 4.9 career YPC. So, it’s another early departure for Boise State that pays off, now we wait for Brett Rypien’s fate (and others) in the ensuing rounds. Never felt much of anything for the Minnesota Vikings, but they just landed on my “sometimes watch” list. Congrats, Viks. More importantly—congrats Alex! Go make Bronco Nation proud!<doc-sep>The Minnesota Vikings selected a running back in the third round of the 2019 NFL Draft. Here is what to expect from Alexander Mattison in the 2019 season. Entering the 2019 NFL Draft, there was a glaring need at running back for the Minnesota Vikings after Latavius Murray was signed by the New Orleans Saints and Roc Thomas found himself in legal trouble. The only real question was when the team would address that position during the draft. Well, it turns out Rick Spielman and the front office thought it was essential to grab a top prospect at the position and used a third-round pick to solidify the position. Dalvin Cook has shown some trouble to consistently stay on the field and will need to be sure they have someone to both fill in when needed or provide rest for their feature running back. And that’s exactly what they got. At pick 102 overall (Round 3 Pick 39), the Minnesota Vikings made the decision to select Boise State running back Alexander Mattison. But what should fans know about this player and what should they expect to see on the football field? Let’s discuss the good things about Mattison, the bad things about him, and what he could do for the Minnesota Vikings during the 2019 NFL season! *Note: Information from NFL.com and CBS Sports were used to compile player information as well as my evaluation from watching some videos on YouTube.<doc-sep>On Thursday, we looked at what the data told us about the Vikings’ first-round pick, center Garrett Bradbury from NC State . A remarkable athlete who was a bit longer in the tooth than a typical draft pick with average production, Bradbury represented a solid but not spectacular analytical profile. In Day 2, the Vikings found ways to make the analytical profile a little more interesting.Irv Smith Jr., TE, AlabamaIrv Smith represents a somewhat unique case when it comes to his analytical profile. The most appealing thing about Smith might be his age. He’s the youngest tight end in the draft, not turning 21 until training camp in August.<doc-sep>
After four trade-downs in the third round, the Vikings finally stayed put and selected a player with the 102nd pick in the 2019 NFL Draft. With the last pick in round three, the Vikings selected former Boise State running back Alexander Mattison. Mattison (5-11, 221) had 302 rushes for 1,415 yards with 17 touchdowns last season, ranking him in the top-10 nationally in each category. On top of his 4.7 yards per carry average, he also hauled in 27 passes for 173 yards. “We felt Mattison was just a unique back and a back that fit all the traits that we were looking for, especially with the run game that we’re going to have and the work horse that he can be,” said Vikings general manager Rick Spielman. It was made clear after the pick that the team views Mattison as a replacement for Latavius Murray. Murray joined the New Orleans Saints in free agency. Having running backs with different skill sets was apparently something the team was interested in replicating. Pairing the powerful Mattison with explosive starter Dalvin Cook will form a formidable one-two punch in the backfield. #Vikings GM Rick Spielman said Alexander Mattison has “the ability to go forward on contact a lot like Latavius did. His ability to catch the ball. His ability in pass protection… We wanted something similar to a Murray-type. And we felt that Alexander can definitely do that.” — Sean Borman (@SeanBormanNFL) April 27, 2019 According to Pro Football Focus, Mattison ranked 3rd in this draft class with 68 avoided tackles. Here’s his NFL.com draft profile overview: