Vikings Grab LB in Round 2

By Matt Schauf | Updated on Sat, Apr 25 2026 12:56 AM UTC

The Vikings spent a second-round pick on Cincinnati LB Jake Golday in the NFL Draft. Golday spent the past two years starting for the Bearcats after opening his college run with three seasons at Central Arkansas.

2026 Fantasy Football Impact

Golday performed well in coverage across his starting time and flashed some pass-rush juice. He doesn't present a high ceiling in that area but managed 5 sacks over the past two years.

Golday looks likely to sit third among Vikings LBs this season. They return Blake Cashman and re-signed Eric Wilson at the start of free agency this offseason.

Bet on reserve duty for the rookie, barring injury to one of those starters.

Dynasty Impact

The second-round draft capital indicates the Vikings hope to get Golday into the starting lineup before too long. If you play in a deep enough league for patience to make sense on an upside LB, then he'll be a fine target later in your rookie draft.

Matt Schauf, Editor

Matt has earned two Fantasy Pros accuracy awards for IDP rankings and won thousands of dollars as a player across best ball, dynasty, and high-stakes fantasy formats. He has been creating fantasy football content for more than 20 years, with work featured by Sporting News, Rotoworld, Athlon, Sirius XM, and others. He's been with Draft Sharks since 2011.