As the Vikings navigated free agency and the 2026 NFL Draft, bringing in players from the pro and college ranks, we've taken a deeper look at newcomers' games — the ways they've stood out; why their fit with Minnesota makes sense; and what was said about them in early evaluations, and more recently. We previously studied free-agent signings Kyler Murray, James Pierre and Jauan Jennings. Now, the club's Top 5 draft picks: Caleb Banks, Jake Golday, Domonique Orange, Caleb Tiernan and Jakobe Thomas. These features are intended to present the skills and backgrounds of players new to the Vikings fan base.

Overview

With Round 2 of the draft underway on a Friday night toward the end of April, the Vikings dealt former team captain and Pro Bowl outside linebacker Jonathan Greenard to the Eagles in exchange for a pair of third-round picks — one this year, one the next. Only a few hours later, using half of the capital acquired from Philadelphia, the team selected safety Jakobe Thomas out of Miami with the 98^th selection, right after taking Tiernan at 97. Thomas was the fourth defender drafted by Minnesota among its five Top 100 choices this cycle, and the sixth at his position, following Caleb Downs (11^th), Dillon Thieneman (25^th), Emmanuel McNeil-Warren (58^th), Bud Clark (64^th) and A.J. Haulcy (78^th). Thomas played just one season on the Hurricanes but he made it count tenfold, garnering single-season highs in tackles (76), interceptions (five) and sacks (3.5). His versatility was leveraged by Defensive Coordinator Corey Hetherman (former Gophers DC) — 354 free safety snaps, 283 in the box, 98 at slot cornerback and 36 on the line of scrimmage, per Pro Football Focus — and his dynamism was infinitely important to Miami consummating its first national championship game appearance since 2003. Thomas initially developed at Middle Tennessee State from 2021-23 and transferred to Tennessee in 2024. Across 53 collegiate games, he tallied 206 tackles and nine INTs (his first four in '22), including two returned for touchdowns.

The Tullahoma, Tennessee, native Thomas is a smidge over 6-foot-1 and weighs 211 pounds. He has the mentality and size to withstand and enforce contact anywhere on the field, as well as an appreciation for physicality that really can't be coached. When Thomas arrived for Vikings Rookie Minicamp in May, he mentioned during an interview with Vikings.com that iconic safeties Kam Chancellor and Troy Polamalu were two players he especially loved to watch. A younger version of Thomas likely would "be screaming" about him ending up in Minnesota, he shared, "because I used to walk around my house every day in an Adrian Peterson jersey." Furthermore, Thomas described his phone call on draft day as "the best feeling ever" and emphasized he was "smiling cheek-to-cheek for the next 7 hours" after speaking with coaches.

One of nine Miami players drafted this year, Thomas is the 17^th 'Canes product ever picked by the Vikings — first in the third round, by the way — and the first since receiver K.J. Osborn in the fifth round in 2020.

Flashing on film

Doing our best to paint a picture of Thomas, here's proof of his powers as a ravenous tackler, cerebral route jumper and mismatch on blitzes — an outright force to be reckoned with no matter his alignment.

1. Read & React

Thomas was recognized as an All-ACC Second-Team player in 2025, and he took home Defensive MVP honors in the Fiesta Bowl after recording two pass breakups and five tackles against Mississippi. His performance versus the Rebels in the College Football Playoff Semifinal Round was personal — Thomas was born in Starkville, Mississippi — and helped the Canes advance to the natty. There's an old saying about the timeliness of Thomas' impact that is commonly attributed to legendary Miami WR Santana Moss but actually predates him and was articulated by former Canes LB Rohan Marley (yes, a son of Bob) in a 1994 contest (heard around the 10:45 timestamp of this reel): Big-time players make big-time plays.

In a big-time game and big-time moment, Mississippi marched past midfield on its first possession of the second half thanks to 21- and 12-yard completions on consecutive snaps. On the latter, Thomas logged a tackle, and on the subsequent play, he deleted a quick-hitter intended for 33^rd overall pick De'Zhaun Stribling. The PBU stifled Rebels momentum, spurred two more misfires and a failed 51-yard FG attempt.

The rep encapsulated what Thomas does best — break on the football. Lined up at first as a single-high safety in a Cover 3 design, he traded responsibilities with the opposite safety and started to creep forward when a player motioned to his side and switched the formation from 3x1 to 2x2. During the re-shuffling, Thomas kept QB Trinidad Chambliss in his vision. His eyes led him to the action like Waze to a destination. In succession, Thomas watched Chambliss fork a shotgun snap, fake a handoff and position his feet to throw quickly to his left. Chambliss spotted Miami's cornerback in a fast backpedal (to be fair, Stribling went sub-4.4 in the 40-yard dash at the combine) and wanted his target on a 5-yard hitch route. He seemed to have him, except Thomas darted into the frame and in front of Stribling. The end result? A drop, but not by the receiver. Thomas got credit for a fantastic knockdown but should have intercepted it and taken it the distance. That's all right. There's an old saying … DBs are just receivers who can't catch. In Thomas' defense, however, he tied for seventh nationally last season with a full hand of interceptions.

2. Seeing Orange

In a November rout of Syracuse last season in Miami Gardens, Thomas had a glitchy interception, in which he basketed an off-target pass that deflected off a fallen receiver but didn't realize right away that the ball never touched the ground. After teammates witnessed it and reacted with confidence, Thomas ripped off a 10-yard return, cutting and weaving, and dusting defenders to the other side of the field. True to form, it was a lot of fun. Moreover, the takeaway augmented a sack by Thomas on the prior play.

On a first-and-10 at Syracuse's 25 — the first play of the series — Thomas stood a yard outside the left hashes at the 35 and shifted gears. From a walk to a build-up run to a 100-mph blitz, Thomas screamed off the edge with impeccable timing. The Orange had superior numbers — eight players reserved to protect against five rushers — but they mistakenly tasked a running back with blocking Thomas. It was a clearcut personnel advantage for the Canes. Thomas shimmied and trucked the back like a ball carrier. His momentum ultimately carried him to 'Cuse QB Rickie Collins, who faced extreme duress off the other edge (15^th overall pick Rueben Bain, Jr., was the pursuant). Before Bain gobbled up Collins, Thomas dove and sacked him by his shoestrings. It was five seconds of defensive bliss — an awesome sampling of Thomas winning at all costs — and one of his single-game, career-high three pressures, according to PFF.

3. Scramble shutdown

Early in the second half of Miami's annihilation of in-state challenger South Florida last year, there was an upheaval on top of the "U" logo at midfield. Former Bulls dual-threat QB Byrum Brown, who passed for 3,000-plus yards and rushed for more than 1,000 in 2025 and transferred to Auburn, bolted from the pocket and tried to drop Thomas to the grass with a hard-stop juke move. It didn't fool the safety. From an underneath coverage zone, Thomas noticed Brown's intent, sprinted to meet him and etched in tape a flawless sequence of technique. In a flash, Thomas came to balance and sprang through the soles of his cleats. He planted his helmet on the rock, which was stashed willy-nilly in Brown's right elbow, and jarred it loose. As punctual as Thomas, fellow Canes flocked to and covered up the football. All in all, it's an elite example of the aggression and sound fundamentals coveted by Defensive Coordinator Brian Flores.

Fitting with Minnesota

One layer of Thomas fitting in nicely on the Vikings defense is the aforementioned versatility that Hetherman tapped into via blitzes, disguised coverages and fluid alignments. Now, Flores is the beneficiary of Thomas' play style — creating havoc — and the same is true for Thomas; he's a perfect match, at least in theory, for Flo's unit, which wants to dictate terms and reduce opponent play-call menus. Another piece of the pie is Minnesota's current safeties room, headlined by Joshua Metellus — a preceptor who knows the ins and outs of being versatile in this defense — Theo Jackson and Jay Ward.

That's to say, Thomas improves the defensive backfield depth — with or without franchise icon and fellow Tennessean Harrison Smith, aka "The Hitman," who hasn't determined, yet, if he will retire or re-sign with the club for his 15^th season — and he has a prime role model in Metellus, who began his career as an ace on special teams but trails just Byron Murphy, Jr., by 90 snaps for the most playing time on defense since Flores entered the picture three years ago. With Thomas in the safeties room, the Vikings can be even more interchangeable with their personnel; that's significant for a million and one reasons, but the chief takeaway is Thomas' attacking mindset is in alignment with Flores' attacking philosophy.

Evaluation station

In addition to noting his penchant for playing forward and the potential to develop into a starter in an overview of Thomas, Lance Zierlein of NFL.com jotted down seven strengths that grabbed our attention:

• Disguises intentions, dropping down late as an add-on defender.
• Times up snap count to rocket off the edge and into the backfield.
• Ready and willing to explode into lead blocks.
• Triggers from depth to meet the action near the line.
• Career production includes 16 pass breakups and nine interceptions.
• Above-average range and reaction as short-zone defender.
• Sees block and route development with impressive peripheral vision.

Similarly, The Athletic's Dane Brugler included these strengths in his writeup of Thomas in “The Beast”:

• Runs the alley with conviction and is fearless throwing his body around.
• Miami liked to blitz the safeties, and Thomas flourished in this area.
• Described as "coachable" and someone who "wants to be great" by NFL scouts.

Timeline highlights

One bonus thought

There are safety traits that are accepted as pillars of the position — range, tackling, ball skills and instincts — that help scouts tier prospects. Then there are safety traits that are fundamental to excelling in specific systems. The one taught by Flores, first and foremost, hinges on FBI (football intelligence) and communication. Since safeties normally align as the deepest players on the field and by nature are afforded the most comprehensive look at an offense — every motion, audible and body twitch — it's logical for them to be a mouthpiece for the unit. The great ones are informed energy spreaders, guys who relay signals from the sideline and echo information that a Green Dot player receives in his helmet.

A first impression of Thomas indicates that he has this communicatory ability. He is outwardly confident — not hard to see it comes from within him, either — and is über-active on tape. His positional flexibility lends itself to interacting with different position groups, as well, which could enhance his all-11 interface.

See the Vikings 2026 Schedule.

View future opponents for the Vikings.

Buy single game tickets.

Download the official Vikings App.

See more about the 2028 NFL Draft in Minnesota.