Viktor
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- Mar 19, 2019
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EAGAN, Minn. — The Vikings have locked up their 2019 first-round pick.
Minnesota announced Tuesday that the team has signed center Garrett Bradbury, the 18th overall selection in the 2019 NFL Draft.
“It’s awesome to get it done,” Bradbury said. “It’s done … I’m a Viking.
“It’s good that I can put this to rest and get back to football,” Bradbury added.
Bradbury is the 11th of 12 Vikings draft picks to sign this month, inking his deal less than three weeks after Minnesota made him the first interior offensive lineman selected in the first round since Hall of Famer Randall McDaniel in 1988.
Minnesota snagged Bradbury in the first round after he won the Rimington Trophy in 2018, an award given to the nation’s best center.
Bradbury began his college career as a tight end and moved to the defensive line before eventually settling in on the offensive line.
He played left guard in 2016 before moving to center for the final two seasons of his college career.
The North Carolina native started the final 39 games of his career, including 13 in 2018 when he
earned First-Team All-ACC honors as a senior.
Vikings General Manager Rick Spielman touted Bradbury’s athleticism and football IQ as key reasons why Minnesota took him in the first round.
“This was one of the guys that we had targeted because of his natural athletic ability, his strength he plays with,” Spielman said. “[He] fits everything from the criteria standpoint, not only positionally and schematically but also the character, the passion for the game, the smarts, everything that we look for as we build this offensive line.”
Bradbury was on the field for 457 pass attempts during the regular season for North Carolina State in 2018. He was charged with just two pressures allowed and didn’t give up a single sack.
Bradbury looked the part of a first-round pick when he was in Minnesota for rookie minicamp earlier this month.
He said he has enjoyed working with Minnesota’s veteran players the past two days as the team prepares to open Organized Team Activity practices next week.
“It’s been good just learning them and learning the system,” Bradbury said. “It’s good to hear about their experience … I’ve got a lot to learn from them.”