The Verdict 's in — Dwayne Bowe Was a Steal

Todd McShay and Scouts Inc. recently did their midseason 2007 NFL Draft re-draft. With Purple Jesus off the board, check out who they took for the Vikes at with the seventh pick…

7. Minnesota Vikings —

Dwayne Bowe, WR, LSU

Original pick: Adrian Peterson, RB, Oklahoma

You would be hard-pressed to find a better pick than Minnesota’s original selection of Peterson at No. 7, but knowing what we know now the only way the Vikings could get their hands on him right now would be to trade up. And while Minnesota’s biggest weakness is at quarterback, the problem is that no signal-caller available would be worthy of the No. 7 pick, then or now. So with the Vikings needing to do something to address the 30th-ranked passing game in the league Bowe looks like the best fit. It would have seemed crazy at the time, but Bowe was the No. 2 receiver (behind Calvin Johnson) on our draft-day board and is currently the leading receiver among all rookies even after a slow start with the Chiefs due to a lengthy holdout.

He pulled his hammy last week, which limited his effectiveness. But, like I said about Beasley, the kid is special. He’s just getting started, too. Watch out, Chump, I mean Champ.

• Russell still the No. 1 for Oakland; Peterson jumps to No. 3 – ESPN