Minnesota Vikings trade up to select Clemson cornerback Andrew Booth in 2022 NFL Draft

After putting together two strong seasons at Clemson, cornerback Andrew Booth is now a second-round pick – being selected No. 42 overall by the Minnesota Vikings on Friday night in the 2022 NFL Draft.

Minnesota traded up from No. 53, sending that pick, the No. 77 and No. 182 pick to the Indianapolis Colts for the No. 42 and No. 144 picks to draft booth.

Booth played a significant role on the defensive side of the ball for the Tigers in 2020 and 2021, recording 64 total tackles, five interceptions, a sack and a fumble recovery. The 2021 campaign was Booth’s best yet, as he made 37 tackles – including 26 solo – to go along with three interceptions.

A former On3 Consensus five-star recruit out of the Class of 2019, Booth was ranked as the No. 2 cornerback in the country and the 27th-best overall prospect in the recruiting class. He held scholarship offers from a number of top-tier programs coming out of Archer (Ga.) High School – including Notre Dame, Alabama, Georgia and Mississippi State – before choosing to play at Clemson.

Looking at his stats from last season, Booth – a 6-foot, 200-pound defender – tallied eight tackles in a win over Boston College on Oct. 2 and picked off a pair of passes in a victory against South Carolina on Nov. 27. Over his three seasons at Clemson, Booth played in 25 games – meaning he brings plenty of experience to the Vikings.

What NFL draft analysts are saying about Andrew Booth

NFL.com’s Lance Zierlein broke down what Booth can bring to the NFL in his recent scout of the cornerback’s draft profile. The analyst compared the former Clemson star to Jackrabbit Jenkins, who is currently an NFL free-agent cornerback.

“A press/zone combo corner with good size and length, Booth plays with an urgent, competitive nature,” Zierlein said. “He has the strength, balance and foot agility to press and slow the release. He has limited starting experience, though. He will need more development to prevent route specialists from manipulating his feet and hips. Booth has the ball-tracking and play strength to find and maintain top-dog positioning through catch tries.

“He’s more effective in off coverage underneath than tight man. He needs to play more football, but his ball-hawking instincts, burst to close and toughness in run support will be very appealing for zone teams looking for an upgrade at cornerback.”