Rick Spielman, the team's vice president of player personnel, said last week that the Vikings had put a "red dot" on 78 players, meaning that for either reasons related to their physical health or something in their background the Vikings will not consider taking them under any circumstance.

Spielman, of course, did not reveal any names on that list. One possibility could be Florida wide receiver Percy Harvin, who has been projected to go to the Vikings with the 22nd overall pick in many mock drafts.

There have been some question marks regarding Harvin's durability and some off-field issues from back in high school.

While Harvin would add an explosive presence to the Vikings if they did take him with their first-round pick, it appears more likely Minnesota will use that selection on an offensive tackle.

The Vikings have a real need at right tackle and this draft is deep with quality players at tackle. Many of them, however, will be gone by the time the second round starts and waiting could prove to be a bad idea.

While it seems very unlikely the Vikings would try to move up in the draft, there is a chance they could look to stockpile additional picks by dropping down a few selections.

One name that continues to come up in relation to Minnesota is Arizona's Eben Britton, who is 6-6, 310 pounds. The Vikings would love to see Mississippi tackle Michael Oher fall to them, which is a possibility.

Spielman, however, said there remain multiple draft scenarios that would make the Vikings happy.

"To be honest with you we're going to be looking at five or six names that we're going to sift out over these next two weeks at that No. 22 spot," Spielman said before adding "there are probably two or three guys there that I would say, 'If he's there that he's one of those guys we would take right now.'"

TEAM NEEDS: Offensive right tackle, cornerback, wide receiver, center.

RT -- Ryan Cook was the starter for most of last season but the converted center struggled with mental and physical mistakes and lost his job to veteran Artis Hicks at one point. The Vikings need to find some stability at this position and with a draft deep at the tackle position, this would seem to be a good time to address the need. The Vikings were set to go after Carolina's Jordan Gross and Miami's Vernon Carey but neither reached free agency and Minnesota did not appear to have any real interest in the free agents who did hit the market.

CB -- Starting right corner Cedric Griffin recently signed a five-year contract extension and the Vikings are working on an extension for veteran left corner Antoine Winfield, who is entering the final season of his contract. But the Vikings could use a potential starter behind those two and right now the team mostly has players who would be considered more suited to a role in the nickel (Charles Gordon, Karl Paymah and Benny Sapp). Meanwhile, Marcus McCauley, a third-round pick in 2007, saw his playing time decrease dramatically in 2008 and his roster spot appears to be anything but secure. Winfield will be entering his 11th season in 2009 and even if he gets a contract extension the Vikings need to plan for the future.

WR -- The Vikings made a big run at T.J. Houshmandzadeh but the free agent decided to sign with Seattle. The Vikings have a deep threat in Bernard Berrian and a solid possession guy in Bobby Wade but after that there are concerns. Sidney Rice has struggled with injuries and there are questions about whether Aundrae Allison will even make the roster in 2009. This could open the door for a fresh face to enter the picture, especially if that player has the ability to return punts and kicks. Darius Reynaud, who was signed as an undrafted free agent last year, showed some ability on kick returns before getting injured.

C -- The departure of veteran Matt Birk makes 2008 sixth-round pick John Sullivan the likely starter entering training camp. But the Vikings wouldn't mind creating competition for Sullivan. Coach Brad Childress has said that Anthony Herrera could play center, but it's likely the team would like to leave him as its starting right guard. There also is a possibility that Ryan Cook could be moved back to that spot but there is some question about how good of fit the 6-6 Cook would be playing center in the NFL. It's unlikely the Vikings would grab a center early but this area could be addressed on the second day.