Kyle
Hinton.
Kyle
Hinton.
Washburn
"Minnesota drafted Washburn's athletic Division II left tackle at No. 253 to develop at guard, and he spent his NFL time as a practice squad and depth interior lineman."Pre-draft read
Hinton was the left tackle in Washburn's offense, a 6-3, roughly 310-pounder who started his final 34 games for the Division II Ichabods. His primary trait was athleticism: a track All-American in the weight throw, he moved well in space, climbed to the second level and fit Minnesota's outside-zone scheme.
His secondary trait was power, with the explosive lower body that made him a school-record thrower. His height and arm length projected him inside to guard or center. His signature was a strong Kansas State pro day that earned him NFL attention despite playing against Division II competition.
Outside-zone offense that values an athletic interior lineman who can reach and climb to linebackers.
Year 1: practice squad developmental guard. Ceiling: backup guard and center in a zone scheme.
Power, gap-scheme offense that needs a big, long guard to drive defenders straight off the ball.
His movement skills fit best in a zone blocking system.
Kyle Hinton College Highlights | Minnesota Vikings 2020 NFL Draft Pick
His Washburn career before the draft.
Film Room: Does the Last Pick the Minnesota Vikings Made in the 2020 Draft Have the Most Upside?
Film study of his traits.
Player Spotlight: Kyle Hinton (2020 NFL Draft Prospect, OL, Washburn)
Pre-draft prospect spotlight.
Hinton projected as an athletic small-school tackle whose size and level of competition made him a late-round developmental interior lineman. Evaluators liked his movement skills, explosiveness and zone-scheme fit, but questioned how quickly he could adjust to NFL power and speed after dominating in Division II.
After playing seven games as a reserve in 2016, he started every game at left tackle for three seasons, 12 in 2017, 11 in 2018 and 10 in 2019. He was a four-time all-MIAA selection and three-time All-American, earning first-team All-America honors from d2football.com and second-team from the AFCA as a senior. He was also a second-team All-American in the weight throw. The flags were his Division II competition, his height and arm length for tackle, and the transition inside.
Most boards viewed him as a priority free agent with upside. Minnesota took him at No. 253 as a developmental guard for its zone scheme. The Vikings had scouted him since November and saw his movement skills, explosiveness and pro day testing as traits worth developing on the interior.
- 01
Athleticism
Moved well in space and climbed to the second level, a natural fit for an outside-zone blocking scheme.
- 02
Explosive power
A track All-American and school-record holder in the weight throw, with a strong, explosive lower body.
- 03
Durability
Started his final 34 games at left tackle for Washburn after playing seven games as a reserve in 2016.
- 04
Decorated résumé
Was a four-time all-MIAA selection and three-time All-American, including first-team honors as a senior.
- 05
Position flexibility
Played tackle in college but projected to guard or center, giving coaches flexibility on the interior.
- 01
Level of competition
Dominated Division II opponents, leaving questions about how he would handle NFL power and speed.
- 02
Size for tackle
At 6-3 with modest arm length he lacked the build to stay outside, forcing a move to guard or center.
- 03
Position change
Needed to learn interior angles, combination blocks and snapping after playing only tackle in college.
- 04
Development time
His technique needed refinement against NFL-caliber rushers, making him a longer-term project.
Relative Athletic Score (Kent Lee Platte) benchmarks combine/pro-day numbers against every measured prospect at the position since 1987. 10.00 is elite; 5.00 is average.
— No athletic data recorded
| Yr | Team | G |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | Washburn | 7 |
| 2017 | Washburn | 12 |
| 2018 | Washburn | 11 |
| 2019 | Washburn | 10 |
| Career | — | 40 |
Season starts are from the Vikings' draft bio; career games and starts (40 and 34) are from Washburn. The per-season starts add up to 33, one short of Washburn's total, so the school's career figure is kept and the gap is noted.
A dash means the figure is not published by a source we trust — never a zero we invented.
The realized outcome: a practice squad and depth interior lineman.
Small-school tackle who moved inside and became a starting guard.
Converted college tackle who bounced between rosters as a reserve.
Everything above is the pre-draft evaluation. This section is what actually happened — updated year over year.
Hinton joined Minnesota as a developmental interior lineman and spent his early professional seasons mostly on the practice squad, with the Vikings also experimenting with him at center. He never established himself as a regular contributor on an NFL offensive line and moved on after his Minnesota tenure.
In hindsight the pick returned little on-field value, which is common for any Division II lineman taken this late. The athleticism and zone-scheme fit evaluators liked earned him a developmental spot, but the level-of-competition and position-change concerns flagged before the draft proved hard to overcome. Moving from left tackle to guard and center while adjusting to NFL power was a steep climb. He remains one of seven Washburn players ever drafted, a real accomplishment for a small-school lineman, even though his NFL role stayed limited to depth and development on the practice squad.