Please explain Top 30 visits in detail. I hear we have prospects coming on a Top 30 visit. How many other teams will these players visit? Is it a more in-depth evaluation? What percentage of players do we draft using this process? Is this public info? It could help us determine players the other teams are targeting.
— Gerald Goblirsch
There were a few candidates to lead off this week's edition, but given the Vikings are hosting their Top 30 visit today and tomorrow, this seems like a great place to start.
Teams are allowed to invite up to 30 draft-eligible prospects for private, in-person visits at team headquarters. Players who attended nearby colleges or live near the team's headquarters are considered a local visit and do not count against the 30-player limit.
Players are allowed to visit multiple teams, but teams don't usually publicize their lists of invitees because they don't want to offer hints about how their draft boards might be shaping up. Some names, however, are reported (most likely with help of players' agents whose job it is to promote their clients).
I can relay last year's invitees included first-round pick Donovan Jackson, as well as undrafted free agent signees Silas Bolden, Max Brosmer, Zemaiah Vaughn and Ben Yurosek, so that's a pretty substantial success rate of coordinating invitees with players who might be added with opportunities to make the team (don't forget that the limited number of picks in last year's draft placed extra emphasis on mining UDFAs) or at least join the practice squad. Levi Drake Rodriguez, a seventh-round find in 2024, was among the Vikings Top 30 guests that year.
The Vikings have emphasized trying to have as many invitees visit simultaneously for efficiency during a busy time, but occasionally there are some scheduling conflicts if a player has already committed to a visit with another team. There's also possibly value to be had in observing how each player interacts with other invitees.
Sometimes the motivation is wanting to have more time to build on prior interactions at a college all-star game or the combine; other times it might be utilizing the opportunity to converse with a player the team has not been able to connect with at those other pre-draft events. Obtaining more medical information can play a role, and so can wanting to inquire more about players' journeys so far. The past few years of COVID-19 policies extending eligibility windows and NIL (Name, Image & Likeness) deals prompting more transfers have presented unique situations for college scouting departments.
For the prospects, it's almost like a job interview for a position that may or may not exist by the end of the month.
For the teams, it's an opportunity to layer in redundancy (either to continue an established conversation or be prepared for multiple paths to rounding out the roster).
The process seems incredibly valuable and a welcome milestone bringing the draft closer to fruition.