Vikings trade down four times, use third-round pick to select RB Mattison

General manager Rick Spielman made his first trade of the 2019 NFL draft Friday night and made three consecutive trades minutes later, moving down four times in the third round.

In the end, the Minnesota Vikings used the final pick of the third round (No. 102 overall) to select former Boise State running back Alexander Mattison, while picking up a flurry of Day 3 selections in the process.

From 2016-18, Mattison rushed 581 times for 2,829 yards and 33 touchdowns. He became the first Boise State player to win the Mountain West rushing title last season with 1,415 yards, posting 100+ yards in six of 13 games, and ranked seventh in the nation with 17 touchdowns. Mattison averaged 4.9 yards per carry in his collegiate career.

At 5-foot-11 and 211 pounds, Mattison can also catch the ball out of the backfield. He tallied 60 receptions for 511 yards and one score in college.

Mattison joins Vikings running backs Dalvin Cook, Mike Boone, Roc Thomas and Ameer Abdullah on the roster.

Spielman originally traded the Vikings’ third-round pick (No. 81 overall) for Detroit’s third-rounder (No. 88) and a sixth-rounder (No. 204).

He then packaged that third-round pick (No. 88) and a sixth-rounder (No. 209) for Seattle’s slot at No. 92 overall and a fifth-round pick (No. 159).

Hungry for another trade, Spielman traded out of No. 92 and move down a spot to 93rd, picking up a seventh-round pick (No. 217) from the New York Jets. And to finish off the night, he sent the No. 93 pick to Baltimore in exchange for No. 102, used to draft Mattison, as well as two sixth-round selections (No. 191, No. 193).

Through three rounds of the NFL draft, the Vikings have selected three players — center Garrett Bradbury (18th overall) tight end Irv Smith Jr. (second round) and Mattison.

Barring more trades, the Vikings own nine picks heading into Day 3: a fourth-rounder (No. 120), a fifth-rounder (No. 159), four sixth-round picks (No. 190, No. 191, No. 193, No. 204) and three in the seventh (No. 217, No. 247, No. 250).

Day 3 of the NFL draft begins Saturday at 11 a.m.