Troy Dye became the second Oregon player off the board on Saturday morning, going No. 132 overall to the Minnesota Vikings.

It was a long wait for the next Duck to follow Justin Herbert off the board, but in the middle of Round 4, Dye officially became that guy. He’ll join Dillon Mitchell, his teammate of three years at Oregon, in Minnesota.

He exploded onto the scene in his first collegiate game against UC Davis in 2016 to the tune of 11 tackles and 4.5 tackles for loss. From there, he went on to anchor an Oregon defense that substantially improved each year, and Dye was arguably the most important player on every one of those defenses. 

At 6-foot-3, 231 lbs, he’s on the small side for NFL linebackers, but his speed and nose for the ball will play well in the modern, spaced-out NFL game. As a lightly recruited three-star prospect leaving college as one of the great defensive players in Oregon program history, he’s no stranger to exceeding expectations. 

As a Day 3 pick in the NFL Draft, he’ll have to prove once again that he’s a difference maker.