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Former Vikings GM Jeff Diamond Offers His Take on Kwesi Adofo-Mensah
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- Former Vikings GM Jeff Diamond Offers His Take on Kwesi Adofo-Mensah
Matt Krohn-USA TODAY Sports
As the Vikings announced the Kwesi Adofo-Mensah surprise firing last Friday, I quickly asked, "How is this going to work without a new GM in place through the critical upcoming period of offseason team building via free agency and the draft?"
Owners Mark and Zygi Wilf said executive V.P. of football operations Rob Brzezinski will lead the team's operations through the draft. So will Brzezinski make the final call on free-agent cuts, restructures, signings, and draft choices?
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Or will head coach Kevin O'Connell play a larger role in the decision-making process along with DC Brian Flores, who we know has had a major impact on key defensive free agent signings, such as home-run hits Andrew Van Ginkel , Jonathan Greenard , and Blake Cashman in 2024?
Diamond's Perspective on the Vikings' Seismic Move
How it's going to work hasn't been a focus for local media and fans as much as asking why Adofo-Mensah's contract was extended last year and what changed the Wilfs' thinking on their GM.
I think a few things stuck in the Vikings owners' minds and tipped the scales against Adofo-Mensah. And it was a logical decision for the Wilfs to make, except it probably would have been beneficial to make the move right after the season to get the new hire in place now, unless their top choice is still under contract elsewhere. That's the situation if the Wilfs want to bring back current Broncos GM George Paton, a former Vikings assistant GM, who is not being extended by Denver and is in the last year of his contract.
Minnesota Vikings general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah looks on from the sideline during a matchup with the New York Giants, Dec 21, 2025, as Minnesota continued navigating the latter portion of the season. Adofo-Mensah, hired in 2022, has overseen the franchise's roster construction and long-term vision following the departure of former general manager Rick Spielman. Mandatory Credit: VikingzFanPage–Twitter
As for the major miscues by Adofo-Mensah that cost him his job, first there was the botched 2022 draft that left the Vikings without starters other than third receiver Jalen Nailor after their top three picks—safety Lewis Cine , corner Andrew Booth, and guard Ed Ingram —all were gone by the start of last season.
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Meanwhile, several excellent players the Vikings could have picked in the 2022 first round were missed out on after trading out of the No. 12 spot down to No. 32, including three-time Ravens all-pro safety Kyle Hamilton , two-time Chiefs all-pro corner Trent McDuffie , three-time Ravens Pro Bowl center Tyler Linderbaum , and Lions wide receiver Jameson Williams (twice a 1,000-plus yard receiver), who the Lions grabbed after Adofo-Mensah made a rare in-division trade with the pick.
Adofo-Mensah's follow-up drafts in 2023 and 2024 have yielded only a few starters and, so far, only a few true impact players, including WR Jordan Addison , all-pro kicker Will Reichard , and emerging edge rusher Dallas Turner . Of course, the jury is still out on QB J.J. McCarthy , which leads us to the next big mistake on Adofo-Mensah's watch: the messed-up No. 2 QB situation ( Sam Howell , Carson Wentz , and Max Brosmer ) that kept the Vikings out of this past postseason.
Daniel Jones should've been given an offer he couldn't refuse after Sam Darnold wasn't franchise-tagged and left for future Super Bowl glory in Seattle . And in retrospect, a one-year deal for Aaron Rodgers , who wanted to sign here, would've gotten the Vikings to at least 10 wins after he played reasonably well for a playoff team in Pittsburgh . There were several better options than what actually happened.
Free agent signings worked out great for Adofo-Mensah and the team in the 14-win 2024 season, but not so well in 2025, especially at quarterback and center, where Ryan Kelly arrived with a sizable contract and an injury history (missing nine games with three concussions, which discombobulated the Vikings' interior offensive line).
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Who makes the final call in this interim period?
Back to the initial question I raised: I believe it will be a consensus operation until the new GM is hired, and even after a new GM is in place, that person will seek consensus in major football decisions involving player acquisition.
In my many years as Vikings GM and Titans President, I had the power to decide on player personnel moves involving free agency, the draft, and trades. But I trusted the input I received from our coaches and player personnel departments during those years when the Vikings and Titans were playoff teams in 10 of 12 seasons and Super Bowl contenders most of those years.
Minnesota Vikings head coach Kevin O'Connell watches the field during pregame moments at U.S. Bank Stadium, with the December 16, 2024 matchup against the Chicago Bears setting the stage for a late-season divisional test as Minnesota prepared its game plan and sideline communication ahead of kickoff in Minneapolis. Mandatory Credit: Jeffrey Becker-Imagn Images.
As we discussed, made our plans for free agency, and lined up our draft boards, we reached consensus on the direction we wanted to go in almost every case, so I only had to break a tie a couple of times. It probably won't happen as I expect consensus, but if there is a disagreement on a player personnel matter before a new GM is hired, will it be Brzezinski or O'Connell who has the final say?
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I believe the Vikings operated with a consensus system with Adofo-Mensah in charge, and that's how I see things playing out this offseason. The GM gets the credit or the blame in player acquisition, but there are a lot of cooks in the kitchen.
O'Connell and Flores have had significant input, and I expect them to play even larger roles, with O'Connell obviously having the most impact alongside Brzezinski during this interim period. There will likely be more changes in the player personnel department this year, especially after the draft, following Adofo-Mensah's departure. There has to be an uneasiness among the staff at this time.
For now, many staff members will provide input as they work with Brzezinski, O'Connell, Flores, and the rest of the coaching staff while the team identifies players to be retained or released, free-agent and trade targets, and prepares the draft board with grades for the incoming draft class.
This group of mostly behind-the-scenes staffers includes: Assistant GM Ryan Grigson (a former Colts GM), Assistant GM Demitrius Washington, Director of Player Personnel Ryan Monnens, Assistant Player Personnel Director Chisom Opara, Director of Pro Personnel Sam DeLuca, Senior Personnel Exec Jamaal Stephenson, and Director of College Scouting Mike Sholiton.
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It's obvious that this upcoming free agency and draft are extremely important for a team that must add young, affordable talent, which is usually the case for every team. With injuries so prevalent in the NFL, especially among older free agents such as Kelly, the draft has to be the lifeblood of a team, with free agency the vehicle to augment the draft in roster building.
The Wilfs
Unfortunately for Adofo-Mensah, free agency with its much higher salary cap cost took on too much importance due to not enough draft picks hitting (only four full-time starters last season were from Adofo-Mensah's 2022-2025 draft classes—Nailor (2022 sixth round who as third WR is a virtual starter), Addison (2023 No. 1), McCarthy (2024 No. 1–10 starts as injuries cost him seven games) and left guard Donovan Jackson (2025 No. 1).
Turner (second No. 1 in 2024) started 10 games due to time missed by starters Van Ginkel and Greenard, but Turner clearly is a future starter and potential star. And Reichard was an excellent sixth-round pick in 2024.
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There just aren't enough of the second, third, fourth, and fifth round picks on the current roster that provide starters and depth players on NFL teams, so they don't have to be overly reliant on filling holes in free agency or keeping so many undrafted players.
The Vikings' NFC North rival teams—especially the Packers and Lions—have fared much better in recent drafts. The Vikings are much better stocked with picks this April compared to recent years. They currently have eight picks, including the top three rounds (with No. 18 overall in the first round), and will likely gain one or two compensatory picks with a fourth-rounder likely for the Sam Darnold loss in last year's free agency and possibly another pick or two for players such as Cam Bynum and Daniel Jone,s who both signed with the Colts.
It all shapes up as a fascinating time for the Vikings organization, with a ton of pressure on the Vikings football people to get it right with the roster over the next several months, as the Wilfs watch closely and prepare to decide on the next Vikings GM.
Jeff's Super Bowl Pick
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I like the leaders of both the Seahawks and Patriots. I've gotten to know Seattle GM John Schneider over the years, and he's a good guy who certainly ranks among the league's premier GMs. When I left the Vikings and before joining the Titans as team president, I interviewed for the Patriots GM job with owners Robert and Jonathan Kraft, whom I knew well from our years in the league. I like them both, and their track record of six Super Bowl titles speaks to their success as owners.
The tipping point for me in who I'm rooting for on Super Sunday is Sam Darnold. Although the Vikings let him walk, which made sense after his flop in the final two games last season, how can you not hope for the culmination of Darnold's rags-to-riches career journey that has taken him from Jets ' first-round bust to Super Bowl QB for the NFC champs? Darnold comes off a tremendous game with 346 passing yards and three TDs in the win over the Rams , who ended his Vikings season in last year's playoffs.
Nov 16, 2025; Inglewood, California, USA; Seattle Seahawks wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba (11) makes a one handed catch against Los Angeles Rams cornerback Darious Williams (31) during the first half at SoFi Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images
Pats QB Drake Maye is also a great story, the third overall pick in the 2024 draft, who has reached the Super Bowl before the two QBs selected before him— Caleb Williams and Jayden Daniels . Maye had a lackluster rookie season, going 3-9 as a starter, but rebounded with an outstanding second season, leading the Patriots to a 17-3 record while posting an NFL-best passer rating of 113.5. He's been less effective in the playoffs, but nasty weather has made it difficult, and his running has still been impactful.
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Both QBs are supported by run games and defenses that ranked in the top 10 in each category for both teams during the regular season and have continued to perform well in the playoffs.
I'm excited to watch how Darnold and Maye perform on the Super Bowl stage, along with some exciting matchups such as Seattle all-pro WR Jaxon Smith-Njigba against New England 's Pro Bowl corner Christian Gonzalez , and ex-Viking and current Pats leading WR Stefon Diggs against Seahawks Pro Bowl CB Devon Witherspoon .
Other key things to watch are whether the Patriots D led up front by stout DTs Milton Williams and Christian Barmore can contain excellent Seahawks RB Kenneth Walker and pressure Darnold into turnovers, and seeing if the Seattle defense led by vet D-linemen Leonard Williams and DeMarcus Lawrence can stop the Pats' run game, and if star LB Ernest Jones can keep Maye from key runs.
I think Pro Bowl kick returner Rashid Shaheed gives Seattle an edge on special teams.
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Both teams have had unexpected success after missing the playoffs last year (which bodes well for teams such as the Vikings, who hope to have turnaround seasons in 2026). In the final analysis, I think Seattle is the better team, and I'm picking the Seahawks 27-23 in an exciting Super Bowl.
Next Week: I'll give my review of the Vikings' coaching staff moves, of which there have been quite a few in the last couple weeks and probably a few more coming by next week, but the good news for the team is the principal leaders of the coaching staff—KOC and B-Flo—remain in place. I'll also give my reactions to Super Bowl Sunday.
