One Big Vikings Offseason Domino Has Yet to Fall
The Minnesota Vikings have two major offseason dominoes already down: extending head coach Kevin O’Connell for the long haul and [presumably] welcoming defensive coordinator Brian Flores back after the skipper did not earn a head coach job this cycle.
One Big Vikings Offseason Domino Has Yet to Fall
But what about general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah?
When word of O’Connell’s extension hit national airwaves about two weeks ago, Adofo-Mensah’s accompanying extension was supposed to be a no-brainer.
It just hasn’t been finalized or announced yet.
NFL Network’s Tom Peliserro tweeted on January 21st, “The Vikings and coach Kevin O’Connell have agreed to terms on a multi-year contract extension, sources tell me and Ian Rapoport. This was Minnesota’s priority and conversations started immediately after the season. Still only 39, O’Connell isn’t going anywhere.”
Pelissero let that bombshell sink in for one minute — one actual minute — and retweeted the same tweet with more clarity, “Conversations also are underway on an extension for Vikings GM Kwesi Adofo-Mensah. Minnesota is 34-17 since they took over in 2022 and the plan is to keep the braintrust together.”
So, at the time, Adofo-Mensah’s new deal could’ve been announced in mere minutes or days. That hasn’t happened, at least not yet. Together, via the record mentioned by Pelissero, the Vikings have the NFL’s sixth-best record since the start of 2022 under Adofo-Mensah’s general management.
On the whole, most Vikings fans support Adofo-Mensah’s prolonged stay in the Twin Cities. He onboarded a woefully sketchy 2022 draft class during his first few months on the job but has since recovered by finding rookies like Jordan Addison, Ivan Pace Jr., Mekhi Blackmon, J.J. McCarthy, and Dallas Turner. The young executive also knocked 2024 free agency out of the park, signing Andrew Van Ginkel, Jonathan Greenard, Blake Cashman, Aaron Jones, and Sam Darnold, among others.
Adofo-Mensah said about an extension a couple of days after the Vikings lost in the postseason, “They expressed to me their appreciation for Kevin and I’s leadership, and they’re really supportive of us. It’s my third year, I always think back to the unbelievable opportunity that they gave me. I’ve always dreamt of being a general manager in an organization that’s trying to do the thing they haven’t done before, and I still have visions — I wake up in the morning and think of what that could be like.”
“And so I’m always going to go back to that, the gratitude that I have for them and that I want to be the general manager going forward … I’m unbelievably grateful to be the general manager of the Vikings, and I want to continue to be. So, I’m going to leave this office and keep being the general manager of the Vikings and work hard to try to improve this team, and whatever comes to the future, will come,” Adofo-Mensah added about the upcoming extension.
The young executive will likely be extended soon — it’s just a little odd that it didn’t directly coincide with O’Connell’s new contract.
Dustin Baker is a political scientist who graduated from the University of Minnesota in 2007. Subscribe to his daily YouTube Channel, VikesNow. The show features guests, analysis, and opinion on all things related to the purple team, with 4-7 episodes per week. His MIN obsession dates back to 1996. Listed guilty pleasures: Peanut Butter Ice Cream, ‘The Sopranos,’ Basset Hounds, and The Doors (the band). He follows the NBA as closely as the NFL.
All statistics provided by Pro Football Reference / Stathead; all contractual information provided by OverTheCap.com.
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