The Minnesota Vikings broke up with Kwesi Adofo-Mensah because of his poor draft track record, but also in part due to a reported rift among the staff. After the split, ownership has repeatedly said that the new general manager will need to be a leader and come from a more traditional football background.
On the surface, those ideals seem to be prominent focuses in the hiring process. Still, if you squint, Minnesota’s new partner may not be the drastic change from their ex that people expected.
On Wednesday, the Vikings reportedly had narrowed their GM search down to five candidates, including interim general manager Rob Brzezinski. And while ownership made a big deal about hiring a search firm to scour the edges of the Earth for the next general manager of the Minnesota Vikings, the final result was that four of the top five candidates had current or previous direct ties to the team.
Seattle Seahawks assistant GM Nolan Teasley is the only finalist without any direct ties to the franchise. The remaining four either worked for the Vikings or with Kevin O’Connell, in the case of the Los Angeles Rams’ John McKay.
So, while all except Brzezinski come from a traditional scouting background, they all have a previous relationship with ownership or the head coach. That’s not to say it’s a bad thing. Still, it’s clear that the Wilfs want someone they can trust to follow their directives and not draw unnecessary attention.
Mark Wilf basically admitted as much at the NFL owners’ meetings this week in an interview with Yahoo Sports about the search.
There’s some science to it. There’s of course some art. You have to see the person, know the person, get to know them and understand.
This is a leadership position and someone needs to lead our football organization and that’s kind of how we’re viewing it. Of course, football expertise, football personnel, our entire staff and team and getting people to work together. All of it plays into a mix. I can’t give you any scientific formula, but I’m confident as we spend more time with these candidates and get to know everybody better, it’ll become clear to us.
I think we still ultimately need to have a leader who represents ownership who can kind of bring the building together. It’s not just the [scouts and executives], it’s coaches, it’s even on the business side.
So what does all this mean? Well, it’s clear that the Wilfs are still very much against a president-and-GM-type structure that a lot of fans thought would be the best way to retain Brzezinski while also bringing in a seasoned evaluator as general manager. Ownership is also obviously very wary of another rift developing between GM and staff, like what allegedly happened with KOC and Adofo-Mensah, and between Mike Zimmer and Rick Spielman. But O’Connell clearly has some significant power within the organization, and the new hire will have to be willing to accept that.
It’s far from a scorching hot take, but all of this seems to point towards Minnesota putting Brzezinski permanently in the role. The Vikings seem confident in letting the coaching staff play a prominent role in personnel decisions, and in letting Brzezinski work his magic on the business side while remaining a respected voice within the football staff.
If the Vikings actually do make a (technically) outside hire, he’ll likely be willing to play ball with the organizational structure. Most of these names already have relationships with people in the building, so the odds of another fracture developing between brass and staff are low. Adofo-Mensah wasn’t a good fit for a multitude of reasons, but the primary one was that he wasn’t a so-called “football guy.” The Vikings seem to have that covered this time around, but keeping the overall structure the same may ultimately prove detrimental.
The new guy would bring in some fresh ideas and take on evaluation. Still, the idea that this will be some institutional overhaul of Minnesota’s roster-making process just isn’t going to happen. The Vikings seem content with their ability to manage and evaluate personnel and just want someone who can bridge the gap between the football and business sides.
It would be hard to find someone better to do that than Brzezinski, who has already been achieving the goals during his interim period. While his hiring would mean leaving some potentially brilliant football minds to get other jobs in the league, it doesn’t appear that the Vikings are too keen on utilizing those minds to the fullest anyway.
Ultimately, this hire will be a safe one, and maybe that’s not the worst thing after striking out on a knee with the last attempt. Still…
“You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take.”
-Wayne Gretzky
-Michael Scott
