Nolan Teasley has to be pretty familiar with Kyler Murray. The Minnesota Vikings’ new general manager spent his first 13 seasons with the Seattle Seahawks. Meanwhile, Murray played his first seven seasons with the Arizona Cardinals, Seattle’s NFC West rival.
Teasley may have needed binoculars to see Murray scamper around the field. Still, he likely made contacts in Arizona’s front office after years of facing the Cardinals twice per year. Had the Vikings hired him shortly after firing Kwesi Adofo-Mensah in late January, he probably would have picked up the phone to get their perspective on Murray.
Minnesota’s new GM would have had some pertinent questions. Why are the Cardinals paying Murray over $36 million not to play for them this year? How concerning is his injury history? Is the 2019 first-overall pick’s video game habit a concern or overblown?
Maybe it’s a moot point. Perhaps Teasley would have allowed Kevin O’Connell to make the decision, given his reputation as a “quarterback whisperer.” Vikings ownership didn’t send their desire for collaboration out the door with Adofo-Mensah. Instead, Teasley will likely lean on O’Connell for offensive personnel decisions, Flores for the defense, and Rob Brzezinski to get all those players under the cap.
For the Vikings to win a playoff game during O’Connell’s tenure, the organization must walk a fine line between collaboration and recreating their previous “triangle of authority.”
After the Wilfs bought the team in 2006, they gave equal power to then-GM Rick Spielman, Brzezinski, and the head coach until 2011. The triangle of authority produced mixed results. Together with Brad Childress, they brought in Brett Favre, who led them to the 2009 NFC Championship. However, they also drafted Christian Ponder in 2011.
Collaboration still means accountability. Someone made the final call on a decision, good or bad. The “triangle of authority” seemed to create a situation in which everyone could blame someone else for team issues.
To rectify that, Spielman took on a typical general manager’s role starting in 2012. He managed Leslie Frazier as the head coach and Brzezinski as the cap wizard. By hiring Teasley, the Vikings are replacing Adofo-Mensah – a data analyst who worked on Wall Street – with someone who has a more typical scouting background.
In an ideal world, Teasley will allow O’Connell and Flores to identify talent for their sides of the ball, while leaning on Brzezinski to manage the cap. However, instead of trying to maximize each “asset” as Adofo-Mensah did – be it draft capital or players – Teasley’s role will be to push back on his coaches using his scouting expertise.
However, Teasley can only do that if he can push back effectively.
Supposedly, he has the ultimate power. However, O’Connell participated in the GM interviews, and he and Flores are incumbents in Minnesota. They likely won’t manage Teasley as they do with their assistant coaches. Still, the organization trusts them enough to retain them after firing Adofo-Mensah.
Most GMs would cede quarterback decisions to O’Connell, given his background coaching the position. Adofo-Mensah appeared to, and the Vikings missed the playoffs in J.J. McCarthy’s first year, while Sam Darnold won the Super Bowl with the Seattle Seahawks.
It’s probably unfair to make Adofo-Mensah fully culpable for not franchise-tagging Darnold. O’Connell likely had ample say in the decision. However, Adofo-Mensah is no longer in the building, while O’Connell holds significant influence in the organization. Therefore, it’s easier to blame Adofo-Mensah for the decision.
Teasley may face a similar dilemma after this season. Kyler Murray and J.J. McCarthy are battling for the starting quarterback spot in camp. Assuming Murray wins, the Vikings will have to decide whether to extend him, because they cannot use the franchise tag. Perhaps the decision will be straightforward. However, it may become a judgment call.
And if it does, who in the building will have the final say?
