Tag: Kwesi Adofo-Mensah

ESPN’s Jordan Reid gives Vikings two new leaders in final mock draft

Its been highly debated what type of draft the Vikings are shaping up to have, ESPN’s Jordan Reid gives his final predictions for the team.

ESPN’s Jordan Reid has a strong connection to Minnesota and a unique understanding of how this franchise operates. When he speaks about the Minnesota Vikings, everyone should listen.

We listened, and we loved the final selections he made for the team in the first round of his final mock draft.

In his final mock draft, he has the Vikings trading up for a quarterback, but not to the usual spot we see. He has Kwesi Adofo-Mensah taking advantage of a slide coming for J.J. McCarthy. The Vikings General Manager trades up with the Atlanta Falcons to get to the 8th overall selection and only had to send them their 11th and a package of other picks.

They keep their 23rd overall pick but only from being included in the trade-up with the Falcons. Reid then has the Vikings trading back from 23 to 27 while picking up some day-two draft capital, to which they currently have none. The fallback not only gets them extra draft capital but also allows them to get one of the best defenders in the draft, Jer’Zhan Newton.

The Illinois defensive lineman is a bulldozer of a player and plays an old-school style of football that Vikings fans will appreciate. The franchise has a rich history of mauling defensive linemen, Newton will be the next installment.

If the team can land J.J. McCarthy and Jer’Zhan Newton while adding some day-two draft capital, consider it a home run. This is the new dream scenario if you are the Vikings or fans of the team. Time will only tell if Kwesi Adofo-Mensah can pull it off.

Mike Reiss: Patriots staying at No. 3 in draft barring unexpected blockbuster offer

ESPN insider Mike Reiss reports the New England Patriots will stay at No. 3 in Thursday’s 2024 NFL draft barring a blockbuster offer.

Day 1 of the 2024 NFL draft is Thursday, and there’s a ton of suspense regarding how things are going to play out. Perhaps the most intriguing storyline is how the Minnesota Vikings will get their future quarterback.

According to ESPN NFL Nation reporter Mike Reiss, it likely won’t come through a trade with the New England Patriots, who hold the third overall pick. Reiss writes that the Patriots are planning on moving forward with picking at their current slot “barring an unexpected blockbuster trade offer.”

The stance makes a ton of sense for the Patriots, who also need a quarterback. The consensus top four quarterbacks in the draft are Caleb Williams, Drake Maye, Jayden Daniels and J.J. McCarthy. Picking in the third slot ensures they get one of those players.

That said, the Vikings are one of the few teams that have the draft assets to be able to pull off a “blockbuster” trade — if they value getting their quarterback that early. Minnesota has the 11th and 23rd picks in the first round, along with seven selections in the rest of the draft.

However, outside of the two first-rounders, none of the remaining picks are before the fourth round, which means a trade with the Patriots would likely include early picks in 2025. Thankfully, the Vikings have a full complement of picks in 2025 (with an extra fifth-round pick in place of a sixth).

The question is, will general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah be willing to give up the assets needed to make such a deal? Would he and the Vikings’ decision makers be content to get whichever QB is left after New England picks and try to make a deal with the Arizona Cardinals — who don’t need a quarterback and might be willing to take less to move back?

We’ll find out in a couple of days.

Vikings draft spot deemed ‘pivotal’ by NFL Media

The 2024 NFL Draft has several teams jockeying for position to draft the next leader of their franchise. The Vikings are one of those teams.

Several teams are jockeying for positions in the 2024 NFL Draft to draft the next leader of their franchise. The Vikings are one of those teams looking to make a splash and land a new quarterback for their roster. To get in that position, teams need to identify the key players and draft slots to work with.

Chad Reuter of NFL Media has done just that.

In a recent piece for NFL.com, Reuter listed the Vikings pick at 11 as one of several key spots in Thursday’s upcoming draft. He stated that essentially nothing should be off the board for Kwesi Adofo-Mensah as he looks to find a quarterback. The idea of trading up is the popular approach but he mentions that staying put and draft one at 23 is also an option.

The idea of Bo Nix and Michael Penix Jr. doesn’t excite fans though. Both were Heisman Trophy finalists and were able to put up impressive numbers, but the film study showed flaws in their craft. Compared to some of the top passers, there are questions regarding Nix’s arm strength and general willingness to push the ball downfield. For Penix Jr., the mechanics and injury history.

No matter what, Reuter has said the quiet part out loud. The Vikings are very much in a position to be the straw that stirs the entire drink of the NFL draft.

Vikings flying down to Baton Rouge to visit Jayden Daniels

NFL teams are wrapping up visits with prospects and the Vikings are following up a private workout with Jayden Daniels with a dinner.

NFL teams are wrapping up visits with prospects as we are just seven days away from the 2024 NFL Draft. Workouts are done but dinners are still able to be had, in steps the Minnesota Vikings brass.

Tom Pelissero of NFL Media reported on Thursday morning the team would be traveling to Baton Rouge to see LSU quarterback Jayden Daniels. Many expect the reigning Heisman Trophy winner to be taken second overall by the Washington Commanders. Despite that, the Vikings are showing they are doing all the homework they can on this quarterback class.

Aside from Daniels, the team has done private workouts or visits with Drake Maye and J.J. McCarthy as well. Draft pundits and fans alike have it almost in stone. The team is trading up for one of them, but that has proved to be easier said than done.

Kwesi Adofo-Mensah has been vocal about the need, but he has also made it known the team is ready for Sam Darnold to be their guy. A very busy seven days are ahead for everyone involved within and around the franchise.

Zulgad: Justin Jefferson’s absence isn’t reason to panic … yet

Justin Jefferson has decided to not attend the Vikings’ offseason work while discussing his new contract. It isn’t reason to panic.

Minnesota Vikings fans have spent more than a month preoccupied with whether their team will draft its next quarterback in the first round and how high general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah might have to trade up to get that top-level starter.

That question will be answered a week from Thursday during the opening night of the NFL draft, and whether the fan base approves, they will likely face another reality once the excitement subsides.

That will be the fact that Justin Jefferson’s contract situation remains unresolved.

We’ve written plenty about this issue, including this February column on the reason for the potential hangup and this one focused on what Adofo-Mensah had to say about Jefferson’s situation at the NFL Scouting Combine.

So why revisit the topic?

Because we are entering a new and important chapter of the story for both Jefferson and the Vikings. The team opened the voluntary portion of their offseason program on Monday without one of the NFL’s best wide receivers in attendance. The fact these workouts are voluntary tamps down the anxiety that might go with Jefferson, or anyone else, being absent. But when your best player and a guy who takes great pride in being a team captain stays away, it can’t be ignored.

This situation isn’t unprecedented. A year ago, Jefferson skipped all of the voluntary workouts before showing up for the mandatory minicamp. “I had a lot of stuff going on,” Jefferson said last June. “They didn’t really force me to come back too much, so it didn’t seem like I was missing too much, but they definitely wanted me back here.”

Jefferson spent the remainder of last season doing a marvelous job of handling questions about his contract. Last year, he had two seasons remaining on his rookie deal. That included the 2024 fifth-year option salary of $19.743 million, a bargain considering Jefferson’s 5,899 yards receiving is the most for any player in their first four seasons in NFL history.

There were some who thought Jefferson might balk at playing last year without a new contract, considering the risk that goes with being on a rookie deal and having no financial guarantees beyond that. But Jefferson didn’t stage a holdout, or hold-in, and did everything that was asked of him.

Jefferson had not missed a game in his first three seasons, so the threat of injury likely didn’t preoccupy his thoughts. That probably changed in a Week 5 loss to Kansas City at U.S. Bank Stadium when Jefferson suffered a hamstring injury that cost him seven games. Despite playing in only 10 games, Jefferson was the lone Viking with more than 1,000 yards receiving (1,074).

It has been acknowledged that Jefferson and the Vikings were close to an agreement just before the start of last season, but what isn’t clear is why the contract didn’t get done and if that was a real setback or just a hiccup. If Jefferson signs right after the draft, that question will be answered and any potential animosity between the sides will be avoided.

If he doesn’t …

“I’m waiting,” Jefferson said during an appearance on “The Rich Eisen Show” on Feb. 8. “I’m looking for the bag, just like you are. I’m waiting for the call to experience that with my family. It’s life-changing. I’m waiting for it.”

It also seems unlikely that Jefferson will put himself at risk until he signs a second contract that figures to make him the highest-paid nonquarterback in NFL history, surpassing the $34 million a year that San Francisco defensive end Nick Bosa is making.

Vikings coach Kevin O’Connell recently said that he has kept Jefferson “in the loop” on the team’s plans at quarterback. Veteran Sam Darnold, signed as a free agent, is the current starter, but the hope is the draft will produce the long-term starter. Jefferson certainly cares about who will be throwing him the ball, but this focus on him not signing because of Kirk Cousins’ departure to Atlanta has been silly.

Jefferson’s focus is on how much he’ll be paid, and that’s what it should be. On Monday, when he addressed Jefferson’s absence, O’Connell didn’t sound concerned about the situation.

“I’ve had a lot of great dialogue with Justin,” O’Connell said. My hope is we can get him around the team. We want him here as much as we can have him, but also understand there’s a lot of factors involved.”

The most important factor is obvious, and the sooner that gets done, the sooner Jefferson will report to offseason workouts. If it doesn’t get done, Jefferson’s presence at mandatory minicamp in early June won’t be a given. At that point, hitting the panic button will become a real option.

Justin Jefferson absent for start of Vikings offseason program

The Minnesota Vikings started their voluntary offseason program on Monday, and their star wide receiver was notably absent. 

The Minnesota Vikings started their voluntary offseason program on Monday, and star wide receiver Justin Jefferson was notably absent.

The All-Pro is entering the final year of his rookie contract, set to make $19.7 million. The pressure now seems even higher to hammer out an extension for Jefferson while also replacing Kirk Cousins, who left for the Atlanta Falcons in free agency.

The wide receiver market was already tough to navigate, but DeVonta Smith’s extension with the Philadelphia Eagles, announced Monday, makes things even tougher. Along with Jefferson, several other notable receivers are vying for extensions, including CeeDee Lamb of the Dallas Cowboys, Ja’Marr Chase of the Cincinnati Bengals, and Brandon Aiyuk of the San Francisco 49ers.

As each one gets an extension, the task gets even harder because the price goes up.

Jefferson should be expected to make north of $30 million per year when he finalizes his deal. The team has been asked prior, specifically during the NFL Scouting Combine in March, about trading Jefferson and harshly denied that being a possibility. Keeping Jefferson will be key for the team going forward, especially for whoever is under center in 2024 and beyond.

For now, don’t read too much into Jefferson’s absence. This is him letting the team know that he wants a deal done sooner rather than later.

Vikings GM Kwesi Adofo-Mensah indicates he won’t ‘force’ a move to draft a quarterback

The Vikings face an uphill battle to trade up for a quarterback in the 2024 NFL draft.

The Minnesota Vikings are just one of many teams looking to fix their franchise’s biggest problem, quarterback, in the 2024 NFL draft.

The Chicago Bears, Washington Commanders, and New England Patriots control the first three picks and have their choice of whichever of the big four in this class fall their way. Caleb Williams is etched in stone at this point to be a Bear. After that, it is anyone’s guess as to where everyone ends up.

The ultimate controllers of chaos in this situation are the Patriots and Arizona Cardinals, who hold the No. 4 overall pick. Both teams are seen as having quarterback situations — a bridge solution for the Patriots and a franchise starter in Arizona — that allow flexibility. That flexibility will come as a potential trade back with someone looking to solve their problem.

We mentioned the teams at the top of the draft, but their teams are on the outside looking in: the Denver Broncos and, of course, the Vikings. For the Vikings specifically, they have made it a point to have several options regardless of how the draw unfolds 10 days from today.

At last week’s pre-draft press conference, Minnesota GM Kwesi Adofo-Mensah was asked: Is there a world where you don’t draft or trade up for a quarterback? Adofo-Mensah gave a very honest answer.

“You have to be ready for everything; it’s a very deep class,” he said. “But I do think you have to be ready for every scenario. If there are elite players at premium positions on the board, I don’t think you’re supposed to reach or force or anything like that. It’s just not what I believe, all the while understanding that quarterback is the most important position in the sport. So, it’s calculating both those things at the same time.”

The Vikings clearly need to trade up for a quarterback. Adofo-Mensah is in a unique situation, though, and he is well aware of that. The team will have to give up significant draft capital if they move up. They have the 11th and 23rd overall picks to start the draft; after that, their capital dwindles. They must dip into 2025’s group of picks to complete any trade.

Will Adofo-Mensah be willing to do that? His draft history during his tenure with the Vikings has its fair share of hits, but the misses have piled up. Trading up for what is perceived as a “sure thing” will be enticing. What can’t and won’t be forgotten is in the NFL there is nothing close to a sure thing.

Zulgad: Vikings leaving no stone unturned in search of franchise quarterback

The Vikings are facing an uphill battle when it comes to finding a franchise quaretrback. To fix it, they need to leave no stone unturned.

The Minnesota Vikings’ desire to land a quarterback in the first round of this month’s NFL draft is no secret, but whether they will come away with Kirk Cousins’ replacement remains the great unknown.

The one thing that can’t be questioned is the work the Vikings appear to be doing when it comes to vetting this class of passers. Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated had an interesting read this week on the process being employed by general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah and coach Kevin O’Connell.

O’Connell and Adofo-Mensah haven’t attended the pro days of the big-name quarterbacks and instead have conducted private workouts with North Carolina’s Drake Maye, Michigan’s J.J. McCarthy, Washington’s Michael Penix, and Oregon’s Bo Nix.

The Vikings have sent new quarterbacks coach Josh McCown and assistant Grant Udinski to the Pro Days, but O’Connell and Adofo-Mensah know those don’t offer a true look at a player. A quarterback throws to hand-picked wide receivers, and the workout is designed to make him look as good as possible.

There is little room for spontaneity.

But what O’Connell, Adofo-Mensah, and the Vikings’ traveling party, which includes McCown, can do during their visits is get a close look at a player under terms they can dictate. That includes going through plays in a classroom setting, watching how those plays are executed on the field, and seeing how a quarterback handles potential adversity when things don’t go as planned.

O’Connell has even discussed attending a quarterback’s favorite restaurant on campus to see how he treats the staff. All of this matters because no detail is too small. O’Connell knows this process from the other side. He was a third-round pick of the New England Patriots in 2008 out of San Diego State. He appeared in two games as a rookie and never took another snap in bouncing from the Lions, Jets, Dolphins, and Chargers.

That experience has given O’Connell the advantage of knowledge when it comes to what he’s looking for from these quarterbacks.

Because it’s really the only access that the draftniks have, those of us on the outside looking in often become obsessed with what the QB showed on his college film and during workouts. That’s important but it’s only a start. The best quarterbacks are often likened to the CEO of a company, meaning there is much more to it than just performance on Sundays.

This brings us to the question of how many quarterbacks the Vikings like and where the list ends. Breer, for instance, leads his in-depth column on how scouts have a different view of Penix than coaches. Scouts see flaws in Penix’s play; Breer has been told that coaches feel they can fix those issues. But coaches see things in Penix’s leadership and talents that can’t be taught and are coveted.

Does that put him above Maye and McCarthy? If it does, do the Vikings feel Penix might fall to them at 11, meaning they wouldn’t have to give up a haul to get into the Top 5?

But if O’Connell decides to give up two first-round picks and more to move up and get McCarthy, no one will complain as long as it proves to be the right call.

Would that be risky? Of course. But that’s why the Vikings are turning over every stone possible in their quest to end this ongoing search finally.

Vikings trade up in latest ESPN mock draft

Field Yates of ESPN dropped his latest mock draft on Wednesday and once again the Vikings traded up for a quarterback.

Field Yates of ESPN dropped his latest mock draft on Wednesday and once again the Vikings traded up for a quarterback. Compared to most scenarios, Yates had them trading up with the Los Angeles Chargers. Jim Harbaugh has talked about having a complete football team and trading back is the easiest way to accomplish that.

The package of course was for the Chargers fifth overall pick but the Vikings had to surrender their 11th and 23rd overall picks as well as their 2025 first round pick. The selection would end up being J.J. McCarthy, who has become a popular pick for them. McCarthy would be going into a loaded offense with a great coaching staff and skill players to get the most out of him.

However, is that package an ideal scenario for the Vikings? I would argue no.

Kwesi Adofo-Mensah has shown he can be a mixed bag with his draft picks. Yes, the 2022 draft class was one he had just two months to investigate as the Vikings general manager but that shouldn’t be an excuse. The 2023 class has a hit at the top seemingly with Jordan Addison but the rest of the class still has a ways to go.

Is trading away the one pick you have been hitting on a good move? If McCarthy is a hit then that is the ultimate medkit to fix any negative news. That is a major gamble though for a general manager that may not be able to afford losing those crucial picks.

Former Viking Dean Lowry signs with Steelers

Former Viking Dean Lowry is leaving the NFC North and heading to the AFC North after signing a deal with the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Last offseason the Vikings and defensive lineman Dean Lowry agreed to terms on a two-year deal. After suffering a pectoral injury and missing significant time the team decided to part ways which made him a free agent. He is now heading from the NFC North to the AFC North as a result.

Lowry agreed to another two-year deal, this time with the Pittsburgh Steelers. At the time of the signing the financials of the deal were not yet known.

Lowry will be entering his ninth year in the NFL in 2024 after spending seven seasons with the Packers before signing with the Vikings last offseason. He has played in a total of 120 games in his career but only appeared in nine games for the Vikings.

In nine games, with four starts, he earned 14 tackles with one pass deflection, and one fumble recovery. Upon signing with the Steelers, he is assumed to fill the same type of rotational, depth role that he had with the Vikings.