How the Vikings draft would've been different if Rick Spielman was still GM

How the Vikings draft would’ve been different if Rick Spielman was still GM

By Nik Edlund | May 7, 2022

TALLAHASSEE, FL - SEPTEMBER 5: Safety Kyle Hamilton #14 of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish during warm-ups before the start of the game against the Florida State Seminoles at Doak Campbell Stadium on Bobby Bowden Field on September 5, 2021 in Tallahassee, Florida. The Fighting Irish defeated the Seminoles 41 to 38 OT. (Photo by Don Juan Moore/Getty Images) /

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(Photo by David Berding/Getty Images) Esezi Otomewo /

There’d be no Gophers drafted

One thing that Rick Spielman had not done since 2010, was draft a Minnesota Golden Gopher. While he has passed on some great players over the years like De’Vondre Campbell and Antoine Winfield Jr., he does have a good reason to be gun shy.

The last Golden Gopher Spielman took was linebacker Nate Triplett in the fifth round. That pick proved to be a flop and Triplett never took a meaningful snap with the Vikings eventually flaming out of the league just a few years later.

That wasted pick was clearly etched in Spielman’s memory as he never took another player from Minnesota in his last 10 drafts with the team.

Kwesi Adofo-Mensah had no past horrific experiences and wasted little time in drafting a Golden Gopher. He took Esezi Otomewo in the fifth round after he visited the team following an impressive pro-day performance.

The Vikings will hope Otomewo’s career path doesn’t go the same way that Triplett’s did. Maybe he’ll pan out and this will be the start of a new Minnesota to Minnesota pipeline. Maybe that’s a dream, but what is a reality is that Spielman would have never made this choice if he was still the man.

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