Shortly after news began to spread on Saturday that the Minnesota Vikings had reportedly hired Nolan Teasley to be the franchise's new general manager, it was revealed by the Minnesota Star Tribune's Ben Goessling that the team's new leader of the front office will work together with EVP Rob Brzezinski and head coach Kevin O'Connell to make all the roster decisions.
Minnesota clearly believes it's better to have these three collaborating than to have the new general manager making all of the final calls when it comes to the roster.
Even knowing this, there is still one major question that needs to be answered, and SKOR North's Judd Zulgad raised it in a post on his Substack following the hiring on Saturday.
"The key question is who is going to have the ultimate authority over the 53-man roster?
Owners Mark and Zygi Wilf have been guilty of wanting everyone to play nice since they bought the franchise in 2005, but that’s not how the NFL works and the Wilfs should know that by now. This is a business filled with people who have big egos, are often overconfident and can be shortsighted.
...Someone has to have the ultimate power and it needs to be in their contract.
That should be Teasley, but given the amount of power O’Connell seems to have gained it very well could be the Vikings coach."
Should Kevin O'Connell or Nolan Teasley get the final say when it comes to the Minnesota Vikings 53-man roster?
Typically, in the NFL, it's the general manager who gets to make all of the final roster decisions. The coaching staff will offer their input, but it's usually up to the general manager to give the final okay for every roster move.
This allows the general manager to approach the roster with a more of a focus on building a team for both the present and the future, while a head coach is likely going to be more inclined to make moves that only impact the team in the immediate and near future.
So, as Zulgad declared, Teasley should be the one to have the final say when it comes to Minnesota's final 53-man roster, and not O'Connell.
This doesn't mean that O'Connell and Teasley can't work together to come up with a plan for the roster. But the Vikings' new general manager should be given the authority to pass on any of O'Connell's roster suggestions if he feels it necessary.
As Zulgad mentioned, however, Minnesota's head coach seems to have the team's ownership wrapped around his finger at the moment.
Has O'Connell built up the trust between himself and the Vikings' owners enough that they would allow him to have the final say on roster decisions moving forward?
It would be an odd choice to give O'Connell this authority, but it also wouldn't be surprising considering how much Minnesota's owners have grown to love the team's current head coach, who is still searching for his first career playoff win heading into his fifth season with the franchise.
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