A few weeks ago, the Minnesota Vikings announced the exciting news that they had agreed to a new multi-year contract extension with head coach Kevin O'Connell. While the move brought a ton of joy to the Vikings fan base, some couldn't help but wonder why the team didn't announce anything about signing general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah to an extension as well.
In fact, as of Wednesday, February 19th, Adofo-Mensah still hasn't been extended by Minnesota, and according to a recent report, he might have to wait a little longer until he actually gets a new deal.
During a recent appearance on the "Vikings Happy Hour" podcast, KOA Colorado's Benjamin Albright shared that the Vikings could be waiting until after this year's NFL Draft to give their general manager an extension.
"From what I [understand], they [are] taking the [approach of], 'Hey, we need to see another draft class here and kind of get a better gauge or a better pulse on what this thing is from your side of the house, because we know what it is from the coach side of the house, and we like that.'"
Possible reason for extension delay is incredibly disrespectful for Minnesota Vikings GM Kwesi Adofo-Mensah
Considering the track record of the team's previous general manager, it would be insane if Minnesota is truly waiting to see how this year's NFL Draft goes before giving Adofo-Mensah an extension.
Has drafting been one of his strengths during his tenure with the Vikings? Absolutely not, but to act like Adofo-Mensah has done nothing else to help Minnesota since joining the franchise in 2022 would be crazy.
Just go back and look at how many times the Vikings have hit on players they've added in free agency during the last three years.
Jonathan Greenard, Andrew Van Ginkel, Aaron Jones, Sam Darnold, Byron Murphy Jr., Blake Cashman, Za'Darius Smith, Harrison Phillips, Jalen Redmond, Shaquill Griffin, Jihad Ward, and Stephon Gilmore have all made a significant impact on Minnesota winning 34 games in the team's last three seasons.
Combine this with some of the guys Adofo-Mensah has traded for or signed as undrafted free-agents including T.J. Hockenson, Cam Akers, Ivan Pace Jr., NaJee Thompson, and Bo Richter and it's difficult to sit there with a straight-face and claim that he's done a poor job as the Vikings general manager.
As for Adofo-Mensah's drafting resumé, the jury is still out on the 2023 and 2024 classes. Minnesota's 2022 draft class was an epic disaster, but to be fair to Adofo-Mensah, it took place less than four months after he was hired, and he had to rely on the previous regime's scouting staff for direction.
Let's not jump to conclusions and say that the scouts from the old front office regime might have sabotaged that 2022 draft on purpose, but let's not completely rule out that as a possibility either.
Honestly, Adofo-Mensah has done a good enough job during his time with the Vikings that he should be given an extension even if the team's selections in the 2025 draft don't inject the fan base with an overflow of excitement.
People might want to claim that O'Connell has had more to do with Minnesota winning 34 games since 2022, but Adofo-Mensah has played a large role in the team's success in the last three seasons as well.
If anyone wants to hold Adofo-Mensah's draft classes against him during his time with the Vikings, then it's only fair to point out that the team has also choked in both of their playoff games under O'Connell.
Minnesota is on the right path with its current head coach and general manager, so the longer it takes to extend Adofo-Mensah, the less sense it continues to make.