The Minnesota Vikings made a stunning move when they fired Kwesi Adofo-Mensah last February. The Vikings had a respectable 43-25 record and won a division championship in 2022, but if there was validation for his dismissal, it was his lack of success in the draft.
Any Vikings fan can pull up the team’s history and see that the draft was not Adofo-Mensah’s strong suit. But he also had a penchant for missing on his first-round picks.Â
Trevor Sikkema and Connor Rogers of the NFL Stock Exchange podcast shed more light on the Vikings’ struggles by ranking all 95 first-round picks over the past three years. While their NFC North rivals saw success, the Vikings had no player ranked higher than 38th on either analyst’s list, giving credence to some of the reasons why Adofo-Mensah was let go.
NFL draft analyst tells the brutal truth about former Minnesota Vikings general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah’s draft history
Rogers was critical of the Vikings’ first-round history since 2023, ranking J.J. McCarthy as the 88th overall player on the list. While that makes sense considering the Minnesota Vikings have their own questions about McCarthy, Rogers continued by ranking McCarthy’s 2024 classmate, Dallas Turner, as 71st on his list.
2025 first-round pick Donovan Jackson was the next Viking on Rogers’s list at No. 62, and Jordan Addison rounded out the four first-rounders in the exercise by coming in at No. 38.
Meanwhile, Sikkema was less critical, but not by a lot. McCarthy was the lowest-ranked Viking at No. 83, while Turner checked in at No. 64. Jackson was placed 56th on the list, while Addison rounded out the group at No. 40.
Not having a single first-round pick in the top 32 spots in this exercise reveals the struggles the Vikings had under Adofo-Mensah, and it could have been even worse if they had included 2022 first-round pick Lewis Cine.
There’s also a chance that things could get worse. If McCarthy loses the preseason quarterback competition with Kyler Murray, he could wind up with an even more ominous list that included James Pearce Jr. of the Atlanta Falcons, Tyree Wilson of the Las Vegas Raiders, Mazi Smith of the Dallas Cowboys, and Anthony Richardson of the Indianapolis Colts.
Turner has another tall task after the Vikings traded Jonathan Greenard to the Philadelphia Eagles during this year’s draft. While Addison could be fine on the field, his troubles off it could have him free-falling in the near future.
In the end, Jackson could be the Vikings’ best first-round pick over the past three years, and it’s glaring compared to what the rest of the NFC North has done.
Rogers had Chicago Bears quarterback Caleb Williams ranked sixth on his list, while both analysts had Jahmyr Gibbs of the Detroit Lions in the top 10. Bears tight end Colston Loveland, offensive tackle Darnell Wright, and Lions linebacker Jack Campbell were also listed within the top 32 of the rankings.Â
While some Vikings fans may take solace in the fact that no Green Bay Packers first-rounder appeared until Sikkema ranked Matthew Golden No. 61, it’s also not great considering there are 30 other teams in the NFL.
The Vikings' current search has pointed to interim GM Rob Brzezinski taking over the role, and he has already emphasized hitting on draft picks. But if the Vikings can’t hit in the first round, it deprives them of blue-chip talent and forces them into overcompensating by making poor trades on draft day or forcing them to scramble to fill holes during the season.
It’s a big reason why Adofo-Menash is no longer the GM and presents a big objective for the next person to sit in his office.
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