Rob Brzezinski will lead the front office through the 2026 draft.
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Today’s move suggests that O’Connell will have more power in 2026, especially as it relates to the structure of the quarterback depth chart.
It also suggests that, a year ago, O’Connell didn’t want to let Sam Darnold and Daniel Jones leave in free agency.
And that O’Connell perhaps didn’t want to say “no thank you” to Aaron Rodgers. J.J. McCarthy, who missed all of his rookie year with a knee injury, clearly was not ready. The Vikings absolutely needed a veteran backup plan better than signing Carson Wentz less than two weeks before the first game of the regular season.
Arguably, the Vikings should have had a veteran starter, with McCarthy sitting for a year.
Last March, while everyone waited to see what the Vikings would do at quarterback, some who were dealing with the Vikings expressed confusion as to who is calling the shots. This March, that likely won’t be an issue.
Adofo-Mensah was hired four years ago, in the same cycle that saw the purging of former coach Mike Zimmer and former G.M. Rick Spielman and the hiring of O’Connell. Adofo-Mensah received a contract extension after the 2024 season, as did O’Connell.
The Vikings also have announced that executive V.P. of football operations Rob Brzezinski will lead the front office through the draft. The search for a new General Manager will begin thereafter.
The broader question is whether O’Connell will emerge with control over the roster and/or the draft. Could he become, essentially, a Bill Belichick-type coach and de facto G.M., with a V.P. of player personnel or G.M. “light” to assist him?
Regardless, with Darnold getting ready for the Super Bowl and the Vikings nearly a month into the aftermath of another season of unfulfilled expectations, ownership decided that something had to change. And that something was the General Manager.
