It is that time of year again. The time of the year we devote an impressive portfolio of mental real estate to mock drafts. Trading up, trading down, good old fashioned draft season where we all become emotionally attached to players our team will probably end up not getting a chance to select. While it is always a fun exercise to look at the potential scenarios for that fateful night on April 27, 2023, a view on the background of general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah and the context surrounding the Vikings draft just might give you an idea on what to expect come draft night.
The Wolf of Football Street
Current Vikings general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah did not have his beginnings on the football field. Instead, Adofo-Mensah’s strength came from his ability to read textbooks instead of zone blitz packages. Adofo-Mensah attended Princeton University as an economics major, graduating in 2003. Seeking higher education, Adofo-Mensah attended Stanford University, receiving his masters degree in economics.
While many general managers start as former players or coaches, Adofo-Mensah started his professional career on Wall Street as an associate portfolio manager at Taylor Woods Capital and Vice President/Executive Director at Credit Suisse as a commodities trader. It is clear that the economics background of Adofo-Mensah served to be important in his career development.
Joining the San Francisco 49ers in 2013, Adofo-Mensah served as a Football Research and Development Analyst. Working his way up the NFL ladder, finally landing as current general manager of the Minnesota Vikings in 2022. Adofo-Mensah serves as a trailblazer in the NFL management world with such a heavy analytics background. Few league executives have such a unique career path, setting the stage for what seems to be an eventful off-season.
2022 Draft
Adofo-Mensah’s 2022 draft proved to be an interesting one. With a grand total of six draft day trades, including two in division trades, Adofo-Mensah made plenty of moves in order to acquire their 2022 draft class. The class is as follows:
Round 1: Lewis Cine – Safety
Round 2: Andrew Booth Jr. – Cornerback
Round 3: Ed Ingram – Guard
Round 3: Brian Asamoah – Linebacker
Round 4: Akayleb Evans – Cornerback
Round 5: Esezi Otomewo – Defensive End
Round 5: Ty Chandler – Running Back
Round 6: Vederian Lowe – Offensive Tackle
Round 6: Jalen Nailor – Wide Receiver
Round 7: Nick Muse – Tight End
There is no shortage of talent in this draft class. Players, Lewis Cine and Andrew Booth Jr. were considered blue chip prospects entering the draft. Brian Asamoah and Akayleb Evans were considered projects with gifted physical tools and running back Ty Chandler was extremely productive as a Tarheel. While the jury is still out on this draft class, a combination of bad injury luck and an overabundance of Vikings veterans prevented any single player from breaking out and proving themselves as an NFL star. Despite this, with both a surplus of immense physical talent, and a highly regarded defensive coordinator, the 2022 draft class still has great potential to be a memorable one.
What did we learn?
Now that one season has passed we have learned a few things about Adofo-Mensah’s draft philosophy. First and foremost, he loves to make trades. This included several trade downs and trade ups to select desired players. It seems that trading with “division rivals” is still always in play considering the fact that he did it twice last year.
Second thing we learned is that Adofo-Mensah loves to draft for speed. While this topic has been discussed in previous articles, it is worth noting the fact that Lewis Cine, Andrew Booth Jr, and Brian Asamoah are all in the 70th percentile or above in terms of 40 times. Adofo-Mensah obviously searches for players with a desired physical profile.
The third and perhaps most intriguing point to be drawn from Adofo-Mensah’s first draft is more of a question than an answer and that question is, “what role does ownership play in making player personnel decisions?” There is no doubt that the decisions made by Vikings management to not only draft for need but also trade picks for tight end TJ Hockenson is a “win now move”. While Adofo-Mensah’s background lies in analytics, the draft day decisions may suggest that some of the decisions made in the 2022 draft were not entirely Adofo-Mensah. Drafting a safety with your first round pick and drafting a guard with your second round pick are moves shunned by analytics because those are deemed “non-premium positions”. For this reason, it is worth noting the desire owners Mark and Zygi Wilf have in remaining competitive.
Draft Expectations
Now that Adofo-Mensah’s draft patterns have been established, here is a watch guide on what to expect from the Vikings come draft night.
Expect some action
Adofo-Mensah has already shown his proclivity for draft day trades. Considering the lack of draft capital due to the TJ Hockenson trade, expect Adofo-Mensah to continually maneuver to acquire additional draft capital. With a near record breaking six draft day trades last season and a full season to get comfortable, expect some action in April.
Expect a premium position selection
Given Adofo-Mensah’s analytics background and a season to find his footing, expect the wall street history of Adofo-Mensah to shine through. Vikings could be killing two birds with one stone by drafting both a position of need and a premium position with the selection of an edge rusher, a cornerback or a wide receiver.
Expect your expectations to change in the upcoming months
While this could be an entirely separate topic, the decisions made by Vikings management regarding key veterans can dramatically shift the expectations of draft night. The largest domino waiting to fall is the decision the Vikings make on quarterback Kirk Cousins. With one year left on his deal, the Vikings could be in position to select a quarterback early if they decide against extending Cousins. This can also apply to veterans Adam Thielen regarding wide receiver, Eric Kendricks and Jordan Hicks regarding inside linebacker, and Dalvin Cook regarding running back.
Countdown to April
Many questions persist that will soon be answered. Will Adofo-Mensah have full reign over the Vikings’ roster construction? Will the Vikings draft a quarterback? How will Adofo-Mensah’s background change his drafting style? With many answers to come! For everything Vikings, keep it right here on NFCNorthReport.com
