The Vikings Roster Tug of War Between Rick Spielman and Kwesi Adofo-Mensah
Very quietly, the Vikings roster has been flipping over.
For a long time, Rick Spielman was the architect. He was employed in Minnesota between 2006-21, a 15-year span that underscores his importance to recent Vikings history. On January 26, 2022, the Vikings opted to sign Kwesi Adofo-Mensah as Spielman’s replacement. A young executive with a forward-looking approach, Adofo-Mensah has been hard at work reshaping the team.
The tug-of-war piece is a continuation of some of my previous offseason work for PurplePTSD. First, there was the complete Kwesi Adofo-Mensah trade tracker. Second, there was the Vikings’ draft pick outlook for the next three years.
Next up is a humble attempt to further guide reader understandings about where this franchise finds itself. Similar to the previous pair of articles, the GM-to-GM piece is meant to be a resource I can return to with updates as we learn more in the comings weeks, months, and years.
Essentially, all I’m doing is putting Minnesota’s players into three categories. The first part simply highlights the true carryovers, the players brought in by Spielman who haven’t had their deals adjusted but are still on the Vikings roster. The second part considers players brought in by Slick Rick before having their deals redone by Kwesi & Friends (restructure, extension, etc.). Finally, there is the third and final portion: the players whom Kwesi Adofo-Mensah brought aboard all on his own. As you’ll see, there’s no Spielman influence on the majority of the team’s roster.
Keep in mind that the 53-man roster will get things closer to balanced between Spielman and Adofo-Mensah. Much of the GM-to-GM discrepancy stems from the depth signings that take place in an offseason. In a lot of instances, being a Spielman addition doesn’t matter for the final cuts. Someone like Justin Jefferson has a far higher chance of sticking around than someone like Malik Knowles (and that’s no insult to Knowles). As a result, the offseason’s 90-man roster offers a more pronounced difference than what the 53-man roster will.
Once again, I’ll note my human frailty, failings, and foibles. Errors could very plausibly be hidden in some of the smalls details. If you spot something that needs fixing, let me know on Twitter (@VikingsGazette).
Oh, and a shout out to Over the Cap for helping to confirm my memory and/or undercut the errors for a couple of the players. Readers looking for more info on the overall roster can take a look at the Vikings roster on the team website.
The Vikings Roster: GM to GM
Spielman’s Men
- Bynum, Camryn – Safety
- Darrisaw, Christian – Offensive Tackle
- Jefferson, Justin – Wide Receiver (5th-Year Option Picked Up)
- Jones, Patrick – Edge Rusher
- Nwangwu, Kene – Running Back/Kirk Returner
Shared Players
- Bradbury, Garrett – Center
- Brandel, Blake — Offensive Tackle/Guard
- DePaola, Andrew – Long Snapper
- Ham, C.J. – Fullback
- Lynch, James – Defensive Tackle
- Metellus, Josh – Safety
- O’Neill, Brian – Offensive Tackle
- Smith, Harrison – Safety
Adofo-Mensah’s Men
- Addison, Jordan – Wide Receiver
- Asamoah, Brian – Linebacker
- Beauplan, Abraham – Linebacker
- Blackmon, Mekhi – Corner
- Booth Jr., Andrew – Corner
- Bullard, Jonathan – Defensive Tackle
- Byrd, Henry – Offensive Line
- Cashman, Blake – Linebacker
- Carter II, Andre – Edge Rusher
- Chandler, Ty – Running Back
- Cindric, Matt – Center
- Cine, Lewis – Safety
- Cloyd, K.J. – Linebacker
- Darnold, Sam – Quarterback
- Evans, Akayleb – Corner
- Feeney, Dan – Offensive Guard/Center
- Flax, Jeremy – Offensive Tackle
- Gant, Dallas – Linebacker
- Gaskin, Myles – Running Back
- Green, A.J. – Corner
- Greenard, Jonathan – Edge Rusher
- Griffin, Shaquill – Corner
- Grugier-Hill, Kamu – Linebacker
- Hall, Jaren – Quarterback
- Harper, Devron – Wide Receiver
- Harry, N’Keal – Wide Receiver
- Hockenson, T.J. – Tight End
- Ingram, Ed – Guard
- Jackson, Khyree – Corner
- Jackson, Lucky – Wide Receiver
- Jackson, Theo – Safety
- Jackson, Trishton – Receiver
- James, Ty – Wide Receiver
- Jones, Aaron – Running Back
- Jones, Jeshaun – Wide Receiver
- Jurgens, Michael – Center/Guard
- Knowles, Malik – Wide Receiver
- Knox, Trey – Tight End
- Manoa, Tyler – Defensive Tackle
- McBride, DeWayne – Running Back
- McCarthy, J.J. – Quarterback
- McGlothern, Dwight – Corner
- Mullens, Nick – Quarterback
- Mundt, Johnny – Tight End
- Murphy Jr., Byron – Corner
- Murphy, Gabriel – Edge Rusher
- Muse, Nick – Tight End
- Nailor, Jalen – Wide Receiver
- Nester, Doug – Offensive Tackle
- Oliver, Josh – Tight End
- Pace Jr., Ivan – Linebacker
- Phillips, Harrison – Defensive Tackle
- Porter, Owen – Edge Rusher
- Powell, Brandon – Wide Receiver/Punt Returner
- Quessenberry, David – Offensive Tackle
- Reichard, Will – Kicker
- Reyes, Sammis – Tight End
- Richter, Bo – Edge Rusher
- Robinson, Tyrese – Offensive Lineman
- Rodriguez, Levi Drake – Defensive Tackle
- Rolland, Spencer – Offensive Tackle
- Romo, John Parker – Kicker
- Rouse, Walter – Offensive Tackle
- Roy, Jaquelin – Defensive Tackle
- Sherfield, Trent – Wide Receiver
- Taimani, Taki – Defensive Tackle
- Thomas, Thayer – Wide Receiver
- Thompson, NaJee – Corner
- Tillery, Jerry – Defensive Tackle
- Tonyan, Robert — Tight End
- Turner, Dallas – Edge Rusher
- Van Ginkel, Andrew – Edge Rusher
- Vernon, Seth – Punter
- Ward, Jay – Defensive Back
- Ward, Jihad – Edge Rusher
- Wright, Ryan – Punter
- Williams, Jaylin – Corner
- Williams, Jonah – Defensive Tackle
Last Update: Tuesday, May 21st, 2024.
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