The Vikings GM Struck Out on 3 Trades in August, Creating November Problems
In football, issues at the beginning of a play can lead to issues at the end of a play, as the Vikings GM understands.
Consider, for instance, a moment when a linebacker gets duped by play action. Coming too far forward in the play’s opening second can lead to being out of position in the play’s second, third, and fourth second. A center’s bad snap at the beginning of a play can lead to a quarterback failing to work through progressions later on; a defensive lineman who doesn’t plug his gap can lead to a problem for the free safety a few moments afterwards since a runner has a ton of momentum.
Spend enough time around football and one will see various other instances where early mistakes lead to consequences down the road.
As things relate to the Vikings GM, one thinks of the trading back in late August. Hindsight is undefeated in football analysis, but some of the moves needed to be better. Shipping out DT Harrison Phillips, giving up on CB Mekhi Blackmon, and forfeiting picks (and cap space) for WR Adam Thielen have almost instantly aged poorly. Given the chance, would Kwesi Adofo-Mensah undo all of those swaps?
The Vikings GM and The Late-August Trades
To begin, consider a trade that has an uncertain result: sending Sam Howell to Philadelphia.
The passer was added during the 2025 NFL Draft. Trading involved losing draft position in exchange for picks further down the board alongside the passer who began his career in Washington. Ideally, Howell could have been someone who supported J.J. McCarthy by being capable of helping with the mental workload while also being someone who can step into the game.
Somewhere along the line, though, Howell proved a poor fit for the job. Kwesi Adofo-Mensah sent him and a 6th to Philadelphia in exchange for a 5th an a 7th.
With the other three swaps — Phillips, Blackmon, and Thielen — the fist couple months appear poor.
For starters, there’s the run defense, or lack thereof. Horrible Harry specializes in clogging running lanes. He’s an active player along the defensive line and deceptively strong. He doesn’t look like Pat Williams or Vince Wilfork but he nevertheless proves to be very difficult to displace. Subtracting him from the mix made some sense given the additions of Jonathan Allen alongside Javon Hargrave, but neither of those players have been sturdy enough against the run.
With Blackmon, there was clearly an issue.
The preseason involved moving him around the defensive backfield. He’s built like a slot corner but does better along the outside. Notably, he was added in the 2023 NFL Draft, meaning he didn’t need to make the transition from Ed Donatell to Brian Flores. Jeff Okudah is the current CB3. He has struggled in 2025 and is now out ahead of Week 9 due to a concussion. Might the 3rd-Round selection have helped?
And then there’s Mr. Thielen.
Bringing the legend back to town was a great story. And, to be sure, there was some reason to seek out receiver insurance. Justin Jefferson missed essentially all of August, Jordan Addison was suspended for the opening three games, and Jalen Nailor was working through his own injury. Transitioning to J.J. McCarthy without (potentially) those three would have been football malpractice.
Again, though, we’re talking about a decision that ended up looking iffy at best. Much better would have been to add someone like K.J. Osborn, a much cheaper option who could have matched Thielen’s 5 catches for 47 scoreless yards as Minnesota’s WR4.
In Week 9, the Vikings will be looking to push the record to 4-4. Doing so means sitting at .500 as the team gets healthy before passing the midway point of the schedule. Not fantastic, not disastrous. Good enough to consider adding someone while making a push for the postseason, especially if there’s a convincing win at Ford Field.
Losing, though, could lead to a different response: trading away talent as success gets pushed into the future. Doing so does have its merits, but the key for Kwesi Adofo-Mensah will rest in seeking to avoid a collection of trades that age poorly almost instantly.
