The Vikings’ GM and The Death Knell Domino
The Vikings’ GM has had a poor year.
Kwesi Adofo-Mensah has whiffed on a lot of his decisions. The major money free agents — DT Jonathan Allen, DT Javon Hargrave, C Ryan Kelly, and RG Will Fries — haven’t fulfilled expectations. The trades — WR Adam Thielen, DT Harrison Phillips, CB Mekhi Blackmon, and even QB Sam Howell — have all aged poorly. None of these things are going to be enough to see him canned. What would be the death knell to his career as Minnesota’s top executive is if Justin Jefferson goes nuclear with a public trade request.
The Vikings’ GM & The Vikings’ WR1
We’re a long way off from Jefferson spoofing Adofo-Mensah as a nerdy, bird-watching photographer. The days of Darius Frost feel a long way off.
Most recently, Jefferson was working through the painful reality of not being able to toss the ball to himself (one thinks of Nelson Muntz pulling off the feat for his Sprinfield team, but the town bully is an exception). Getting shutout versus the Seahawks flowed largely from the team’s best player seeing a pair of catches go for 4 yards. As Janik Eckardt pointed out, seeing Jefferson finish with as many yards as Max Brosmer did interceptions means that things went very bad.
Very likely, Mr. Jefferson is moving toward another season of clearing 1,000 yards. The mere fact that that’s in question, though, demonstrates how awful things have gone at quarterback.
WR1 Justin Jefferson has seen 62 receptions go for 799 yards and 2 touchdowns. If the 12.9 yards-per-reception average continues through to the end of the season, Jefferson will have a new career low. His previous worst arrived in 2022 when he had 128 receptions, putting up 14.1 yards per reception. That was the same season where he piled up 1,809 yards and 8 touchdowns.
So, he did alright, as his Offensive Player of the Year Award helped to demonstrate.
No such accolades will arrive at the conclusion of 2025. Getting past the 1,000-yards threshold will have to be accomplishment enough, preserving his streak of getting past the 1K mark in all six seasons of his NFL career. Some will insist that these personal accolades mean nothing, but that’s simply not the case. Jefferson (reasonably) cares about his legacy; so, too, should his team.
Let’s assume, though, that the Vikings go full Vikings. Things continue getting worse. Eventually, Justin Jefferson’s discontent spills over into a public desire to be traded. In that scenario, the Vikings’ GM will have received the death knell to his career with Minnesota.
Previously, Adofo-Mensah has noted that he doesn’t want to be the GM without Jefferson being on the roster. A trade request from the WR1 may make that a reality in a cruel, ironic manner.
Jefferson is a great leader and worker. He’s scrappy and gritty. The all-world player is unique in his commitment to say and do the correct things, working through no shortage of adversity along the way. If the dam breaks, though, Minnesota is in a world of hurt.
The past has featured tremendous receivers forcing their way out. Most notably, there was Randy Moss. One then thinks of Stefon Diggs, the excellent route runner and competitor who became a Bill. The pick that got pried away was the one sunk into Jefferson, more than making up for missing out on making Diggs happy.
The Vikings won’t be so lucky a second time. At minimum, the Vikings would get a pair of 1st-Round choices for #18. At maximum, the Vikings would get a pair of players who come somewhat close to being as good as Jefferson.
And, to be sure, there’s next to no chance that the Wilfs allow Adofo-Mensah to make that trade before then using those picks. Burning up Justin Jefferson’s goodwill would be a monumental failure, a gaffe so horrendous that ownership would likely ditch the GM, hiring a new one, in the franchise equivalent of throwing a Hail Mary pass to somehow stave off a backbreaking loss.
None of this is set in stone. Jefferson is upset and not keen about talking to the media. We’re still a long way away from seeing him request a trade.
The Vikings play the Commanders in Week 14. The Vikings’ GM would be wise to instruct the Vikings’ HC to get the ball into Justin Jefferson’s hands. If Jefferson’s purple hands don’t get the ball, Jefferson’s hands may not be purple for much longer.
