A Kwesi Masterclass Is Slowly Taking Shape
Every April, 32 fan bases in the National Football League look up the draft capital of their team. They want to see as many picks as possible, and those should be slotted as highly as possible, of course. Especially, fans of underwhelming teams at least have good picks as compensation for their nightmares throughout the season.
A Kwesi Masterclass Is Slowly Taking Shape
In the last few years, however, Vikings fans haven’t had high or many picks. GM Kwesi Adofo-Mensah has pulled off some big-time trades. He acquired T.J. Hockenson in 2022 and an extra first-rounder in 2024. That, paired with various smaller movies, such as trading for Cam Akers (twice) or Josh Dobbs, resulted in some tiny draft classes.
At least, he has found a cheat code, and he doesn’t stop using it: Compensatory picks.
When more qualifying players depart than arrive in a team’s free agency, the league compensates that team with some extra draft capital a year later. The more money the departed players signed for, the better the pick. For example, Kirk Cousins’ exit a year ago turned into pick 97 in the 2025 draft, which, after a trade, was used to select wideout Tai Felton.
There’s a complicated formula behind all of that, and only the league knows the details. However, some online folks track the picks each year and have formed a good idea of how those work.
What we know so far is that the Vikings should get the 97th pick again. It is the top compensatory pick, and Sam Darnold signed the top contract in free agency. Cam Robinson, whom the franchise acquired at the trade deadline, also received a decent salary from Houston, and so did Daniel Jones, who left for Indianapolis to earn a starting gig.
The people at Over The Cap track the projected compensatory picks, and they currently have the Vikings getting a third for Darnold, a fourth for Jones, and a fifth for Robinson.
Tuesday’s news of Jones starting over Anthony Richardson could have an impact because Jones has incentives in his contract, and if he can unlock that money, it would count towards his salary. Well, that raise would bump his comp pick from the fifth to the currently projected fourth.
Nick Korte, who’s the authority on the matter, noted, “This is good news for the Vikings so far. If Daniel Jones plays enough snaps this season, they are more likely to get a 4th rounder instead of a 5th rounder in a compensatory pick for Daniel Jones going to Indy.”
Jason Fitzgerald from Over The Cap added to the conversation, “Daniel Jones will earn $100k for each Colts win. $1m tied to making the playoffs. Also bonuses for winning playoff games. These are incentives on top of his $14m contract.”
The Vikings have their picks for next year’s draft class in-house. In recent years, Adofo-Mensah has shipped picks away to acquire players, but not this time. Add in those three extra picks in the mid-rounds, and the 2026 class could be a nice change from years past.
However, with those incoming picks in the back of his mind, the GM could also trade a pick or two away to address some of the roster’s flaws, like acquiring another quarterback, receiver, or cornerback, without missing a beat.
The best part about the potential pick for Jones is that he barely cost anything. He was stashed on the practice squad for a little over a month and was activated ahead of the lone postseason game to be eligible for the compensatory pick formula. That cost the Vikings a total of $127,800, which is peanuts in the NFL world.
Adofo-Mensah has not particularly nailed all his draft picks, but his usage of resources in the last few years has been excellent. An example is that he allowed Danielle Hunter to walk and then turned around and signed Andrew Van Ginkel and Jonathan Greenard for an average annual salary of $28 million. Multiple pass rushers in the league make more than that alone.
The GM received a contract extension in the offseason, and the team he has built for the 2025 campaign should be competitive. Next year, he might have some draft capital to play with. The Vikings will monitor Jones’ development throughout the year.
Editor’s Note: Information from PFF, Over The Cap, and Pro Football Reference helped with this article.