The Vikings had signed $180 million with eight players in the…
In the first two days of the NFL season, the Vikings signed eight players, making their largest free agent acquisition since Kwesi Adofo-Mensah took over as general manager in 2022. Later on Thursday afternoon, the team was scheduled to present five of those players to the media: linebackers Jonathan Greenard, Blake Cashman, Andrew Van Ginkel, and quarterback Sam Darnold.
Adofo-Mensah and coach Kevin O’Connell had to first sit down at a table and discuss why they had chosen to part ways with the quarterback that they had both stated they wished to keep.
“Everybody knows how myself, [Kwesi], this organization feels about Kirk,” said O’Connell. “And you know, there are instances when things just don’t work out. Even though I would have preferred to have Kirk here, where we are now is the best course of action for our squad going ahead.”
In a way, Adofo-Mensah and O’Connell had finally achieved autonomy at this time, two years into their administration of the Vikings’ football fortunes. After the 2023 decisions to release veterans like Eric Kendricks, Adam Thielen, and Dalvin Cook, as well as their cautious approach to contract discussions with Cousins that finally resulted in the quarterback’s departure, their financial condition was as clear-cut as ever.
O’Connell and Adofo-Mensah have a bright and promising future ahead of them, with over $100 million in salary cap space at their disposal in 2025. They also lacked a contract with Justin Jefferson, a stable core of cornerbacks, and a long-term quarterback solution—at least for the time being.
It will be up to them to figure out the answers to those issues, beginning with the much anticipated spring quarterback hunt. The Vikings’ decision-makers were clearly going it alone after their splits with Cousins and Danielle Hunter, two of the last connections to the Rick Spielman-Mike Zimmer era.
