After parting with his first Vikings draft picks, GM Kwesi Adofo-Mensah reflects on his rushed NFL draft debut

Every member of the media, social media and Vikings Nation from sea to shining sea has weighed in ad nauseam the past two years on the weakness of General Manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah’s 2022 draft class.

Thursday was Adofo-Mensah’s turn at the mic as he met with local reporters for the first time since parting with safety Lewis Cine and cornerback Andrew Booth Jr., the first two picks of his first draft as an NFL team’s final decisionmaker. Cine was released in Tuesday’s final cuts after playing 10 defensive snaps with no starts in 10 games. Booth was traded earlier this month after one career start.

“If it gets to a place where, from both sides, it’s best if you part ways, I think that’s when you do it,” Adofo-Mensah said. “I have great respect for those guys. They wanted nothing but to be great Minnesota Vikings. Life doesn’t always work out the way you wanted it to.”

Adofo-Mensah didn’t hide from his role in the carnage. He admitted to making mistakes. He spoke in general terms, not highlighting any particular lowlight, while describing how he erred in trying to hurry the process of building a team through a draft that took place just three months after he was hired to replace Rick Spielman and two months after current coach Kevin O’Connell arrived from the Rams after winning the Super Bowl as offensive coordinator.

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Adofo-Mensah compared his feeling in that draft to what it must have felt like for O’Connell when he was down 33-0 against the Colts before staging the largest comeback victory in NFL history in 2022.

“When I entered the building, trying to compete; aging roster, salary cap [problems],” Adofo-Mensah said. “As we all know from that [Colts] game, it starts with one play, one drive, and you build.”

Instead, an admittedly over-eager Adofo-Mensah traded down 20 spots with Detroit, from 12 to 32, focusing more on the quantity of picks than the well-documented All-Pro quality that was sitting in his lap (i.e. safety Kyle Hamilton, drafted by the Ravens). Then, in the second round, he traded up 11 spots to select Booth, whose injury issues were well known.

“I think at times I might have been guilty of trying to maybe have a 33-point play all at once,” Adofo-Mensah said. “And I think once I identified that, I kind of … you’ve seen since then [the Vikings draft process] has been really foundationally just taking good steps, building to a certain critical point where I think we can compete over the long term.”

Six players remain on the roster from the 2022 draft: Right guard Ed Ingram (second round), inside linebacker Brian Asamoah II (third), cornerback Akayleb Evans (fourth), running back Ty Chandler (fifth), receiver Jalen Nailor (sixth) and tight end Nick Muse (seventh). Ingram is the only starter, albeit the most tentative one on the team.

O’Connell also spoke about how rushed the Vikings were going into that 2022 draft.

“The Wednesday I was introduced [as coach], the combine might have been a week and a half later,” he said. “We were compressed for time, trying to trust in building some immediate processes that we believed in and talked about during the interview process.”

The Vikings believe they’ve improved their draft process. O’Connell also pointed out some positives relating to what the team did late in the draft and after it ended that year. Chandler and Nailor should have an impact this year as RB2 and WR3 while punter Ryan Wright was an undrafted rookie that year.

Adofo-Mensah said the self-scouting is an ongoing process.

“You’re always trying to figure out if there were things within our control,” he said. “That’s why I get to stand up here, because of all the things that go into it, the outcomes … fall at my feet. I got to figure out how to do it in the best way possible.”

How this year’s roster ultimately performs will help judge Adofo-Mensah’s progress in that regard.

“We believe in this team,” he said. “I believe in [O’Connell] and how he’s handling his business. We’re excited about this season.”

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