Vikings GM Kwesi Adofo-Mensah has failed to upgrade talent on roster

As starting guard Ezra Cleveland limped off the field, Dalton Risner jogged on to make his Vikings debut.

He played 10 snaps Sunday against the Chicago Bears. That's 10 more than safety Lewis Cine, the Vikings' first-round draft pick in 2022, played, even though Cine was listed as uninjured before the game.

The harsh reality of Justin Jefferson's hamstring injury and the wild speculation about Kirk Cousins' future have dominated headlines of late, but a major factor in the Vikings' 2023 struggles has been the lack of depth and quality on their roster.

They are 2-4 for a reason. That reason: They have failed to upgrade their overall talent under the new regime led by General Manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah.

In the 2022 NFL draft, Adofo-Mensah traded down, avoiding taking safety Kyle Hamilton and allowing the Detroit Lions to choose wide receiver Jameson Williams.

Hamilton is becoming a star for the Baltimore Ravens. Williams hasn't played much but has produced big plays when he has for the 5-1 Lions. Cine isn't playing, even on special teams, for a team that likes using three and four safeties at a time. He has not come close to displacing starting safety Camryn Bynum, a fourth-round draft pick in 2021.

The rest of the 2022 draft has offered little in the way of immediate value. Second-round pick Andrew Booth Jr. is a backup cornerback. Second-round pick Ed Ingram is a struggling starting guard. Third-round pick Brian Asamoah II is playing sparingly at linebacker. Fourth-round pick Akayleb Evans is a starting cornerback. The final five picks in that draft produced, essentially, third-string running back Ty Chandler.

During the 2022 season, the Vikings traded for T.J. Hockenson, and this year they made him the highest-paid tight end in NFL history. Hockenson produced immediately last season. This season, he has failed to secure a number of passes that hit him in the hands. His fumble against Tampa Bay opened the door for an upset loss. He batted a last-second pass against the Los Angeles Chargers into the air for a game-losing interception.

He has caught 36 passes for 304 yards and two touchdowns. His statistics are impressive. He has not passed the eye test this season, failing to make a number of catches that were difficult but should be expected to be made by the highest-paid player at his position.

The two most important defensive acquisitions of the offseason were pass rusher Marcus Davenport and cornerback Byron Murphy Jr. Davenport has been impressive when healthy. He was available as a free agent because of his injury history. This season, he has played in only three games and finished just two, after limping off with an ankle injury Sunday in Chicago.

Murphy made his first interception of the season in Chicago on a long, ill-advised pass from Bears rookie Tyson Bagent. Murphy is replacing Patrick Peterson, who had five interceptions for the Vikings last season.

The Vikings spent about $4 million to bring in Risner last month. The price and timing of his signing indicated that he would quickly become a starter. He has not.

Tight end Josh Oliver was signed to bolster the running game, and much was made of his untapped receiving ability during training camp. He has eight catches for 64 yards, and his lost fumble against Kansas City was one of the key plays in that loss.

The Vikings had obvious flaws when Adofo-Mensah took over: a poor interior offensive line, few pass rushers to support Danielle Hunter, a lack of a succession plan for star safety Harrison Smith, poor depth and quality at cornerback, a lack of speed at linebacker and no long-term future quarterback.

Those problems all remain.

Vikings coach Kevin O'Connell said Monday that Cine could see the field this week. He also hinted that Davenport could miss more time with his injury.

Winning 13 games in 2022 masked the Vikings' problems. The mask is off this season.

That doesn't make the 2023 team hopeless. These problems just make contending all the more difficult and place the burden of responsibility on the same, familiar faces.