The Vikings' brain trust continue to set precedents. Never, before Kwesi Adofo-Mensah and Kevin O'Connell took over, had a first-year Vikings coach and general manager won 13 games.
After the draft, Vikings' advantage in the NFC North remains, as does their uncertainty at quarterback
Prospects for the Lions, Packers and Bears changed little with the draft, but the new brain trust built on their success — and left open a nagging question.
April 30, 2023 at 2:29AM
And never, before Thursday, had a Vikings GM, asked how late he was going to work into the night during the NFL draft, indicated he was headed not for a pull-out bed in his office, but for a night spa.
"You know, I've been told I've got to go home," Adofo-Mensah said. "The home sauna has been turned on. I've got to go in for 30 minutes, get up and do it again tomorrow."
There will be grizzled Vikings fans who remember Bud Grant, Jerry Burns and Mike Zimmer, and would prefer the general manager to reference beer, whiskey and shooting animals whose heads could be displayed in a hunting lodge.
This is a new era, featuring loafers without socks, midnight steam rooms and conspicuous geniality.
These are still early days for this regime, but this is what Adofo-Mensah would have been thinking in that sauna if he weren't such a positive guy:
"Next spring will be like this spring — we're going to win the division, and still not know who our quarterback of the future is."
The Vikings have barely begun to install their systems, they got little immediate value out of their first draft, they chose a 175-pound receiver in the first round of their second draft, and they are positioned to dominate the NFC North again.
Before KAM and KOC arrived, the Vikings hadn't won the division since 2017, and had won it just twice since 2009.
In 2022, they won the division by four games. In the last week, they might have expanded their advantage.
The Detroit Lions, darlings of the national media? They had a slew of players suspended for gambling, then used the 12th pick in the draft on a running back, traded the last running back they mistakenly spent a high draft pick on, and used the 18th pick on an inside linebacker. This is like buying fuzzy dice and a subwoofer before you own a car.
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The Green Bay Packers, the former Kings of the North? They traded their Hall of Fame quarterback, leaving them dependent on Jordan Love; received little in return for Aaron Rodgers because of their lack of leverage; and went 8-9 last year.
The Chicago Bears? They might be on the right track in building around dynamic quarterback Justin Fields, but they went 3-14 last year.
The Vikings went 13-4, and this year will add two first-rounders (safety Lewis Cine, their first pick in 2022, and Jordan Addison, 2023); a second-rounder (2022 draft pick Andrew Booth Jr., a talented cornerback); and defensive coordinator Brian Flores.
The Vikings should win the North for a second consecutive season for the first time since 2008-09. But if they can't become a threat to win a Super Bowl, they may respond to their almost-unprecedented success by desperately seeking a new quarterback.
The smart speculation this week had the Vikings coveting Florida quarterback Anthony Richardson, who would have been perfect. He could have learned under Kirk Cousins for a year, then tried to become the next Jalen Hurts.
The North might be the Vikings' for the taking, but advancing to a Super Bowl will likely require superlative quarterback play.
While the Vikings added a receiver, a few defenders and a quarterback who will compete for the backup job, the best team in the NFC, the Philadelphia Eagles, added two potential star defenders in the first round: defensive tackle Jalen Carter and edge rusher Nolan Smith.
The 49ers remain loaded, and may have been good enough to challenge the Eagles last year had they been healthy in the playoffs. The Vikings will need much to go right to compete with those teams.
Their apparent interest in Richardson, combined with their unwillingness to give Cousins a lucrative long-term deal, tells you all you need to know about the Vikings' relationship with their starting quarterback.
They like him. They do not love him. They might not put a ring on his finger unless he puts a ring on theirs.
Jim Souhan's podcast can be heard at TalkNorth.com. On Twitter: @SouhanStrib. jsouhan@startribune.com
Mike Conley was in Minneapolis, where he sounded the Gjallarhorn at the Vikings game, on Sunday during the robbery.
