NFL rumors: Vikings linked to reunion with Broncos GM after making ‘wild change’

The Minnesota Vikings shocked the NFL on Friday. Minnesota fired general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah after four seasons with the team. Now the Vikings can add finding a new GM to their list of priorities for the 2026 offseason. One surprising name has popped up as a potential candidate.

The Athletic’s Alec Lewis and Dianna Russini posted an article on Sunday outlining the surprising dismissal. They named a pair of candidates who could become the team’s next GM.

“On Friday, [Vikings President Mark] Wilf did not rule out [Vikings vice president of football operations Rob] Brzezinski emerging as a candidate for the full-time general manager role. Multiple league sources believe he would be deserving of consideration,” Lewis and Russini wrote. “Another name circulating in conversations with league sources is former Vikings executive and current Broncos general manager George Paton, who still has strong internal relationships.

Broncos ownership, and head coach Sean Payton, hold Paton in high regard. Paton is also under contract for the Broncos. Denver will not let another team pry away their general manager so easily.

Russini also reported on Friday that Minnesota may not search for a new GM until after the 2026 NFL Draft.

“The search for a new GM will go down after the draft. Like most teams in this position, expect a pivot, likely the opposite of what they just had,” Russini said. “I’d expect an older school type with a strong scouting background, someone rooted in traditional evaluation and personnel building.”

Russini and Lewis also included some quotes from Vikings sources about Friday’s shocking announcement.

One source thought Kwesi was safe and that the window to fire him had safely passed.

“This is wild,” one team source said. “We all thought the time passed and they decided to keep him. Something changed.”

Adofo-Mensah was clearly under a lot of pressure headed into the offseason. But his colleagues clearly thought he had more time to make changes.

“We knew there’d be a lot of pressure on (Adofo-Mensah) and rightfully so,” another team source said. “But we thought he’d at least see one more season.”

It will be fascinating to see how the Vikings approach the 2026 offseason now that Kwesi is no longer in the picture.

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