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The Vikings’ 3 Biggest Offseason Turning Points So Far

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Kwesi Adofo-Mensah speaks to reporters at the NFL Combine.
Minnesota Vikings general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah addresses reporters during media availability at the NFL Scouting Combine on Mar. 1, 2022 in Indianapolis, Indiana. Adofo-Mensah fielded questions as he began his first offseason leading Minnesota’s front office. Mandatory Credit: Trevor Ruszkowski-Imagn Images.

The Minnesota Vikings’ offseason, through about six weeks, has not been quiet, and the club has just three weeks until free agency, when the lid really pops off. To recap, the following is a list of the three most meaningful events of the purple team’s offseason to date — with several more to come.

Three developments have shaped Minnesota’s offseason early, setting the priorities at quarterback, the staff, and the front office.

In fact, the Vikings’ offseason is truly defined by three main events.

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Three Turning Points Already Defining Minnesota’s Offseason

Counting down the order (No. 1 = biggest offseason moments to date), here we go.

Kevin O’Connell patrols the sideline during a Vikings game at Croke Park in Dublin. Vikings offseason turning points.
Minnesota Vikings head coach Kevin O’Connell walks the sideline as the second quarter progresses on Sep. 28, 2025, during an NFL International Series matchup against the Pittsburgh Steelers at Croke Park in Dublin, Ireland. O’Connell tracked the action closely amid the charged overseas atmosphere that framed Minnesota’s appearance on the global stage. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images.

3. Vikings Announced “Deep QB Room” as Main Priority

After an initial delay for unknown reasons, the Vikings held a press conference to recap 2025 and discuss the future. Former general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah was even there.

Asked if the Vikings would commit to J.J. McCarthy as the 2026 QB1, head coach Kevin O’Connell — now de facto general manager after Adofo-Mensah’s termination — replied: “Ultimately, I think in the quarterback room, it’s about having just the deepest, most talented room you possibly can, every single year.”

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“What that looks like at a pretty impactful position on your salary cap, when you’re able to possibly plan for your depth chart looking in a way where you can be competitive no matter what. I think there has to be competition at quarterback. I think that’s what’s gonna make everybody better in that room. It’s gonna be what makes our entire offense thrive through that competition.”

His response to the McCarthy question … was “we need a deep quarterback room.”

Adofo-Mensah, now irrelevant, was asked the same question, and he said the Vikings must achieve their offseason goals, completely ducking a commitment to McCarthy.

In that moment, from O’Connell and Adofo-Mensah, fans learned that Minnesota would not simply find another Sam Howell or Carson Wentz; the Vikings will trade for or sign a quarterback to push McCarthy to the limit this summer or flat-out take his job.

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NFL- and Vikings-themed media have speculated this week that Kyler Murray could be the Vikings’ target. ESPN’s Josh Weinfuss wrote about Murray’s trade price tag last month: “An NFC source believes the starting price for Murray, if Arizona is interested in trading him, could start with a second-round pick.”

“That source believes if the Cardinals can trade Murray, they will. The league source believes Murray’s market starts with a third-round pick. That source compared Murray’s situation with Geno Smith’s when he was traded from Seattle to Las Vegas last March for a third-round.”

2. Brian Flores Signs Contract Extension

Flores received head coaching sniffs from the Pittsburgh Steelers and Baltimore Ravens, two fundamentally solid organizations that seemed on a track to perhaps hire him. The Steelers ultimately — and hilariously — chose Mike McCarthy, and the Ravens landed on Jesse Minter.

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Brian Flores watches from the field during a Vikings playoff game in Arizona.
Minnesota Vikings defensive coordinator Brian Flores stands on the field on Jan. 13, 2025, at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona, during the NFC Wild Card matchup against the Los Angeles Rams. Flores surveyed the scene as his defense prepared for another postseason challenge under the playoff spotlight. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images.

Striking out for a fifth consecutive offseason in finding a head coaching job, Flores re-signed with the Vikings for a reported $6 million per year. He’s not going anywhere.

Minnesota’s defense will feature continuity at the top and have a chance to build on these numbers:

  • 1st in Pass Rush Win Rate
  • 2nd in Yards Allowed
  • 3rd in Defense DVOA
  • 3rd in EPA/Play
  • 4th in Defensive 3rd Down Conv%
  • 7th in Points Allowed

The Vikings would’ve risked a statistical tumble by hiring a non-Flores newcomer.

1. The Kwesi Adofo-Mensah Era Ends

Some, including this website, whispered in November and December that the Vikings needed a new general manager because Adofo-Mensah’s awful drafting habits were coming home to roost. The team held a 4-8 record, and McCarthy could not stay on the field.

Minnesota rallied, winning five games to close out 2025 and finishing the wayward campaign with a right-side-up record. Black Monday rolled around, and the Vikings did not fire Adofo-Mensah. He was safe. He was allowed to move freely in the 2026 offseason, deciding whether to keep McCarthy or try something new.

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Kwesi Adofo-Mensah stands on the sideline before a Vikings game in Dublin.
Minnesota Vikings general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah observes pregame activity on Sep. 28, 2025, at Croke Park in Dublin, Ireland, before Minnesota’s International Series contest against the Pittsburgh Steelers. Adofo-Mensah stood along the sideline as players finalized warmups in the unique overseas setting. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images.

But after Sam Darnold and his Seattle Seahawks won the NFC Championship, something changed in Vikingland. The team’s owners, the Wilfs, fired Adofo-Mensah five days later, marking one of the most shocking offseason transactions in Vikings history because of the timing. Nobody was terribly surprised that an executive with Adofo-Mensah’s draft record would be canned, especially after bungling the Darnold matter, but firing him 3.5 weeks after the end of the regular season was bizarre.

The team promoted to capologist Rob Brzezinski to interim general manager, making O’Connell the personnel general manager by default until the Wilfs hire a formal replacement.

The Adofo-Mensah era is over, and perhaps the bad drafts will cease.


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Beat the Streets rolls out to more UK locations

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By Kath Hudson    07 Mar 2026

Beat the Streets launches in five more locations this spring

Founded by Dr William Bird, it turns every journey into a game

Offering free participation, it has been proven to engage individuals from the most deprived communities

In 2025, social value was calculated at £321.80 per adult

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Beat the Streets has announced plans to launch in a number of new towns this spring.

Bloxwich launched in February and will be followed by Colchester on 11 March. Hendon and Grangetown; Penzance and St Austell will all launch later this month.  

Beat the Streets turns towns and cities into a giant game with friendly competition to see how far an individual or their team can walk, run or cycle around their community, turning every journey into a game.

First introduced near Reading in 2013, it has now reached two million adults and children in more than 200 places across the world. 

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It was the brainchild of Dr William Bird, who founded Intelligent Health in 2010 to create a world where every community is designed for health, and every individual has the agency and the environment to flourish. 

An analysis of nine programmes in 2024/25 showed that 40 per cent of registered participants came from the 20 per cent most deprived communities. Children from the most deprived areas (IMD 1–2), demonstrated a 7 per cent reduction in the proportion classified as less active and the rate of children achieving more than 60 minutes of daily activity increased by 8.4 percentage points. 

On average, programmes engage 12 per cent of the population and 68 per cent of adult players were women.

The social value was calculated at £321.80 per adult participant and extrapolated to 54,365 adult players this generated an estimated wellbeing value of around £17.5 million.

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The game is free for all players and for partners purchasing the programme for their area, the average cost to engage a participant was £12.73 in 2024/25.

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Free emblems, new cosmetics, and more

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Diablo 4 is collaborating with yet another major franchise in Season 12: Season of Slaughter. This time, the crossover is with Doom: The Dark Ages, bringing the Slayer’s aesthetic to Sanctuary through thematic rewards, premium cosmetics, and free emblems during a limited-time event.

This event will begin on March 11, 2026, at 10 am PT and is set to run until 10 am PT on March 18, 2026.


Everything we know about the Doom: The Dark Ages collaboration

Season 12 of Diablo 4 is also known as the Season of Slaughter (Image via Blizzard Entertainment)Season 12 of Diablo 4 is also known as the Season of Slaughter (Image via Blizzard Entertainment)
Season 12 of Diablo 4 is also known as the Season of Slaughter (Image via Blizzard Entertainment)

This crossover introduces the “most expansive earnable Reliquary yet” to Diablo 4 Season 12. During its run, players can battle enemies to earn Dark Ages Currency, a new currency tied to the Doom: The Dark Ages event.

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To earn Dark Ages Currency, players must slay Elite and Champion enemies. The currency can then be spent on Doom: The Dark Ages-themed cosmetics from the event reliquary.

The reliquary contains 10 unique transmogs inspired by the Doom Slayer’s arsenal. Each cosmetic costs 100x Dark Ages Currency. Examples include:

  • Shield Saw cosmetic skin
  • Doom Slayer’s Flail weapon cosmetic

These items give your character a Doom-inspired makeover, perfect for facing Sanctuary’s demons.

Once you have acquired all the rewards, you will be able to claim the bonus Forsaken Gates Town Portal.

Players can get Doom: The Dark Ages-themed cosmetics from the reliquary (Image via Blizzard Entertainment)Players can get Doom: The Dark Ages-themed cosmetics from the reliquary (Image via Blizzard Entertainment)
Players can get Doom: The Dark Ages-themed cosmetics from the reliquary (Image via Blizzard Entertainment)

Doom Chests: Boss drops

In addition to the reliquary rewards, players can earn loot by engaging bosses. Lair Bosses in Season 12 have a chance of dropping Doom Chests, which contain Unique items with Doom Crucible-themed transmogs. This provides players with special cosmetic versions of gear and an incentive to challenge high-tier bosses in the Season of Slaughter.

Also read – Diablo 4 Season 12: The strongest builds, based on PTR meta

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Free Doom: The Dark Ages emblems in Diablo 4 Season 12

Players can fight Elite enemies, collect Dark Ages Currency, and purchase these cosmetics (Image via Blizzard Entertainment)Players can fight Elite enemies, collect Dark Ages Currency, and purchase these cosmetics (Image via Blizzard Entertainment)
Players can fight Elite enemies, collect Dark Ages Currency, and purchase these cosmetics (Image via Blizzard Entertainment)

Blizzard Entertainment is also giving away multiple free emblems during the event period via the in-game shop. You can claim them on the following dates and timings:

  • March 11, 12 pm PT – Dark Before the Dawn
  • March 13, 12 pm PT – Grandeur of the Gutted
  • March 15, 12 pm PT – Rip and Tear

These emblems are completely free; you only need to log in to the game in order to claim them.

Also read – Diablo 4 Season 12 PTR: Best builds for every class


Paid premium cosmetics

Alongside free rewards, you can also obtain optional paid cosmetics from the in-game shop starting from March 12, 2026, at 12 pm PT. The items include:

  • Doom Slayer Armor (cross-class armor set)
  • Mecha Dragon Serrat cat mount skin
  • Cacodemon pet

Blizzard has not yet confirmed the prices of these cosmetics. However, based on previous crossover cosmetics, they may range between $20 and $30 each.

Also read – D4 Lord of Hatred will bring back iconic crafting item from D2


The Doom: The Dark Ages collaboration will launch with Season 12: Season of Slaughter, which also introduces Bloodied Items, the Killstreak system, and the player ability to temporarily transform into The Butcher, complete with unique skills and gameplay mechanics.

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Players will also be able to check out the new Paladin Class (from the upcoming Lord of Hatred expansion) up to level 25. With free reliquary items, Doom cosmetics, and a Paladin class trial, Season 12 is shaping up to be one of the most exciting seasons yet in Diablo 4.

For more details on Diablo 4 Season 12, visit the game’s official website.

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