Vikings GM Search Already Has a Frontrunner

On January 30th, five days after the 2025 NFC Championship — where Sam Darnold punched the Seattle Seahawks’ ticket to the Super Bowl — the Minnesota Vikings fired general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah, replacing him with interim GM Rob Brzezinski, who previously held the title of executive vice president of football operations. Two months later, Brzezinski is the frontrunner to keep the job full-time.

Minnesota’s next front-office move could stay internal, and Brzezinski has real momentum for the job.

Brzezinski embarks on the NFL draft in three weeks, and that might be his final test.

Brzezinski Has a Legit Path to the Top Job

Vikings’ general manager search may not be too external.

Ian Rapoport on Brzezinski

The NFL began its annual league meetings on Monday, and NFL Network‘s Ian Rapoport was there with updates.

He said on Vikings Entertainment Network about Brzezinski, “He’s always had a strong voice in the organization… If a team was smart and they wanted to hire a GM who doesn’t just scout, doesn’t just grind tape, but really understands how an organization works, really operates it at a very high level, does great contracts, makes really good trades, someone who just runs the business of football.

“Like he’d be someone team should hire and for whatever reason, partially because he’s very loyal, has stayed in Minnesota. But to me, like this is someone who probably should have been a GM already, so I wasn’t surprised to see him get the interim title. I would expect him to be a pretty strong candidate for the full-time job as well, as he should be.”

It’s a pretty damn big deal for a man to be in charge of free agency, onboarding quarterback Kyler Murray, and running a draft. The clues suggest Brzezinski is a) trusted b) the frontrunner to keep his job.

Mark Wilf on Next GM Criteria

Vikings owner Mark Wilf also spoke at league meetings. He said about his GM criteria. “We’re gonna be deliberate about it, but we know we need to get moving for the next college season and all that and get ready.”

“Once the draft’s concluded, we’ll get going with interviews, and moving towards a relatively expeditious process to get it going. We certainly want someone who is a great leader. Someone who can lead. We feel we have a great scouting staff. Great coaching staff.”

Brzezinski has worked for the Vikings since 1999. He’s probably a keeper.

“Of course, never resting on any laurels. We want to be competitive every single year and have long-term success. So someone’s got to fit within that. It’s got to fit within what we have in our building right now, as well. So it’s a host of factors. Hopefully we’ll know it when we see it,” Wilf added.

Possibly a Rubber Stamp for Brzezinski?

Indeed, the Vikings will probably — and should — conduct a full interview cycle for a new general manager, but the writing is on the wall for Brzezinski as “the guy.” He joined the franchise one year after Randy Moss was drafted; he has that type of staying power. Players, coaches, and other coworkers seem to like him. His budget acumen is widely renowned.

So long as the upcoming draft doesn’t resemble a schematic train wreck, Brzezinski has the tools, intelligence, and experience to keep his current job with a full-time bump.

The only thing working against him? If the Vikings want a true scout of rookie talent, well, they may have to tap someone else on the shoulder.

But most fans believe that’s what O’Connell and defensive coordinator Brian Flores are for.

Letting Kevin O’Connell Sink or Swim

Another reason Brzezinski may remain in charge concerns O’Connell. It’s rare for an NFL franchise to only fire a general manager while retaining the head coach. Minnesota values O’Connell that much. So, in theory, O’Connell is the current Team CEO, the true mastermind calling the shots, with Brzezinski employed to run the budget and solve any decision-making tiebreakers.

Think of this way: Suppose the 2026 season goes off the rails, and the Vikings determine O’Connell isn’t the right fit. It will be more seamless to terminate O’Connell and tell Brzezinski “thanks but no thanks,” only to turn around and hire a fresh and official new leadership tandem.

By retaining O’Connell and firing Adofo-Mensah, Minnesota proved that it trusts O’Connell’s decision-making. It’s up to him to prove that Adofo-Mensah’s roster-building held the enterprise back.

Brzezinski, as the guy behind O’Connell, fits the current arrangement. He’s the silent guy with a title behind O’Connell, the guy who’s really in charge.