EAGAN, Minn. — The Minnesota Vikings’ draft room grew tense Thursday night as the clock ticked on the No. 23 overall pick. One player in particular was still available — a wide receiver the Vikings’ decision-makers had agreed was so talented and likely to make an immediate impact that only a massive ransom should prompt them to trade out from an opportunity to draft him.
And yet here was general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah standing in the middle of the room, listening to trade offers while holding off on submitting the pick everyone wanted: USC receiver Jordan Addison.
During an extended look-in broadcast by NFL Network, and later by Vikings Entertainment Network, owner Zygi Wilf paced around his seat. Coach Kevin O’Connell roamed the room while saying, “This guy’s a Day 1 starter.”
Got us a Day 1 starter.
📞: @Espn_Jordan pic.twitter.com/RTRLnMUvKz
— Minnesota Vikings (@Vikings) April 28, 2023
Not until a few seconds remained did Adofo-Mensah commit to drafting Addison, prompting the requisite celebration in the draft room.
“It’s a deadline league, man,” Adofo-Mensah said later. “… In the moment, it wasn’t a panic. We knew exactly what we’d be willing to do to do different things, and we were very confident with the player we got. We were just waiting to see if anything came up to entice us, and it didn’t, and we ended up with an impactful player [at a] premium position.”
The episode was the most revealing moment of the Vikings’ draft weekend, not only because it illuminated Adofo-Mensah’s process but also because it provided a glimpse into how the organization viewed its roster. Despite having veteran K.J. Osborn ready to slide into the No. 2 receiving role opposite Justin Jefferson, and even though they have two tight ends under contract for a total of $17.6 million this season (T.J. Hockenson and Josh Oliver), the Vikings still viewed wide receiver as a significant need — and Addison as a must-have if available.
It’s fair to ask why, given what seemed to be more dire needs in the short term at cornerback and in the long term at quarterback. Adofo-Mensah and O’Connell addressed the question repeatedly over the weekend, making clear that their offensive scheme needs three genuine and versatile threats at the receiver position. The decision to release 32-year-old veteran Adam Thielen left Jefferson and Osborn as the only proven receivers in their scheme, with 2022 sixth-round pick Jalen Nailor, punt returner Jalen Reagor and journeyman Brandon Powell filling out the depth behind them.
“A lot of people always talk about the best-player-available thing [versus need],” O’Connell said. “It was one of those scenarios where the way the board kind of fell for us, it allowed it to kind of check both boxes. It was a need for us, obviously, after the departure of a great player like Adam Thielen, so we wanted to make sure that if a true impact player at that position was available at our pick, that we were prepared for it.”
It was easy to dismiss pre-draft connections between the Vikings and Addison, whom ESPN’s Draft Predictor considered their likeliest pick if they stayed at No. 23. But the Vikings have built much of their offseason around getting Jefferson more help, and to better capitalize on the coverages he generates, even after he earned All-Pro and Offensive Player of the Year honors in 2022. The acquisition of backup tight end Oliver, Adofo-Mensah has said, added a level of personnel versatility that will break some defensive tendencies. And ensuring a vibrant three-receiver set, which the Vikings used on 825 snaps last season — fourth-most in the NFL — will maximize the ways they can move Jefferson around their formations.
When he spoke to Addison by phone Thursday night, O’Connell told him: “You and Justin Jefferson breaking the huddle at the same time is a problem.” Speaking later to reporters, O’Connell said: “We feel like we’re going to be able to attack some premier matchups and go win some one-on-ones and try to dictate … if people want to defend us certain kinds of ways. We feel like we’ve added a real weapon to combat that.”
At 5-foot-11 and 174 pounds, Addison is built like an NFL slot receiver. But one of the reasons the Vikings were so locked in to drafting him is their belief that he can play at all three receiver positions.
“I think it is very important that any receiver that plays in our offense,” O’Connell said. “Regardless of personnel group, [when] you’re in the game with Justin Jefferson, for us to have the ability to move him around, and then activate you versus some of the premier coverage looks you can get with how people defend Justin. I think [Addison] gives us a chance to do a lot of different things, and then pair him with K.J., possibly working against single coverage and working away from some of the overloaded looks that Justin tends to see. We want to make people pay for that.”
Adofo-Mensah passed on a chance to add a high-ceiling receiver in the 2022 draft, trading out of the No. 12 pick — where the Detroit Lions selected Jameson Williams — and sliding down to the No. 32 overall pick. That move bolstered a perception that Adofo-Mensah prefers to trade down wherever possible, and he was certainly tempted Thursday night. But he acknowledged that a big part of team building is finding impact players, and the availability of those types of players tends to diminish as you get lower in the first round. So it was instructive that after submitting Addison’s name, O’Connell told Adofo-Mensah: “That’s sticking to our plan.”
“Ultimately you’re always playing those scenarios out in your head and what could have happened,” Adofo-Mensah said. “I am that times a million because ultimately your job is to try and win on the margins and cobble together all those small wins that add up to something great. But I think what you first and foremost realize in this league, you’ve got to win with impactful players. That’s where it starts, and if you can get one, you should take one, and you should only risk not getting one if you get something meaningful back.”