Kwesi Adofo-Mensah looked shellshocked while watching J.J. McCarthy’s debut from the Soldier Field press box. His state of mind never seemed to change, even after McCarthy led the Minnesota Vikings on a fourth-quarter comeback.

He didn’t know then that Sam Darnold would lead the Seattle Seahawks to the Super Bowl after the Vikings chose not to franchise-tag him. He didn’t know that Javon Hargrave, Will Fries, and Minnesota’s balleyhooed free-agent class would mostly flop.

Adofo-Mensah likely assumed there would be tension in the building if they missed the playoffs this year. However, sitting in the Soldier Field press box that day, he probably didn’t assume it would get “ugly.” He couldn’t have anticipated getting fired a year after the Vikings extended him in the offseason. He probably didn’t think it would be on Friday after he spent all week scouting players at the Senior Bowl.

The question isn’t why the Vikings fired Kwesi Adofo-Mensah. Ownership committed a league-high $350 million to the roster this year, and they were 4-8 and out of the playoff picture by December. Minnesota has received only 172 starts from players drafted between 2022 and 2025, the second fewest in the league. Sam Darnold is in the Super Bowl. Meanwhile, the Vikings haven’t committed to starting J.J. McCarthy next year.

Instead, the question is: Where do the Vikings go from here?

Firing a general manager while retaining a coach under contract always creates a predicament. Does the new general manager want to retain the current coach? How much influence does that coach have over team decisions in the interim? How will this affect the current players who may not fit a new general manager’s vision?

In a statement, the Vikings said executive vice president Rob Brzezinski will run the team’s front office during the draft. Then, they will host a general-manager search.

Still, who will have the most influence on picks?

Brzezinski has been with the Vikings for 27 years, but his primary job is managing Minnesota’s cap. Will it be Kevin O’Connell, whom the new general manager may not retain as head coach? Or Ryan Grigson, the former Indianapolis Colts general manager, Minnesota’s senior vice president of player personnel, whom Adofo-Mensah leaned on in past drafts?

The Vikings naturally trust Brzezinski, given that he’s been with the organization since 1999. Still, he will likely lean on the expertise of front-office executives and coaches.

Grigson was Indianapolis’ general manager when they drafted Andrew Luck, but he failed to build a winning team around him. The Colts selected Luck first-overall in 2012, but he retired at age 29 in 2019 due to injuries sustained throughout his career.

Meanwhile, O’Connell helped turn Kirk Cousins into a winning quarterback and identified Darnold as a successful bridge quarterback for McCarthy. However, Darnold outperformed expectations last year, and the Vikings moved on from him in favor of McCarthy, who wasn’t ready to lead a team to the playoffs this season. Adofo-Mensah ultimately decided not to franchise tag Darnold, but O’Connell had to have had a say in who Minnesota would start next year.

The larger issue with Minnesota’s arrangement is that players drafted for one system often don’t translate to a new one. The Vikings wisely moved on from Ed Donatell after his defense broke in O’Connell’s first year. Still, the defensive players they drafted in 2022 – namely, Lewis Cine, Andrew Booth, and Brian Asamoah – didn’t fit Brian Flores’ scheme.

Donatell ran a Vic Fangio-inspired defense that relies on pressure from the defensive line and the secondary keeping their eyes on the quarterback. Conversely, Flores blitzes relentlessly while disguising his intent at the line of scrimmage. Therefore, players who struggle to tackle but have other positive attributes, like Donatell’s picks, won’t work in his scheme.

Similarly, if Minnesota’s new general manager doesn’t retain O’Connell, the players they draft for his Sean McVay-inspired offensive scheme may not fit the next coaching staff. Meanwhile, if Flores leaves for a head coaching position after this season, will the players they draft for his defense fit the next coordinator’s scheme?

Ultimately, the Vikings’ ownership chose uncertainty over retaining Kwesi Adofo-Mensah for another year. They’ve fired him at a precarious time, three months before the draft, and with Kevin O’Connell under contract.

Mark Wilf said it wasn’t about “one decision,” referring to Sam Darnold reaching the Super Bowl. Still, as Adofo-Mensah sat silently in the Soldier Field press box, watching J.J. McCarthy dig the Vikings into a 17-6 deficit in the fourth quarter, did he know the Vikings had made a mistake letting Darnold leave?

The biggest tell might be that he never looked relieved, even after the Vikings had won the game.