Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
Coming into the 2025 offseason, the Vikings’ greatest resource was the ample cap space.
Gone was Kirk Cousins’ contract; in was J.J. McCarthy’s bargain-bin deal. Crunch the numbers and there was quite a bit of cap cash from the wealthy Wilfs, allowing Kwesi Adofo-Mensah to get frisky in free agency. Over the Cap puts Minnesota’s spending at roughly to $119,250,000, second-most in the NFL.
Things look very different in 2026.
The cap space is already looking pretty grim. More specifically, there’s somewhere around $38.6 million in negative cap room. Spin that a bit differently. Just to break even, Adofo-Mensah will need to clear out close to $39 million in cap space. Doing so gets back to neutral; being able to sign new talent will mean clearing out even more room. How does Minnesota bring in new talent? Draft picks.
The Vikings’ Greatest Resource is Now Draft Picks
Admittedly, there could be some widespread skepticism about the current GM having picks aplenty in his war chest.
Kwesi Adofo-Mensah is someone who has made his fair share of mistakes in the draft. The ten-person draft class from 2022 is down to just three players. Of the three remaining players, at least a pair — linebacker Brian Asamoah and running back Ty Chandler — are on the roster bubble. Some would even insist that they’re facing long odds to crack the 53-man roster.
Working against the GM is another underwhelming showing in 2023. Half of the six selections are gone: defensive tackle Jaquelin Roy, quarterback Jaren Hall, and running back DeWayne McBride. The main positives are that Jordan Addison is a stud on the field and UDFA signing Ivan Pace Jr. is excellent.
Feb 25, 2025; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Minnesota Vikings general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah speaks during the NFL Scouting Combine at the Indiana Convention Center. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images
Seeing the 2024 draft class live up to its potential would make things look quite a bit different.
Narrow things down to just three players: quarterback J.J. McCarthy, edge rusher Dallas Turner, and kicker Will Reichard. Gaining a high-end QB1, EDGE1, and K1 in the same draft group would be a nice bit of work from Adofo-Mensah. The cherry on top would be seeing someone like Walter Rouse develop into a strong option along the o-line. If so, then 2024 was a hole-in-one from Mr. Adofo-Mensah (check out his recent golf metaphor).
Most recently, of course, is the 2025 draft crew. Donovan Jackson got picked up at No. 24 and is earning plenty of buzz about being the LG1 in Week 1.
The other players — receiver Tai Felton, defensive end Tyrion Ingram-Dawkins, linebacker Kobe King, and tight end Gavin Bartholomew — are inspiring varying levels of optimism. All have a path toward earning some snaps on either offense or defense as early as their debut seasons. At the very least, each is going to help on specials.
Ohio State Buckeyes offensive lineman Donovan Jackson (74) celebrates a touchdown by TreVeyon Henderson during the NCAA football game against the Indiana Hoosiers at Ohio Stadium in Columbus on Monday, Nov. 25, 2024. Ohio State won 38-15.
Seeing Kwesi Adofo-Mensah’s team gain a fresh gust of wind from the recent draftees would go a long way in restoring fan confidence, especially for what appears to be ample draft picks for 2026.
Recently, Dustin Baker listed them out in a piece on Vikings Territory. Check it out:
Round 1
Round 2
Round 3
Round 3 (comp)
Round 4 or 5 (comp)
Round 5
Round 7
Before it’s all said and done, Kwesi Adofo-Mensah could even look to move a player or two out at the end of August, fortifying the Vikings’ greatest strength just a bit more (Jalen Nailor? Blake Brandel?). Doing so would have the double benefit of making the 2026 NFL Draft look even more promising while also clearing out cap space.
Step back and the main takeaway is that next offseason is going to look quite a bit different from the current one. Instead of a wild free agency, look forward to an ample draft haul.
Editor’s Note: Information from Over the Cap helped with this piece.
K. Joudry is the Senior Editor for Vikings Territory and PurplePTSD. He has been covering the Vikings full time since the summer of 2021. He can be found on Twitter and Bluesky (@VikingsGazette). If you feel so inclined, subscribe to his Substack, The Vikings Gazette, for more great Vikings content.