Did Kwesi Adofo-Mensah Fumble the Ball?

From the outside looking in, it’s difficult to say, isn’t it? After all, the trade discussions take place behind the scenes, so it’s difficult to know what kind of prices were being demanded for certain players.

One does wonder, though, about Kwesi Adofo-Mensah not pulling off one more deal. Going into the Week 6 bye, the Vikings were having a great season. Going into the Week 10 Jaguars game, the Vikings are having a very good season. Would the roster have a chance to get back to great with just one more infusion of talent?

Kwesi Adofo-Mensah & The NFL Trade Deadline

To be clear, Adofo-Mensah deserves praise for the deals that he did pull off.

Cam Akers has become Minnesota’s RB2 and recently looked good in that capacity. He showed off good quickness and vision in the Indianapolis game, sparking hope that he’ll be able to keep Aaron Jones fresh while also keeping the offense balanced for the remainder of 2024.

Flipping a 6th for a 7th was all it took to bring Akers back to Eagan, MN.

So, too, did the GM do some nice work in acquiring left tackle Cam Robinson. For a 5th that can turn into a 4th, Robinson got brought to Minnesota to replace the injured Christian Darrisaw. Even better, Robinson arrived with a conditional 7th, meaning Minnesota could end up with a low Day 3 selection rather than no Day 3 selection.

The first game against the Colts went about as well as possible for Mr. Robinson, so the early returns have been positive. If he can offer above-average play at left tackle, Robinson will have been well worth the investment from the former investor who is now the GM.

Any discussion of the NFL trade deadline and the Minnesota Vikings, in other words, needs to account for what Kwesi Adofo-Mensah already did before deadline day. Yes, it’s exciting to see someone like Tom Pelissero drop the news of a Minnesota deal in the waning hours of deadline day, but picking up a pair of players at positions of need is nice work.

Consider, as well, what we know about some of the trades that did get consummated. Marshon Lattimore is an intriguing name given that he has a long track record as a CB1, but Washington ended up being the team to secure his services.

The cost? Pretty high. Check it out, courtesy of Pelissero: “Saints traded CB Marshon Lattimore & 2025 5th rd pick to Commanders for 2025 3rd rd pick, 2025 4th rd pick & 2025 6th rd pick.”

Many of the deals that took place pointed toward a buyer’s market. Adofo-Mensah knows all about the merits of getting good value, so he’ll always be someone who likes to do his shopping when the deals are cost efficient. Lattimore, in contrast to some of the broader deals taking place, didn’t come cheap. Yes, the Commanders get a major boost, but the cost was high.

If Minnesota was involved in the Lattimore sweepstakes, then saying no was the right call.

Again, though, we come back to the central issue/question: should Kwesi Adofo-Mensah have done more at the deadline? Yes, the draft picks are skimpy, but would shipping out just one more have been worth it?

Fans can (and will) debate the question even though the opportunities, player fit(s), and costs mostly remain shrouded in mystery. What’s evident is simply that Minnesota is in the middle of the kind of season that doesn’t come around everyday for the fine folks who call The Gopher State home.

A pair of pieces did get added to help the offense continue operating at a high level — currently, Kevin O’Connell’s crew sits at 8th in the NFL by averaging 26.1 points per game — while the possibility exists that someone like a healthy Dalton Risner could offer help.

Meanwhile, the defense is going to see a boost from the maturation of Dallas Turner and re-insertion of Blake Cashman into the lineup. Don’t forget that the offseason featured a ton of free agent help being kicked over to Brian Flores’ side of the ball, so standing pat at the deadline for the defense makes some sense.

After the dust has settled, the Vikings are sitting on roughly $7.9 million in cap space. If there ends up being a need to bring in more help, Minnesota has the budgetary breathing room to do so.

Onto Jacksonville.

Editor’s Note: Information from Pro Football Reference and 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, as a co-host for Notes from the North, and as the proprietor at The Vikings Gazette, a humble Vikings Substack.