MINNEAPOLIS — When the Minnesota Vikings hired a new general manager and head coach, they were at a fork in the road with their roster. They could take it all apart piece by piece and start anew or re-work contracts, extend the quarterback and sign veteran free agents. The Vikings chose to keep it all together and fill the voids with experienced players like Za’Darius Smith, Jordan Hicks, Harrison Phillips, Patrick Peterson and Chandon Sullivan.
Vikings owner Mark Wilf spoke with the media on Friday at US Bank Stadium for the first time since the team made its offseason moves and gave his thoughts on the decision to swing for the playoffs rather than hit the reset button.
“It is a mix, some great rookies coming in but we also made some moves in free agency that were smart… they did a great job of balancing a lot of factors to get us to be really competitive,” Wilf said. “We have a lot of great talent here and more importantly it’s starting to gel together in terms of a new system and new leadership and they’re really taking well to it.”
Wilf was asked about whether the collaboration, which was preached following the firings of Mike Zimmer and Rick Spielman, included ownership playing a part in the roster decisions.
“There was a lot of communication involved back in February and March,” Wilf said. “We had a very short timeframe, a tight window to work with because Kevin was in the Super Bowl and everything started a little later than normal but I give them great credit for getting up to speed really quickly.”
Aside from wanting the head coach and GM to work together with everyone in the front office, the Wilfs also searched for a duo who could create a better working environment for players than they experienced in recent years.
“Veterans have said, ‘You know what, this is good energy and we are looking forward to playing with these guys and the leadership,’” Wilf said.
While Adofo-Mensah talked about the team taking a “competitive rebuild” route earlier this offseason, the competitive part shined through on Friday as Wilf indicated that the bar is set high this season.
“It burns all of us to get back to winning ways and competitiveness to be where we want to be, winning divisions and championships and competing,” Wilf said. “We feel we made a lot of great strides on that front and I can tell you the players are super energized and motivated as well. They don’t like losing.”
