Vikings Ownership Releases Statement on Official Launch of GM Search

Vikings owners Mark and Zygi Wilf have released a statement on the official beginning of their search for a new general manager.

"With the conclusion of the 2026 NFL Draft, our search for the next general manager of the Minnesota Vikings is underway. This will be a thorough and deliberate process led by ownership, with support from a small internal advisory committee of senior leaders. We have also engaged respected firm TurnkeyZRG to assist in conducting a wide-ranging search that includes experienced football executives, emerging candidates and individuals with diverse professional backgrounds.

Our focus is to identify a decisive leader with a clear vision for team building, strong communication skills and the ability to build alignment across an organization. Out of respect for all involved, we do not intend to publicly announce candidates and will provide further comment when the search is complete."

A lot of that statement is pretty standard stuff, but a few things stand out. The first is the inclusion of a third-party search firm to help with the process. TurnkeyZRG's primary role, it seems, will be to help identify candidates from all over the NFL and then cut the list down to a manageable number so the Vikings can proceed with interviews.

Another thing that stands out is that the Vikings will not be publicly revealing the candidates as they conduct their interviews. Teams often do that during GM or head coaching searches. Back in 2022, the Vikings announced their interviews for both roles in the process that led them to Kwesi Adofo-Mensah and Kevin O'Connell. This time, we won't learn anything official until the hire is announced, although it's possible certain reporters may provide some insight on the process.

As for the "small internal advisory committee of senior leaders" that will be assisting the Wilfs in this search, ESPN's Kevin Seifert expects O'Connell and COO Andrew Miller to be two key members.

Rob Brzezinski, the Vikings' long-time executive who has served as their acting general manager since Adofo-Mensah was fired in late January, is believed to be a candidate for the full-time role. There have been some questions about if Brzezinski actually wants that role or if he'd prefer to go back to his previous duties as the team's cap guru and lead contract negotiator, but it appears that he is interested in the position.