On Jan. 30, the Minnesota Vikings made a shocking move by parting ways with general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah following their failure to reach the playoffs in the 2025 NFL season.
ESPN NFL insider Adam Schefter reported, citing sources, that there had been ongoing “tension” within the Vikings organization throughout the season. A league source told Schefter that the situation in Minnesota was “ugly.”
Moreover, sports media host Jim Rome didn’t hold back on the reasons Adofo-Mensah was fired, but he put most of the blame on starting QB J.J. McCarthy, whom the former Vikings general manager selected as the team’s franchise signal-caller.
Nonetheless, that move didn’t pay off in 2025, and it didn’t help that Sam Darnold continued his success with the Seattle Seahawks and is now in Super Bowl LX.
“The truth is, [McCarthy] in and of himself did not get his GM fired,” Rome said on the Jan. 30 edition of “The Jim Rome Show.” “He didn’t do it alone. Now, he had help, and he had something to do with it, but he had help. Sam Darnold helped. Daniel Jones’ amazing start to the season helped. Aaron Rodgers leading the Steelers to the playoffs helped.
“So it’s not all on J.J., but it’s mostly on J.J. because the biggest problem facing the Vikings right now is that they still have an uncertain future at quarterback. They had all these quarterbacks go through there, and they still have no quarterback. And the rumors this week about bringing in Mac Jones clearly did not set ownership’s hair on fire or help J.J. They’re not even positive what they have in ‘Nine‘ because ‘Nine‘ can’t even stay on the field.”
Jets-J.J. McCarthy Trade Idea Floated
With Adofo-Mensah now out of the picture in Minnesota, the question is, what does the future hold for McCarthy? Are the Vikings going to commit to him next season, or will they explore a pursuit for a veteran QB?
If McCarthy is available for a trade, WFAN’s Evan Roberts floated the idea that the New York Jets should consider asking Minnesota about McCarthy.
“While I’m not the biggest J.J. McCarthy fan, I don’t know who is at this point, but he’s a winner,“ Roberts said in a video posted by WFAN on Jan. 30. “He won in college, and he’s also young. He’s also not fully damaged goods. You know what I mean? Yes. He hasn’t really gotten the full opportunity.
“So what pick would I trade? I’m not trading one of my ones. I don’t think I need to either. I think a third‑round pick would get it done; I would be very intrigued by that. And again I say that as someone that isn’t even high on J. J. McCarthy, but it goes back to your point of, what are the other options right now [for the Jets]?”
Vikings Explain Reason for Kwesi Adofo-Mensah Firing
Meanwhile, Vikings owner and president Mark Wilf explained the decision to part ways with Adofo-Mensah and move in a different direction.
“We held our end-of-the-season organizational meetings over a couple of weeks and then spent this past week as an ownership group reviewing, discussing, and how best to move forward,“ Wilf told reporters at his press conference. “This is a critical offseason. Ultimately, we felt the change was necessary in football operations, and did not feel comfortable going forward into this offseason with the current leadership.
“It’s not about any one decision or move. We looked at the situation cumulatively; we just didn’t feel confident going through the the offseason, an additional draft, and free agency with this structure. We have an urgency to create a winning football team and establish sustainable success for our fans.”
J.J. McCarthy Gets Brutal Take Amid Vikings Firing GM