Vikings’ GM search continues with three more interviews Monday
The Vikings announced Monday afternoon they'd completed interviews with Buccaneers vice president of player personnel John Spytek and Browns vice president of football operations Kwesi Adofo-Mensah for their open general manager position.
A source with knowledge of the team's plans said the Vikings are also interviewing Eagles vice president of football operations Catherine Raiche on Monday. Raiche would be the first woman ever to interview for a NFL GM job, after spending the past three seasons with the Eagles and four years before that with CFL and XFL teams. She is among the highest-ranking women in football operations in the NFL.
Spytek, a Pewaukee, Wis., native, has been with the Buccaneers the past six seasons and in the NFL for 18 years overall. He's worked as GM Jason Licht's right-hand man as Tampa Bay built a Super Bowl championship team around quarterback Tom Brady.
Adofo-Mensah, a Princeton graduate with a master's degree in economics from Stanford, came to the NFL after working as a trader and portfolio manager on Wall Street, bringing his analytics background to the Browns as they've reoriented their front office to emphasize a data-driven approach.
By the end of the day, the Vikings will have completed initial interviews with half of their eight external candidates for general manager — Spytek, Raiche, Adofo-Mensah and Titans player personnel director Monti Ossenfort, who conducted a virtual interview with the team's search committee on Sunday.
The team had also requested to speak with Chiefs executive director of player personnel Ryan Poles, Eagles player personnel director Brandon Brown, Patriots personnel consultant Eliot Wolf and Browns vice president of player personnel Glenn Cook for the job; those interviews could happen later this week.
After firing general manager Rick Spielman and coach Mike Zimmer on Jan. 10, the Vikings' search for a new GM and coach figures to pick up speed this week, especially with teams like the Eagles, Patriots and Cowboys out of the playoffs. The Vikings held a virtual interview with Packers offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett for head coach on Sunday, and has requested to speak to at least six other external candidates for the job, though the Vikings' plan has been to hire a GM first and let that person help decide the next head coach.
The Vikings continue their search with four people — chief operating officer Andrew Miller, executive vice president of football operations Rob Brzezinski and co-directors of player personnel Jamaal Stephenson and Ryan Monnens — joining ownership to lead the process. It's possible Brzezinski and Monnens could be considered for the GM job, as well. Stephenson, who lives in Maryland, is believed to want to stay in his current role rather than moving to the Twin Cities.
