The Minnesota Vikings have named Kwesi Adofo-Mensah (kway-see uh-doe-foe men-suh) as the team’s new general manager. Adofo-Mensah will lead the team’s football operation after spending the past two seasons as the Vice President of Football Operations for the Cleveland Browns.
“We are thrilled to welcome Kwesi to the Minnesota Vikings. His unique background, variety of strong football experiences, vision for success and leadership presence immediately stood out to us,” said Vikings Owner/President Mark Wilf. “Kwesi is naturally committed and driven to building the best teams through consensus building and the pursuit of information. We believe he will immediately make us better as a team and organization.”
“Kwesi has a clear philosophy on building a complementary football team,” said Vikings Owner/Chairman Zygi Wilf. “His intelligence, progressive mindset and passion for the game, along with his ability to make thoughtful and intentional decisions, provide a tremendous foundation as he leads our football operations.”
In Cleveland, Adofo-Mensah worked closely with Browns Executive Vice President of Football Operations and General Manager Andrew Berry and provided input for all roster and strategy decisions. Additionally, he assisted Berry and the football staff with overseeing and managing the day-to-day operations of the team.
Prior the Browns, Adofo-Mensah spent seven seasons with the San Francisco 49ers, where he first entered the NFL. During his tenure with the 49ers, Adofo-Mensah quickly advanced in the football research and development department. He joined the team as Football Research and Development Analyst (2013-16) before earning promotions to Manager of Football Research and Development in 2017 and Director of Football Research and Development in 2018. As the lead of football research and development, Adofo-Mensah ran the team’s efforts to develop and implement advanced quantitative methods for game strategy and personnel evaluation, playing a vital role in helping the 2019 NFC No. 1 playoff seed 49ers capture the conference title.
“I am extremely thankful to the Wilf family and the Vikings organization for giving me the opportunity to lead our football operations and join this respected franchise,” said Adofo-Mensah. “There is so much to appreciate about this organization – an existing nucleus of talent on the roster, top-notch facilities, passionate fans and smart people throughout the building who are committed to winning. I look forward to partnering with our next head coach and our entire football operations staff to begin our work of bringing a Super Bowl to Vikings fans.”
Prior to joining the NFL, Adofo-Mensah worked as an associate portfolio manager at Taylor Woods Capital and was Vice President/Executive Director at Credit Suisse as a commodities trader before entering the NFL in 2013. The Cherry Hill, New Jersey, native received his bachelor’s degree in economics from Princeton University and went on to receive his master’s in economics from Stanford University.
(info and photos courtesy of Vikings)