NFL Draft Grades: Kwesi Adofo-Mensah's First Class Ranks 20th By Analyst Consensus
With the 2022 NFL Draft in the rearview mirror, writers and analysts from across the internet had the difficult task of assigning grades to all 32 teams for their weekend hauls.
Quick-snap draft grades involve a lot of guesswork and projection. Ultimately, they don't mean much, as draft classes are best judged several years down the line. But that doesn't mean they're meaningless. It's fair to analyze teams' drafts based on their process, incorporating things like positional value, whether players were "reaches" or "steals" based on where they were projected to go, and other factors.
Each year, Twitter user René Bugner (@RNBWCV) compiles a bunch of draft class grades from prominent national analysts and turns them into a ranking of consensus GPAs. In 2020, the Vikings led all 32 teams with a 3.92 GPA. That has aged well despite the Jeff Gladney situation, with Justin Jefferson turning into a superstar and Ezra Cleveland, Cameron Dantzler, D.J. Wonnum, and K.J. Osborn becoming productive contributors. Last year, the Vikings were tied for eighth at 3.32. The jury is still out on Minnesota's quartet of third-round picks, but Christian Darrisaw, Cam Bynum, and Kene Nwangwu had strong rookie years.
Kwesi Adofo-Mensah's first draft in the GM seat didn't receive quite the high marks that Rick Spielman's last two drafts did. Again, don't take this for more than what it is, but the Vikings' 2022 class ranked 20th with a 2.79 GPA from a sample of 18 writers.
Here are the full results:
11 of the 18 writers gave the Vikings a B-, B, or B+, but they also received four A-minuses and three grades of a C+ or below, including a D- and an F.
Let's take a look at some of the positive, middle-ground, and negative analysis from these writers.
Chad Reuter, NFL.com (Grade: A-)
The Vikings did a nice job grabbing draft picks in trades with desperate division rivals Detroit and Green Bay. The secondary needed help and it got two immediate contributors in Cine and Booth, who would have been a first-rounder if not for injuries. Ingram's a likely future starter inside and Asamoah is the ball-hunter the Vikings needed in their new 3-4 scheme.
Vinnie Iyer, Sporting News (Grade: A-)
The Vikings do get knocked a little for making multiple intradivision trades to help the Packers and Lions, but otherwise GM Kwesi Adofo-Mensah had a good first draft to help his fellow rookie, coach Kevin O'Connell. Cine and Booth are great complementary players to their secondary and can learn well from Harrison Smith and Patrick Peterson. They threw it back to load up on welcome revamped defensive depth at every level. Ingram also has a good chance to start somewhere inside for the offense. Chandler, Nailor and Muse are good bottom-roster offensive skill adds.
Mel Kiper Jr., ESPN (Grade: B-)
Adofo-Mensah's first draft in Minnesota featured some wheeling and dealing, as he made trades with the rival Lions (which I liked) and Packers (which I didn't love). The result was two potential starters in the secondary in Lewis Cine (32), a versatile and thumping safety, and cornerback Andrew Booth Jr. (42), who was a little inconsistent last season. The Vikings reached to try to fill a starting guard spot with Ed Ingram (59); I thought his strength and mobility was worth an early Day 3 pick. Brian Asamoah (66) is a fun but undersized inside linebacker who will fit their scheme. I didn't see a lot to write home about with their Day 3 picks, though running back Ty Chandler (169) has some upside as a pass-catcher. The trades helped Adofo-Mensah avoid a C here, and if Booth becomes an above-average rookie starter, it should move even higher.
Conor Orr, Sports Illustrated (Grade: D-)
I usually make it a point not to give F’s because I feel like this reflects negatively on collegiate players who have no control over their destination and less on the executives who are making the picks. We spent a lot of time rightfully hearing about Kwesi Adofo-Mensah, who comes to Minnesota with great promise as the kind of executive who can finally bridge the gap between analytics and personnel. But for a team with a few pronounced needs, it’s hard to stomach dropping from pick No. 12 to pick No. 32 and not netting more of a return. There were a handful of premium players remaining in the first round at the time of Minnesota’s first selection, and instead they dropped back and replenished the secondary with a handful of players who may be slightly less talented than the ones they could have gotten if they remained at 12. Booth is a gem in this class and feels a little underrated. While the physicality he flashed in college was against ACC wide receivers, he has the hand-fighting skills that should translate quickly in the NFC North against some physical pass catchers.
James Dator, SB Nation (Grade: F)
I don’t know what to say, except I’m sorry Vikings fans. I’ve never seen a team work this much and achieve so little in a draft. It’s tricky, because I actually like Lewis Cine and Andrew Booth, and think they both make Minnesota better — but the issue is that these are guys I expect staple playoff teams to select, not an 8-9 team with the No. 12 pick. The Vikings got fleeced in their trade with the Lions. They threw the Packers a lifeline and let them trade up to get a wide receiver. This team made their division rivals better while not getting top-tier talent.
For what it's worth, I think I'd give the Vikings a flat B. I do wonder if they could've gotten more value in the Day 1 trade with the Lions (or just taken someone at 12), but I really like the Lewis Cine and Andrew Booth Jr. picks at 32 and 42. It's hard to project who else from the class might become an impact player, but you can at least rationalize all of their picks based on value and need. I think a D- or F grade is absurdly harsh given the players the Vikings ended up with, but I wouldn't give them an A either.
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