The Minnesota Vikings need a new general manager after firing Kwesi Adofo-Mensah this offseason. According to Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated, the NFC North team could be thinking of hiring former Indianapolis Colts GM Ryan Grigson.
You remember Grigson, right, Indy fan? He was the Colts' GM from 2012 through the 2016 season, and he was fired after the team didn't make the playoffs two seasons in a row. Imagine that now. Current general manager Chris Ballard's team hasn't made the postseason since 2020. That's five years in a row, and yet, he somehow still has a job.
Grigson also made a couple of horrible moves that doomed his tenure. He traded for running back Trent Richardson, for instance, and gave up a first-round pick to do so. Richardson was a bust, so maybe the last name is just a poor fit in Indianapolis.
Former Indianapolis Colts general manager Ryan Grigson might be getting the same job with the Minnesota Vikings
After being fired in early 2017, Grigson worked for several teams, including the Cleveland Browns twice. He hasn't been a GM again (yet), but instead worked as a consultant in Cleveland and for two seasons with the Seattle Seahawks.
He was hired by the Vikings in 2022 as the senior vice president of player personnel and has been the assistant general manager since last offseason. Per Breer, Grigson has the respect of the decision-makers in Minnesota and would seemingly be a natural fit as GM since it's just one step above his current role.
Would Ryan Grigson do a better job with the Vikings than he did with the Colts? He inherited a decent roster, but an organization in transition from the glory years when Peyton Manning was leading the offense. The general manager was in charge of the team when it chose Andrew Luck in the 2012 draft, however.
The team hadn't missed the playoffs in back-to-back seasons since 1997-98, and did win back-to-back AFC South titles under Grigson in 2013 and 2014, but the latter would be the final season the team would win the division until, well...fans are still waiting for that to happen.
The truth is that should Grigson become the Minnesota Vikings general manager and be more successful than Chris Ballard is with the Indianapolis Colts in 2026, that should mean the end of the road for Ballard. After all, his team has only made the playoffs twice in nine years. Compared to the team's previous 15 years before he was hired, Ballard should have been let go after the 2022 season.