Minnesota Vikings make GM-head coach duopoly clear as team introduces Nolan Teasley

The Minnesota Vikings made one thing clear when they introduced new general manager Nolan Teasley on Wednesday: he may be the new man in charge of the roster, but he's not the only leader in the room.

Teasley and Vikings owner Mark Wilf mentioned head coach Kevin O'Connell and longtime football operations executive Rob Brzezinski multiple times. Brzezinski himself was a "strong internal candidate" for the GM job, Wilf said, though he also made a point to say Teasley and O'Connell report to ownership, while Brzezinski remains within the football operations hierarchy under the new GM.

Ultimately, Wilf said, the team has "three strong leaders with complementary skill sets."

Teasley's background includes years as a scout, multiple promotions and finally a stint as the assistant general manager of the Seattle Seahawks. Seattle won two Super Bowls while Teasley was in the building — including last season's — and appeared in a third. He credits Seahawks GM John Schneider and the rest of the organization with showing him "the right way."

"It was always going to take a special opportunity to leave a special place in Seattle, and as I progressed in this process, it became very clear that the Minnesota Vikings were just that, they were a special opportunity," Teasley said.

Teasley said his first job will be to "assess the roster in its entirety," but noted the team has a "strong nucleus of talent on both sides of the ball."

"I believe we're ready to compete right now because they've been competitive," he said, pointing to the team's five-game winning streak that led to a 9-8 finish last season.

Teasley will have the final say on the roster, according to Wilf. But O'Connell's strength as a schematic mind and playcaller, coupled with the fact he had a hand in hiring Nolan, likely means the men will work in tandem to make the major decisions. Teasley called O'Connell "a premier head coach in this league."

The most important decision Teasley and O'Connell will make in the near future is who will start at quarterback. J.J. McCarthy's first season as the starter was peppered with poor processing and inaccurate passes, though occasionally punctuated with impressive playmaking. The Vikings brought in veteran Kyler Murray, who in his time with the Arizona Cardinals was consistently a top-16 QB and occasionally better, to compete with McCarthy.

"I think the goal from the outset of the offseason was to build a deep and competitive quarterback room and I think that was executed," Teasley said.

"The quarterback and the head coach are the two most important people in the building," he later added, "and so we're going to build our operation and our foundation around supporting them so that they can be the best versions of themselves at all times."

History and the Vikings' fanbase will judge Teasley and O'Connell on their success in two ventures that have long eluded the team: finding a franchise quarterback and winning a Super Bowl. 

"Our goals are simple, and we're going to build the deepest, most competitive roster possible so that we can be at our best in December and January and February and ultimately work toward winning the Super Bowl that this fanbase deserves," Teasley said.