Daily Norseman
Now that the Minnesota Vikings have officially hired Nolan Teasley to be the new general manager, this is a good time to review the Vikings’ organizational structure, at least as it relates to football-related decisions (and leaving the non-football parts out).
The basic leadership structure hasn’t really changed much since Rick Spielman was named general manager back in 2012, although the office occupants have changed over the years. But even then, roughly half of the football operations and scouting staff date from the Spielman era- or earlier in a few cases.
Nevertheless, there are aspects of the power structure that evolve over time and the power/influence of an office may wax or wane depending on the occupant and how well respected they are within the organization.
So, with that brief introduction, let’s take a deeper look into the Vikings football-related power structure.
The Wilf family has owned the Vikings since 2005 and eleven of the thirteen listed owners are members of the Wilf family. The Wilfs live in New Jersey but come to Minnesota for key events and games and as necessary. But they count on the leadership group to report to them, have them sign off on things as necessary, and keep them abreast of developments.
Zygi Wilf has been the head of the ownership group since the Wilfs bought the team. He remains present for games and key events but at age 76, he seems less active in football operations. The Wilfs were never micromanagers of football operations, and have largely maintained a hands-off approach- mostly weighing in only on more key/strategic decisions.
Zygi has said that he expects the Vikings to compete at the highest level now and over the longer-term as well. Under his leadership, the Vikings have arguably the best stadium in the league (at least the best when it was built) and the best training facilities in the league as well. The Vikings also score in the top 2-3 teams in the league on the NFLPA scorecard, which grades all the various football operation functions and staff. All that will be Zygi’s chief legacy as something he had direct control and leadership over.
The Wilfs have never been afraid to spend money, whether on the roster, coaching staff, or upgrading facilities. They also have been persistent in pushing to host league events, from the Super Bowl to owner’s meetings to most recently being awarded the 2028 NFL Draft.
My guess is that if Zygi has a strong view on something football-related that view still commands the full weight of the chairman’s office. But I’m not sure that happens much. The Wilfs value a collaborative approach, both within the ownership group and in the organization as a whole, and I’m not sure there is much disagreement within the ownership group on key decisions. If there has been, they’ve kept it in-house.
That said, I suspect Zygi relies more now on Mark Wilf, who oversees the day-to-day operations of the...
