The Minnesota Vikings ended their search for a new general manager on Saturday by hiring Nolan Teasley, who has spent the last 14 years working for the Seattle Seahawks under John Schneider. The move impacts the Los Angeles Rams in several key ways, not the least of which being that Teasley beat out Rams assistant general manager John McKay—also a finalist—for the job.
That’s not all though.
Because Teasley is a minority, the Seahawks are expected to receive third round compensatory picks in 2027 and 2028, giving Schneider more ammunition in the next two years. Mike Florio of ProFootballTalk speculates that if the NFL decides Teasley is not the “primary football executive” for Minnesota, then Seattle won’t get those picks. Most people believe that they will and the Seahawks have done a very good job of drafting recently, including using a third round pick to trade up for Nick Emmanwori in 2025.
The move to hire Teasley is also interesting in that the Vikings now combine someone from Sean McVay’s tree as the head coach and someone from Schneider’s tree as the general manager. If Minnesota is going to make a major move in the next 12 months, whether that’s trading Justin Jefferson or replacing Kevin O’Connell, could those decisions directly impact either the Seahawks or the Rams?
It’s logical to assume that with Teasley in position to make those calls, he might favor his former boss in Seattle. Minnesota could even look to the Seahawks for coaching assistants, free agents, and as trade partners.
Recently, the Vikings were much closer partners to the Rams than they were to Seattle. This decision to hire from within Schneider’s front office is not only a loss for McKay, but a shift in the power balance of the NFC.
