There are a multitude of reasons why Rick Spielman no longer sits in the general manager’s chair at TCO Performance Center. A primary one was his inability to solve the Vikings’ quarterback conundrum during his run as the man in charge.
Spielman was sharing power over personnel decisions with coach Leslie Frazier in 2011 when he made Christian Ponder the 12th-overall pick in the draft. Ponder spent four seasons in Minnesota and ranks among the Vikings’ biggest draft busts. Spielman’s next big swing came in 2014 when he selected Teddy Bridgewater with the 32nd pick in the opening round. The hope of Bridgewater turning into a franchise QB ended with a gruesome, non-contact leg injury just before the 2016 season.
