Kansas City Chiefs avoided key departure from Brett Veach’s staff, but it might not last after stunning NFC North decision
Chiefs GM Brett Veach may have only temporarily avoided losing his top lieutenant.
The Kansas City Chiefs avoided losing Brett Veach’s right-hand man for the second consecutive season, at least temporarily. That could change with a recent, unexpected general manager vacancy that arose late last week.
The Atlanta Falcons had interviewed Chiefs assistant general manager Mike Bradway for their general manager vacancy in January. They’ve since filled their general manager vacancy with Chicago Bears assistant GM Ian Cunningham. With that news, it seemed as if Bradway was safe and would remain in Kansas City, but then the Minnesota Vikings threw a wrench into those plans.
On Friday, the Vikings announced that they had fired GM Kwesi Adofo-Mensah. They’re set to install an interim general manager through the 2026 NFL Draft before making an official change, which should come afterward. Should head coach Kevin O’Connell be on good terms in Minnesota, Bradway has a unique connection that could make him the perfect candidate for a post-draft hire for the Vikings.
Vikings firing Kwesi Adofo-Mensah opens the door for Chiefs assistant GM Mike Bradway, thanks to one specific connection
There’s always connective tissue in the NFL, but Chiefs assistant GM Mike Bradway’s path to at least receiving an interview for this particular vacancy makes a ton of sense given his connection.
Bradway’s father, Terry Bradway, is a longtime NFL front-office executive, having spent nine seasons in Kansas City from 1992 through 2000. His stop after his time with the Chief is where this connection comes into play. In 2001, the elder Bradway was hired to be the general manager of the New York Jets. In 2006, he was supplanted by Mike Tannenbaum, but he remained on the staff as a Senior Personnel executive. He remained in that role from 2006 through 2014.
In 2009, O’Connell entered the NFL as a third-round pick by the New England Patriots out of San Diego State. He was released by the Patriots in August and claimed by the Detroit Lions. The following season, the Lions traded O’Connell to the New York Jets for late-round draft compensation. Even though he didn’t appear in an NFL regular-season game, O’Connell was with the Jets as a backup quarterback for three seasons. So, you see, Mike’s father, Terry, had some level of say in bringing O’Connell to New York.
Like it or not, these are the types of relationships that the NFL is built on, and it could be Bradway’s path to a general manager job of his own.
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