Some Football Thoughts

Here are some of the football thoughts that have recently been bouncing around my head.

1. In response to a global pandemic, the supposed leaders of this country employed a unique combination of doing nothing and doing the absolute wrong thing. It's been a disaster, a murderous disaster. Imagine if there was an actual plan. Like the NFL put in place. Or any of the sports leagues. Or New Zealand. The NFL had the benefit of a little bit of time. They had the opportunity to see what worked for the other sports. What those sports did right. What baseball did wrong. Bubbling the entire NFL wasn't and isn't realistic. So baseball was probably the best example. Baseball's stumbles probably helped the NFL more than basketball's and hockey's successes. One thing was very simple despite being so damn elusive to the idiot's leading this country, testing. The NFL and NFLPA knew from the start that the key to a 2020 football season was testing. The NFL and NFLPA disagree on just about everything but at least they mostly agreed on how to proceed during an unprecedented time. Above all, they agreed on the importance of testing. Lots and lots of testing.

2. Talk about idiots not taking a global pandemic seriously, I offer up Kemah Siverand. Due to COVID, as many as 10 players per team lost a shot at their football dream before they had a chance to step on an NFL field as an NFL player. Siverand found himself on the right side of those cuts with the Seattle Seahawks and proceeded to piss away his dream by trying to sneak a woman into training camp. Idiot.

3. I'm going to miss Everson Griffen. He was one of the most fun football players in all my years as a Minnesota Vikings fan. He was fun while he patiently waited four years behind Jared Allen. He was a blast for his six years as a leader of some terrific defenses. Talking heads scoffed when he was handed a big contract in 2014 despite never having been a full-time starter. But Vikings fans knew. They knew what he could do if given the opportunity. Griffen's first year as the Vikings' starting right defensive end was Mike Zimmer's first year as the head coach. It was a wonderful pairing. Even if Griffen had the unfortunate tendency to jump the snap on occasional third-and-longs. I'm going to miss Everson Griffen. I'm going to miss his laugh.

4. I don't really care that talking heads honk about cornerback troubles in Minnesota. I love the team's unproven talent.

Mike Hughes
Jeff Gladney
Holton Hill
Cameron Dantzler
Kris Boyd
Harrison Hand
Nark Fields
Nate Meadors
Nevelle Clarke
Marcus Sayles

The Vikings lost their top three corners from 2019 in free agency. Cornerback has been a team strength pretty much from the moment Mike Zimmer was hired. It wasn't a strength last season. Perhaps I'm such an optimist to the point of being a fool but I'd rather go with the talent and potential of a bunch of the above unproven youngsters than rely again on the fading corner play seen last year. It felt like the Vikings' corners had grown stale. Perhaps they needed a reboot. The position got it with new players and new coaches. I look forward to seeing these youngsters on the football field. Especially Jeff Gladney.

5. Speaking of loving the Vikings' secondary, I loved Harrison Smith's response to a talking head asking about the imminent decline of the Vikings' defense.

"I guess I've kind of been out of the loop – I didn't know we were supposed to be bad. So yeah, I guess that motivates me. Everybody takes things differently. People are going to say things no matter what, so I just try to play well. If you want to talk about it, that's cool; if you don't, that's cool. I think if we all just play well, then we'll win games, and you can say good or bad, and that's it."

"I didn't know we were supposed to be bad." -Classic.

6. George Kittle and Travis Kelce got paid. They deserved to get paid. Both game-tilters crept a little closer to the pay that modest receivers have been getting for a while.

7. So much for that dramatic Dalvin Cook holdout that everyone was predicting.

8. This is for the dipshits that see athletes only as a drain on society rather than a boost to it. Fresh off signing a big new contract, Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce will be buying a building for his Eighty-Seven & Running Foundation to give inner-city Kansas City teenagers a safe place where they can study science, technology, engineering and mathematics. He's been rewarded for doing great in football and he's giving back. Thank you for trying to make your community a better place.