1. The Zoom press conferences that have peppered the Minnesota Vikings' training camp have been wonderful. It hasn't been just the head coach, coordinators, quarterback staples. These conferences have included a variety of players. From the reclusive Riley Reiff to Holton Hill to Adam Thielen. It's been fun.
2. What isn't fun with these Zoom press conferences are some of the questions. That includes just about every question from Chris Tomasson. I've always felt that he should be writing for a tabloid rather than a beat writer for a sports team.
3. Speaking of stupid questions. Vikings rookie receiver Justin Jefferson was asked how he's dealing with the lack of preseaon games, how he can replicate in practices the game-like conditions of those games. As a rookie, Jefferson has never played in an NFL preseason game. His football experience is only training camp practices and football season. The ramp up to the 2020 NFL season has been his football normal. Other than all the testing, masks, and distancing.
4. Hopefully, Adam Thielen is as good at evaluating football talent as he's been at catching footballs. He told Mike Zimmer that third-round rookie corner Cam Dantzler is going to be a good one.
5. Maybe it's a little bit of falling for what's "shiny and new" but I'm so excited to see the Vikings' cornerback group this year. It sounds like Mike Hughes and Holton Hill are emerging as the starting corners in the base defense and some combination of Hughes, Hill, Jeff Gladney, and Cameron Dantzler in nickel. Many national talking heads are pointing to this group as a potential weakness. After all, the top three corners of a year ago left this offseason. I think that this talented, young group is going to be a strength. It's not like the departed corners played all that great last year. The talking heads never mention that little nugget.
6. I keep thinking about Harrison Smith's response when asked about the demise of the Vikings' defense. "I didn't know we were supposed to be bad."
7. It looks like the Vikings' decision-makers are circling in on an offensive line that looks like this.
| LT | Riley Reiff |
| LG | Dakota Dozier |
| C | Garrett Bradbury |
| RG | Pat Elflein |
| RT | Brian O'Neill |
I was expecting a different guard duo but I'm looking forward to seeing this group come together.
8. I can't help but question the decision of the Las Vegas Raiders to christen their new stadium "Death Star." Owner Mark Davis went with “Welcome to the Death Star, where our opponent’s dreams come to die." The opponents are going to find an exhaust port that's two meters wide. And it won't be hard. It's like hunting womp rats in a T-16. Davis should've gone with something that wasn't blown up by it's opponents. Twice.
9. US Bank Stadium is still the best stadium in the NFL. Or anywhere.
10. The NFL stressed the need for all teams to be on a level playing field if they were to play through this global pandemic. Especially if some areas of the country are being so damn stupid about it. Mike Zimmer's right. It isn't a level playing field if some teams get to have fans in their stands while other teams, most teams, don't. Judging by the number of fans without masks at the Chiefs practice yesterday, having teams allow any fans could be a disaster. There's just too much stupid running through this country.
11. I have no problem with the selection of Drew Pearson and Tom Flores as the senior and coach finalists for the Pro Football Hall of Fame. I have no problem with their likely induction next summer. I do have a problem with the voters on the Senior committee apparently closing the door on deserving players from the league's early decades. At best, Lavvie Dilweg, Ox Emerson, and Al Wistert (to name three) should've made it to Canton long ago. At worst, they deserved to be part of the Centennial Class. The fact that they weren't part of that Class is a sad statement on their Hall prospects going forward.
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