In a usual offseason, this would be the dead period. The time in between phases of the offseason with little for us to talk about. That is not the case this year. Not only have we been given the never-ending drama that is the Aaron Rodgers situation, but it feels like we have to have a daily discussion about which players are getting the COVID vaccine. Like Buffalo Bills wideout Cole Beasley, some have come out as opposed to taking the vaccine despite how it may affect their ability to participate with the team.
While the Minnesota Vikings have been taciturn as an organization about the status of their players, it has recently come to light that two of the team’s stars, Adam Thielen and Harrison Smith, have not taken the vaccine yet. Fans will remember that Thielen missed the Vikings matchup with the Carolina Panthers on the COVID-19 reserve list.
Just a day after the revelation, head coach Mike Zimmer said that his unvaccinated players would have a “harder time” during the 2021 season. Now that sentiment has been echoed by one of the team’s new veterans, Patrick Peterson. Though Peterson has yet to suit up for the Vikings, he already seems to be making an impact in the locker room with his leadership abilities.
Peterson recently weighed in on the news surrounding players’ options on his podcast “All Things Covered.”
“If you’re not vaccinated, you’re just living in a different world,” he said. “Everybody has their different views on [getting the vaccine]. But at the end of the day, if we’re all in this in trying to win a championship and there’s a very small percentage of the shots [negatively] affecting people, why not put yourself in the best position possible to win a championship, if that’s what you have a desire of doing?”
Peterson thinks that the team with the most vaccinated players will be better prepared going into next season and have a better shot at winning the Super Bowl. While it is a personal decision for players like Thielen and Smith not to get the vaccine, it will be interesting to see how their choices will affect the team and its success.
