Minnesota Vikings Football is fascinating, entertaining, and occasionally just plain weird. As the undefeated Vikings (in the preseason, anyway) get ready to open the real season, fans can enjoy a few strange moments caught on tape that may help them forget about a certain injury to a certain franchise cornerstone.
Don’t lose your head!
In the play below, Las Vegas Raiders wide receiver Tre Tucker is charged with providing the pin block on Vegas’ pin-and-pull scheme (with the OL pulling outside Tucker’s block). He gets a good position but loses his helmet on the block. Football rarely feels so gladiatorial as when a player loses a helmet mid-play.
The player who loses his helmet has a choice: follow through with his assignment and continue playing or try to find a way to disappear and avoid injury. The opponents also have a job to do, and in the melee of a mid-play NFL, even in preseason, it is difficult to just flip a switch for most players and take into account a foe who lost his headgear. Thankfully, Tucket avoids helmet-less contact in this play and drifts through the play unharmed.
“Ooooooooooh”
In this next clip, we see Raiders QB Gardner Minshew deliver an “ambulance pass” (a pass that puts a WR at great risk) to TE Harrison Bryant. Vikings DB Bobby McCain is lurking and times his hit just right, knocking Bryant to the ground and jarring the ball loose. This is normal in the NFL, but what I noticed here is the Viking’s cheerleader, just left of the first down marker, “Oooooooooh”-ing in dismay at the tremendous hit. These are the hazards of the workplace as an NFL cheerleader!
JJ’s Big Preseason Catch
In this next clip we see every Vikings fan’s favorite receiver in a different role: Justin Jefferson, with the day off and relaxing on his sideline, comes in for a vicious flying elbow on a Vikings employee. Somehow, the employee recovers quickly and retaliates with an empty-cup toss at Jefferson. Naturally, JJ somehow makes the catch.
Not everyone enjoys watching preseason games, but one fan had a particularly uncomfortable experience. You have to look closely, but if you look just below the Skol-drum, you can see an unfortunate lady with both of her fingers in her ears. Her boyfriend doesn’t seem to mind, but apparently, he forgot to bring an extra set of earplugs to share with her. Otherwise, I would imagine the seats are great.
OL Swag
Take a look at these guys. These are your unheralded warriors in the trenches, your Vikings O-linemen Dan Feeney, Brian O’Neill, and David Quessenberry. Their work this day is done, and they sit back and revel in their opportunity to relax. Not only that, they show off a unique style and taste that seems somehow reserved for offensive linemen. Feeny’s mullet-and-mustache combo is immaculate. O’Neill appears to be sporting a boating hat of some sort to go with some powerful sunglasses. Queesenberry, perhaps noticing the female Vikings manager approaching, runs his gloved hand through his hair. The nasal breathing strip adds another level to the strange look of these giants.
And finally, Levi Drake Rodriguez celebrates an earlier pass deflection in singular style, dapping up his buddies, doing a little dance, removing the helmet to shake his flowing locks, and then tongue-wagging.
Congratulations on making the roster, Levi Drake. We hope to see you celebrate again — soon and often.
