If the NFL calendar were a trek through the desert, Minnesota Vikings fans would be baking in the sun. The middle of July represents a dead period for football fans (unless their team is featured in the police blotter), and they’ve become thirsty, looking for just the smallest sip to help them get to training camp.
But there’s some hope on the horizon every July. It’s not at TCO Performance Center, where the Vikings will gather in a few weeks. Nor is it from Kevin O’Connell, ready to deliver a galvanizing speech for the final stretch. Instead, it’s a Netflix producer with a home screen emblazoned with the word “QUARTERBACK.”
Netflix’s annual docuseries, which has expanded from signal callers to receivers to tight ends, is returning to what has made it successful in the past couple of years. But while previous versions had a direct Vikings tie, such as Kirk Cousins or Justin Jefferson, this purple well seems to have run dry this year.
Football-starved Vikings fans need not fear. There’s plenty in this year’s version that will satisfy their primal needs.
The past two years have been easy for Vikings fans to get their fix. The initial edition of Quarterback featured Cousins along with Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes and Atlanta Falcons quarterback Marcus Mariota. The series helped Cousins complete a babyface turn with football fans everywhere. Meanwhile, Mariota left the Atlanta Falcons in the middle of the season, and Mahomes became football’s biggest villain since Tom Brady was in a broadcast booth.
Cousins’ hyper-focused preparation on the field and his family-man persona off it endeared him to Vikings fans and front offices across the country. When Cousins tore his Achilles a few months after Quarterback was released, his appearance was fresh in the minds of the Falcons, who gave a 36-year-old a four-year, $180 million contract to leave Minnesota.
Few quarterbacks wanted anything to do with another season of Quarterback, even after seeing the benefits it had on Cousins’ bank account. But it allowed Netflix to pivot and focus on the receiver and tight end positions. Aptly named Receiver, it gave producers the chance to follow Jefferson, who became the face of the franchise with Cousins’ departure.
Cousins was still quarterbacking the Vikings when Netflix featured Jefferson, offering a glimpse into his most tumultuous season. In addition to losing his starting quarterback, Jefferson suffered a hamstring injury and caught a literal hospital ball from Joshua Dobbs in Las Vegas. Netflix showed O’Connell ripping into his team during a halftime speech against the Philadelphia Eagles, but the main storyline was how much Jefferson wanted to win in Minnesota.
The second season made it obvious why Jefferson didn’t go nuclear and instead signed a four-year, $140 million extension one month before the release of Receiver. But even if Netflix hadn’t featured him, there still was a lot for Vikings fans to pick up.
Receiver gave fans a chance to see Amon-Ra St. Brown, a player with All-Pro ability and the awkwardness of a home-schooled student. They also discovered that George Kittle is like a big kid, playing the game with enthusiasm before heading home to play with Legos and watch WWE. Both teams wound up on Minnesota’s schedule and gave a glimpse under the helmet.
This year, Vikings fans can still enjoy their schadenfreude when it comes to Cousins. Netflix will feature his first season with the Falcons. Most Minnesotans wished Cousins success when he walked out the door. Still, it could be a trip seeing him realize the grass wasn’t as green as his bank account with the Falcons, Minnesota’s Week 2 opponent next season.
Perhaps fans can get a closer look at Joe Burrow, who could go a couple of directions. Will he follow the path of Mahomes, a player who was universally beloved before he bludgeoned the country with State Farm ads? Or will he be the quiet good guy people want to see succeed despite his persona?
However, the most direct effect Quarterback may have on the Vikings is how it features Jared Goff. The Detroit Lions became America’s lovable underdog when Dan Campbell became a star during Hard Knocks. While there have been some instances of villainy, such as Kerby Joseph acting like a heat-seeking missile on Christmas Eve, many casual football fans still want to see if Campbell can win the big one.
Goff also embodies that underdog mentality. Jettisoned from the Los Angeles Rams by quarterback god Sean McVay, Goff has picked up his career, and his new city has embraced him. Any quarterback who causes fans to chant his name during baseball games, weddings, and bar mitzvahs is an intriguing subject. Still, it’s far more compelling when that quarterback is standing in the way of winning the toughest division in football.
It’s interesting enough that the Vikings will see Cousins, Burrow, and Goff this season. But if Detroit becomes even more likable to the casual fan, it could give Minnesota a chance to be the heel.
That’s good enough for any fan who would be glad to see the Vikings win a Super Bowl by any means necessary. However, it would also give fans a taste of the NFL’s Kool-Aid, helping them gear up for the upcoming season.
