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Speaker 1: Lifetime, the official athletic country Club of the Minnesota Vikings,

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Speaker 1: has something for every member of your family. Get your

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Speaker 1: family going today at Lifetime, dot Life Forward, slash kits.

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Speaker 1: As I listened to both guys yesterday Brian and Kevin,

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Speaker 1: I thought like this could be a way for Kevin

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Speaker 1: to have that type of vibe again. We four Harrison

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Speaker 1: Smith randomly and I hadn't talked to him much. Came

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Speaker 1: up to me and he's like, are you enjoying it?

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Speaker 1: Like if you had funds, have you enjoyed covering the

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Speaker 1: NFL covering this team? And I was like, hell yeah.

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Speaker 1: Welcome to the Minnesota Vikings Podcast. I'm Tatum Everett here

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Speaker 1: inside TCO Radio Studios with Jay Nelson, our producer Eric Davidson.

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Speaker 1: Gabe Henderson's enjoying some much deserved time off right now.

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Speaker 1: But someone who hit the ground running after enjoying some

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Speaker 1: time off himself is our guest to the podcast today.

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Speaker 1: The athletics Alec Louis, who was back from sunny and

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Speaker 1: warm Alabama, which I personally am very jealous about. It

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Speaker 1: was crazy first, Thanks for having me, but yeah it was.

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Speaker 1: I Mean I was walking outside my mom's like go outside,

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Speaker 1: enjoy enjoy the sun. Did you're here? I was like, yeah,

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Speaker 1: it's a good Thanks Mom. It was a good point.

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Speaker 1: But now it was fun. Um I told you this

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Speaker 1: before we started recording, but it's like the season and

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Speaker 1: it was my first season covering the NFL, such a blur,

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Speaker 1: one hundred miles an hour, and then obviously it stopped

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Speaker 1: so abruptly, and then you're I mean, you're around these

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Speaker 1: people every day and then you're just not. So it's

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Speaker 1: a it's been a h It was nice to get

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Speaker 1: away and to kind of get back in here recently

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Speaker 1: for Brian Flora's High. Yeah. That's always the crazy realization

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Speaker 1: is when the season does come to the end. You know,

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Speaker 1: it's always you're running and trying to figure out what's

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Speaker 1: going to happen the next day, the next week, all

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Speaker 1: the planning, and then there's always that thud of whenever

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Speaker 1: the season is done, there's that thud, and then you

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Speaker 1: quickly go into all, right, what do we have to

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Speaker 1: get done? And then it turns into or what do

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Speaker 1: we have to deal with after the fact, and what

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Speaker 1: do we do? And I think it's always interesting, just

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Speaker 1: year after year when you start to finally get into

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Speaker 1: that routine and figure that kind of stuff out. It

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Speaker 1: is kind of the reality of what the end of

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Speaker 1: the season's like. But yeah, it is weird to be

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Speaker 1: going one hundred miles an hour and then just have

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Speaker 1: to completely stop. There's no doubt I was planning stories

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Speaker 1: for the next week. And it's the playoffs too at

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Speaker 1: that point, and so everything you write, not that it's

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Speaker 1: like a coach, every game means the same, like you

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Speaker 1: want to say that, but like you know in the

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Speaker 1: playoffs that there are a lot of eyes on the

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Speaker 1: team and on the stories in my job that you do.

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Speaker 1: So I was really focused on what I could execute

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Speaker 1: that I think people would would have found really interesting.

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Speaker 1: And the good thing is I'll file some of that

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Speaker 1: stuff away and get to use it in the future.

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Speaker 1: But sure, yeah, it was. It was. It was an

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Speaker 1: awesome I mean, for me, it's pretty obvious to say

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Speaker 1: if you watch, if you're listening to this, you watch

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Speaker 1: the season, but for it to be my first season

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Speaker 1: and for it to play out the way it did,

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Speaker 1: just an absolute blastshole around. Again, that's the Athletics Alec Lewis,

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Speaker 1: and you can find his work on the Athletic Dot

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Speaker 1: com you said, first season covering the NFL, and you

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Speaker 1: came in here, you just told us in August, which

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Speaker 1: we had already been through this huge transition, right, Like,

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Speaker 1: you haven't really seen the Vikings without Quacy a. Dopamensa

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Speaker 1: or Kevin O'Connell. When you came in here and what

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Speaker 1: you saw, did you have a feeling that maybe this

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Speaker 1: team is trying to catch lightning in a bottle per se? Yeah,

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Speaker 1: I mean it's interesting. Probably a month before I got

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Speaker 1: here in late August, it be in Really it was

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Speaker 1: a couple of weeks before the first game. I mean,

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Speaker 1: I had known this was going to be a job

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Speaker 1: and I would be taking so I read and listened

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Speaker 1: to probably way too much, be honest. I mean I

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Speaker 1: watched a ton of videos on like Vikings YouTube page,

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Speaker 1: really on draft behind the scenes, how the mannerisms of

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Speaker 1: these two. Like I was really locked in, and I

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Speaker 1: could tell I think just from viewing that the energy

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Speaker 1: from Kevin and Quaisy and the culture that mattered to

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Speaker 1: them in terms of the way they treated people and

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Speaker 1: kind of the tone that they set. And so when

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Speaker 1: I got here and then I'm listening to those guys,

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Speaker 1: I mean Kevin because he talked on this every day,

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Speaker 1: which very fortunate for him that he did that. But

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Speaker 1: I mean Kevin, he just seemed really on it and

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Speaker 1: and really just strategic and maybe not strategic, but but

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Speaker 1: very focused in everything he did. I mean, yeah, intentional

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Speaker 1: is a perfect word. And that's that's great. It's my

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Speaker 1: job sometimes to come up with those, um, but sometimes

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Speaker 1: when you're grasping at like how to say it, because

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Speaker 1: he does. He's he's a long winded, but he's very

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Speaker 1: he knows what he's saying exactly, and he knows what

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Speaker 1: he's not saying. Yes, and so, um, I think early

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Speaker 1: on just being here, I mean I've been around. I

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Speaker 1: mean I've I've covered sports, I guess now really if

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Speaker 1: you include high school is not that long, but it's

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Speaker 1: like ten years or whatever. So I've been around a

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Speaker 1: bunch of different coaches that have handled things a lot

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Speaker 1: of different ways, and I just I could tell with

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Speaker 1: the way with as intentional as Kevin was, that things

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Speaker 1: could could really become special if they go the right way.

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Speaker 1: And then this sport just a little bit. Yeah, I

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Speaker 1: think the thing with Kevin, you know, when he came

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Speaker 1: in there, I guess I look at it twofold. For him, one,

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Speaker 1: he's got the coach had on, but also he's the

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Speaker 1: former player, so like he kind of understands, especially media wise,

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Speaker 1: pitfalls and everything. But I think the bigger issue is,

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Speaker 1: you realize when he was going through the vetting process

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Speaker 1: and the interview process and what they were looking for

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Speaker 1: here internally as kind of new leadership, and with him

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Speaker 1: being younger and able to connect with the guys, there

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Speaker 1: was a sense of, yeah, there's kind of new, fresh

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Speaker 1: ideas and new blood coming in here. But at the

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Speaker 1: same point, he had a purpose. You know, he had

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Speaker 1: ideas of what he wanted to do, and I think

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Speaker 1: for him, so much of it was coming off of

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Speaker 1: the Super Bowl high and then having to literally the

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Speaker 1: next day walk in the building and just start implementing

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Speaker 1: as fast as possible and just kind of, you know,

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Speaker 1: figure it out as you go. I just feel like

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Speaker 1: both Kevin and Quacy, the way that they handled themselves

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Speaker 1: last offseason was so much of We're showing you what

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Speaker 1: our blueprint's gonna be. We're gonna lay that foundation and

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Speaker 1: we're gonna follow through on what we think. And so

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Speaker 1: that was the thing that you know, for me, having

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Speaker 1: been here for a bet. Was so impressive was to

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Speaker 1: see how they both handled that last offseason. Yeah, I

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Speaker 1: think the thing for me too is like stepping into

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Speaker 1: this locker room, you're also trying to figure out, like

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Speaker 1: what is the locker room? Like what are the types

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Speaker 1: of guys in this building already? And that was another

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Speaker 1: thing that struck me pretty early on. This is a

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Speaker 1: lot of really good, passionate, caring people that had been

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Speaker 1: brought in this building. I mean, I could rattle off

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Speaker 1: probably twenty names, but I'm thinking of guys like Jordan Hicks,

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Speaker 1: thinking of guys like Eric Kendricks, obviously, I'm thinking of

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Speaker 1: guys like Harrison Smith, just a lot of experience of

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Speaker 1: being around different types of people, but also guys who

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Speaker 1: are really ready, I think, who are really ready to

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Speaker 1: win and to be at the stage that they've wanted

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Speaker 1: to be around here for a long time. So just

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Speaker 1: as much as I was kind of analyzing Kevin and

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Speaker 1: Quazy from AFAR, I think I was I was really

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Speaker 1: trying to be in tune with the types of people

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Speaker 1: in the locker room, and I was just struck pretty

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Speaker 1: early on that, like, this is a really good group

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Speaker 1: of guys and I remember, and I don't really know

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Speaker 1: if I need to say this or should, but I remember,

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Speaker 1: like week four, Harrison Smith, randomly and I hadn't talked

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Speaker 1: to him much, came up to me and he's like,

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Speaker 1: are you enjoying it? Like if you had fun? Have

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Speaker 1: you enjoyed being UM covering the NFL covering this team?

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Speaker 1: And I was like, hell, yeah, this is But for

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Speaker 1: him to do that, like, had no reason for him

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Speaker 1: to do that, And I just admit something to me

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Speaker 1: beyond just that. I mean, I just think it's said

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Speaker 1: a lot about a guy like him, but I felt

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Speaker 1: that from a lot of UM the guys in the

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Speaker 1: locker room, so as much as Kevin and Quazy, I

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Speaker 1: do think set such a tone. I think the fact

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Speaker 1: that you had the guys that you did in that

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Speaker 1: locker room paired pretty nicely. That's a cool story, Yeah,

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Speaker 1: for sure. I think you know, having those kind of veterans,

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Speaker 1: that's the reason why those guys are still sticking around

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Speaker 1: and why a guy that Harrison's been around as long

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Speaker 1: as he has while he's been seen as a leader,

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Speaker 1: and that's just a cool story. I think that kind

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Speaker 1: of shows his character and kind of who he is

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Speaker 1: behind the scenes. No, I think for sure I've heard

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Speaker 1: some stuff about him in the way he's treated certain

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Speaker 1: people in his background that hopefully we'll see the light

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Speaker 1: of day in story form at some point. Sure, well,

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Speaker 1: with all the positives, feel like we're really hyping it up,

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Speaker 1: which we appreciate here on MVP. However, today I believe

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Speaker 1: it was Yes, today is the sixteenth while we record

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Speaker 1: the NFL power rankings on the Athletic dot Com dropped

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Speaker 1: and on you know, bo Wolf does not share the

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Speaker 1: same optimism as maybe we kind of feel here with

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Speaker 1: them the building about this team. Now, I know that

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Speaker 1: this particular group of guys, they don't mind being counted out.

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Speaker 1: They don't mind that they're not top five in a

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Speaker 1: power ranking this early out in the season. But it

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Speaker 1: is of note that the Vikings um fifteenth on that list.

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Speaker 1: Is this a I mean, I should probably not right

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Speaker 1: for the Athletic Worry Worry. Is this a recap of

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Speaker 1: the season in terms of his power rankings or is

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Speaker 1: it a looking forward NFL power rankings post Super Bowl? Okay,

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Speaker 1: so it's kind of like a real looking ahead, not

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Speaker 1: behind factoring in general strength of rosters, coaching, stabs along

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Speaker 1: with cap space and draft coffers. I don't know if

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Speaker 1: I've ever heard the word coffer before. Yeah, it's you.

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Speaker 1: It's your money bank, like what you have about I

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Speaker 1: don't think I've ever called my bank account of coffer.

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Speaker 1: I mean didn't look the same. And that's for sure.

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Speaker 1: He said, fifteenth, forteenth, Yeah, we got fifteenth. We got

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Speaker 1: Chiefs on the top, Bengal second, Eagles, third, Bill's fourth,

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Speaker 1: Jaguars fifth. Interesting. Interesting, And we're the Vikings are not

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Speaker 1: the highest ranked NFC North team. The Lions are at

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Speaker 1: number eight. So take that NFC North two twenty two champions.

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Speaker 1: Think about going into the season. At the end of

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Speaker 1: the the season, everyone would be thinking that Detroit was

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Speaker 1: the top in the division. At this point. They are

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Speaker 1: a dark horse. They are very much they are dark.

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Speaker 1: But that's the thing is. They are a young team

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Speaker 1: that at least at the end of the season, really

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Speaker 1: made a run there for the last half and went

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Speaker 1: nuts and just feels like Dan Campbell's got them all,

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Speaker 1: you know, driving in the same direction. But they only

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Speaker 1: seem to beat the Vikings at least once a year.

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Speaker 1: They have been our nemesis for the last probably three

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Speaker 1: four years, there's always some game, it doesn't matter whether

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Speaker 1: it's home or away that the Lions have always kind

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Speaker 1: of you know, they've been given us a hard time.

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Speaker 1: They're not the doormat that they used to be. That

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Speaker 1: you know, they're not wearing garbage bags or brown paper

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Speaker 1: bags over their heads anymore. As fans, those guys, you know,

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Speaker 1: this year was different. I remember Ben Labor making a

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Speaker 1: comment about how this is the loudest he had heard

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Speaker 1: Ford Field was the season against us, and there's just

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Speaker 1: a different energy, I know. You know, we had talked

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Speaker 1: to Zach Martina, who was friends with Simonson on the tailgate,

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Speaker 1: and Zach was saying, you know, even the Viking game

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Speaker 1: when it came in, he's like, Dan camp streeting this

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Speaker 1: like the Super Bowl. He's like, he's just hyping it

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Speaker 1: up to that level. And I think for fans there,

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Speaker 1: they've been starved for so many years for a winning

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Speaker 1: team or something to cheer for, that it makes sense

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Speaker 1: that you know, with all the young talent and Dan

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Speaker 1: getting them to all buy in, that they would be high,

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Speaker 1: you know going into the offseason. I'll say this too.

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Speaker 1: I think at the Pro Bowl, I can't remember who

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Speaker 1: Justin Jefferson said it too. I would sign him for sure,

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Speaker 1: but I think he was asked it might have been

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Speaker 1: with Mike Florio, like the receiver that he thought is

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Speaker 1: like up and coming, maybe doesn't get enough like high

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Speaker 1: end pub and he referenced on my ros A Brown,

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Speaker 1: who I mean we saw a year was just phenomenal

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Speaker 1: with the Lions. But I will, I mean the power

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Speaker 1: ranking at fifteenth, it's it's interesting, and I mean I

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Speaker 1: think a lot of that. You mentioned cap space, so

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Speaker 1: I think that in draft capital, I think that's definitely

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Speaker 1: a part of it. Sure. I mean, the Vikings obviously

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Speaker 1: have some work to do to get above, to get

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Speaker 1: in the black from a cat perspective, and I know

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Speaker 1: probably in the rooms adjacent to us that's probably being

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Speaker 1: worked on at the moment. And then I think from

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Speaker 1: a draft perspective, they have four picks, potentially five, and

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Speaker 1: as Quasiotopomtza said in his postseason press covers, there's always

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Speaker 1: ways to get creative and add more picks, so that

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Speaker 1: could definitely happen. And then I think just given what

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Speaker 1: happened with the defense for most of the season, I

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Speaker 1: mean that's that's also why you find yourselves. Probably at

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Speaker 1: that ranking it was. I don't know. I thought back

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Speaker 1: about it a lot, probably too much again in terms

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Speaker 1: of well, it's healthy for me on the outside to

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Speaker 1: think it's not really my nature that people know me. No,

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Speaker 1: Like I was quick aside, I was talking to one

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Speaker 1: of my cousins back at home and she's like, have

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Speaker 1: you taken time off? And I'm like, yeah, I'm here,

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Speaker 1: I'm with my fits. She's like, have you taken time off?

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Speaker 1: They hired Brian for it, um, but but I I

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Speaker 1: mean I've watched I've gone back and watched a ton

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Speaker 1: of the film just so most of the season, I've

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Speaker 1: looked at as many numbers. I feel like an accountant

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Speaker 1: probably going through as many numbers as I have, And

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Speaker 1: I just it's such a fascinating The defense and the

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Speaker 1: issues on defense are so fascinating in that there's so

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Speaker 1: much that plays a role in it. It's so hard

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Speaker 1: to separate. Was it the was it the players, was

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Speaker 1: it a certain layer of the defense? Was it all

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Speaker 1: on the code? I mean, we could do this for

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Speaker 1: and I'm sure again those who make this is for

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Speaker 1: this team have but I think that's one of the

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Speaker 1: fascinating things I found about football is like there's so

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Speaker 1: much and that I as a fan, you watched it,

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Speaker 1: but when you're really like looking at it, there's so

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Speaker 1: there's so many pieces that have to work together for

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Speaker 1: it to work the right way that when it doesn't

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Speaker 1: go right and you're trying to separate the pieces, it's

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Speaker 1: so difficult to do accurately and honestly. So, yeah, there's

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Speaker 1: my soliloquy on Yeah. I mean, and if you want

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Speaker 1: to know more about Alex's opinion on the draft, it

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Speaker 1: is up on the website. You really are working extremely

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Speaker 1: hard this offseason to put out some great stuff. I mean,

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Speaker 1: this is we're talking draft and it's like not even

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Speaker 1: Combine yet. Yeah. My editor came at me Monday, not

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Speaker 1: came at me, and it was it wasn't that aggressive,

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Speaker 1: but it was like, hey, we want we want a

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Speaker 1: big board of players that the Viking could draft every pick,

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Speaker 1: I mean whole I'm like, oh my god, I haven't

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Speaker 1: even seen these guys at the Combine. Like I don't.

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Speaker 1: I've never covered a draft before, Like okay, but I

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Speaker 1: was at the Senior Bowl and mobile, yeah, there were

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Speaker 1: a bunch of players down there. Maybe the guy that

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Speaker 1: I enjoyed watching the most. Who's not like a gigantic

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Speaker 1: name and I don't like it might not matter to

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Speaker 1: many people. I don't know, but a guy Darius Rush

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Speaker 1: played at South Carolina was like extreme as a cornerback,

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Speaker 1: extremely fast, looked really good. He wasn't like highly ranked

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Speaker 1: going into it. It was just a guy that I

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Speaker 1: walked out of there. I was like, I kind of

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Speaker 1: like that guy for some reason. But yeah, I mean

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Speaker 1: in terms of doing stuff this offseason, like I I

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Speaker 1: don't know, I don't I I love what I do,

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Speaker 1: like I really really do, and so it makes it

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Speaker 1: to where when I am putting out certain stories, Um,

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Speaker 1: it's it's just it's just what how it is. But

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Speaker 1: I I do love the stuff like the Brian Flores

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Speaker 1: press conference and hearing him talk a lot about family

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Speaker 1: and he talked about his wife. Um, I'm fascinated always

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Speaker 1: by like the people, background story stuff. I mean, that's

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Speaker 1: when I when I really think about why I do this.

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Speaker 1: That's that's really is. So as much as I can

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Speaker 1: do that this offseason, I'm gonna try to. That's always

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Speaker 1: the side to it or coaching that blows my mind.

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Speaker 1: And I saw that back in college with some of

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Speaker 1: my coaches that I had back then, and just understanding

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Speaker 1: like so much of it for them is kind of

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Speaker 1: a spartan life, and that you know, you're here for

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Speaker 1: a certain amount of time and then eventually you're you're

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Speaker 1: picking up and moving on to another opportunity. UM. Good

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Speaker 1: and bad um at different times. But you know, Flora

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Speaker 1: is hearing him talk about that, talking about the kids,

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Speaker 1: you know, being big JJ fans, and and the fact

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Speaker 1: that his daughter's first steps were at us Bank Stadium

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Speaker 1: for the Super Bowl. UM, just seems like there's a

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Speaker 1: lot of ties there. And and it was really interesting

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Speaker 1: to hear Brian's take on why Minnesota was attractive for him.

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Speaker 1: I know he got peppered with all the other coaching

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Speaker 1: questions and all that kind of stuff, but when it

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Speaker 1: was kind of the background stuff that he led with,

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Speaker 1: there was some some really interesting nuggets there. There was

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Speaker 1: really only like one, well maybe two, like real coaching

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Speaker 1: scheme questions. It was mainly it felt more like culture

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Speaker 1: fit and kind of like you had all this other

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Speaker 1: stuff going for you. Why this place kind of feel?

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Speaker 1: And also I think it's important to point out that

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Speaker 1: it was their first chance that the media got a

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Speaker 1: chance to talk to Kevin O'Connell since the firing of

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Speaker 1: at Donna Tell and the hiring obviously of Brian Flores,

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Speaker 1: because he issued a statement, but you had probably twenty

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Speaker 1: five questions for him, like waiting to go, and so

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Speaker 1: I felt like sometimes in those in that moment, it

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Speaker 1: was probably like a nice half and half presser because

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Speaker 1: it was the first time you could talk to coach. No,

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Speaker 1: it's a great I mean, and that was really like

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Speaker 1: my ultimate takeaway from the press conference. Yes, Brian said

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Speaker 1: a lot that I will continue to dive into a

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Speaker 1: little deeper as the week's progressed. But I was really,

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Speaker 1: I mean struck by Kevin the way he said that.

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Speaker 1: He's like I went through a very thorough of evaluation myself,

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Speaker 1: and like you, I was like italics underlying whatever you want,

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Speaker 1: because that's the way he said it, and you and

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Speaker 1: Kevin is a guy, I mean, just from being around

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Speaker 1: him for one season, you could tell like growth means

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Speaker 1: a lot to him, and evaluating himself and analyzing himself

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Speaker 1: means a lot to him. It doesn't mean he's always

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Speaker 1: gonna make the right decision. He's even said after games

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Speaker 1: this season like we could have done this, I should

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Speaker 1: have done this. I mean, he was very open and

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Speaker 1: honest about that, and I think in a business that

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Speaker 1: is so predicated on the result every week, like you

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Speaker 1: gotta kind of I at least step back and I'm like,

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Speaker 1: this is this guy's first time in this specific job.

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Speaker 1: Everybody who enters a new job, there's a lot you

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Speaker 1: have to adapt to. And while yes, there's a lot

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Speaker 1: that rides on it, like, I just think that's important

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Speaker 1: to think about it. So to hear Kevin talk about

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Speaker 1: his own evaluation on the defense and what he wanted,

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Speaker 1: that was really what struck me, maybe more than anything

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Speaker 1: else yesterday. It's just how much what mattered to him,

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Speaker 1: and how much evaluating himself and the decisions he had

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Speaker 1: made matter too. I think as a fan though too,

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Speaker 1: that's got to be encouraging as well, just to feel

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Speaker 1: like you're not okay with the status quo, You're you're

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Speaker 1: not complacent, You're you're trying to really figure out what

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Speaker 1: worked what didn't. I know that, you know, so much

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Speaker 1: has been made about the one score games and kind

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Speaker 1: of the it's not supposed to go like that, or

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Speaker 1: at least law of averages says it's not going to

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Speaker 1: be that way, but it does feel like, you know,

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Speaker 1: Kevin again to use the word intentional, it was very

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Speaker 1: intentional about all of their offseason plans and everything to

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Speaker 1: try to evaluate and figure out what they can do

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Speaker 1: to fix it. Because you got thirteen wins this past season,

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Speaker 1: I think people felt like that wasn't necessarily you know,

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Speaker 1: what was predicted on the front end. But at the

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Speaker 1: same point, next year's schedule gets so difficult, and I

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Speaker 1: think even looking at that power rankings, there's got to

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Speaker 1: be a chunk of it there as well, just to realize,

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Speaker 1: you know, the final four teams that were in the

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Speaker 1: conference championships are all in your schedule next year. So

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Speaker 1: there's going to be a lot of things that Kevin

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Speaker 1: and the crew and now Brian coming in have to

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Speaker 1: really evaluate to figure out how do we right the

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Speaker 1: ship and fix this in order to you know, have

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Speaker 1: another successful season next year. Yeah, And I thought one

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Speaker 1: of the interesting things that Kevin did say was Brian

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Speaker 1: joins Quasi and I and putting together. I think his

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Speaker 1: words were a personnel plan for the future, and I

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Speaker 1: thought of that. I mean, Brian Flores before he was

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Speaker 1: a coach. Beginning in two thousand and eight, he was

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Speaker 1: a scout and that was his entry into the NFL.

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Speaker 1: He worked he got hired by Scott Paoli in New England.

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Speaker 1: He worked really close with Scott, like moving the magnets

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Speaker 1: around in Scott's office late at night, and that was

408
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Speaker 1: really his entries to think about things from a personnel

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Speaker 1: and roster wide perspective, and so to add a guy

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Speaker 1: like that who has done that in New England, who

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Speaker 1: did that in Miami, building that roster which you can

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Speaker 1: go through that defense and the talent they have to

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Speaker 1: Quasy and this scouting staff and Kevin and what they're

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Speaker 1: looking for, I think gives this team the probably the

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Speaker 1: best chance of finding the type of talent that fits

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Speaker 1: Brian Flores system and the defensive system to infuse I

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Speaker 1: think the defense with more and I think that was

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Speaker 1: That was one thing that really struck me is Kevin's inclusion,

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Speaker 1: and I think he did he does says these things

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Speaker 1: for a reason of Brian. In terms of thinking about

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Speaker 1: the personnel plan um for the future of this team,

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Speaker 1: you have to think about where Flores came from in

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Speaker 1: New England, where you just get the most out of

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Speaker 1: guys you don't necessarily need that big, flashy name, maybe

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Speaker 1: one you know, lockdown man corner that's gonna scream like

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Speaker 1: in free agency. But then again, you could plug in

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Speaker 1: a guy that you just think has promised and you

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Speaker 1: coach him up and you level that playing field. And

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Speaker 1: I think that that again the personnel things such a

430
00:20:40,520 --> 00:20:46,040
Speaker 1: great point because he has this background that it felt

431
00:20:46,160 --> 00:20:48,440
Speaker 1: funny to me listening to him because I could have

432
00:20:48,480 --> 00:20:51,160
Speaker 1: closed my eyes and like hurt it in Kevin O'Connell's

433
00:20:51,200 --> 00:20:52,919
Speaker 1: voice and it would have been the same stuff. So

434
00:20:52,960 --> 00:20:55,880
Speaker 1: whether they planned lot or not, but um, but yeah,

435
00:20:56,200 --> 00:20:58,879
Speaker 1: it's it seems to be a good fit. And you

436
00:20:58,960 --> 00:21:00,639
Speaker 1: have to think of it in a way like like

437
00:21:00,720 --> 00:21:03,560
Speaker 1: they know that they're in trouble with cap space right now,

438
00:21:03,800 --> 00:21:06,520
Speaker 1: so maybe Brian Flores isn't going to get big names

439
00:21:06,520 --> 00:21:08,600
Speaker 1: and so he's the guy to do that with these

440
00:21:08,760 --> 00:21:11,320
Speaker 1: who they can get. So I don't know, it's I'm

441
00:21:11,320 --> 00:21:13,600
Speaker 1: personally very excited. One of the things for me that's

442
00:21:13,640 --> 00:21:16,440
Speaker 1: interesting though, is to think about Brian Flores his connections

443
00:21:16,560 --> 00:21:18,879
Speaker 1: all over the NFL at this point. You know, people

444
00:21:18,880 --> 00:21:20,879
Speaker 1: that are in Miami still are that our free agents

445
00:21:20,920 --> 00:21:23,840
Speaker 1: coming off of a Miami contract, even Pittsburgh. There's a

446
00:21:23,840 --> 00:21:27,359
Speaker 1: couple of linebackers and secondary guys that are available at

447
00:21:27,359 --> 00:21:29,760
Speaker 1: this point that I am curious to see if, if

448
00:21:29,800 --> 00:21:32,160
Speaker 1: you know, one, if the financials work out, but too

449
00:21:32,440 --> 00:21:34,720
Speaker 1: if a guy like Brian Flores is going to be

450
00:21:34,960 --> 00:21:36,480
Speaker 1: kind of a magnet to pull some of these other

451
00:21:36,480 --> 00:21:40,159
Speaker 1: guys because he's seen players not only all the coaches

452
00:21:40,160 --> 00:21:41,919
Speaker 1: see from all the different teams and everything in scouts

453
00:21:41,960 --> 00:21:44,359
Speaker 1: and evaluators, but a guy like Brian has firsthand knowledge

454
00:21:44,359 --> 00:21:46,480
Speaker 1: on some of these different teams of some pretty good

455
00:21:46,480 --> 00:21:49,320
Speaker 1: defenses that he's been around over the last couple of years.

456
00:21:49,320 --> 00:21:50,919
Speaker 1: So I'm curious to see if any moves get made

457
00:21:50,960 --> 00:21:53,159
Speaker 1: that way too. Yeah, it's funny. I've talked to a

458
00:21:53,160 --> 00:21:56,280
Speaker 1: couple of guys who have played for him, and this

459
00:21:56,320 --> 00:21:58,720
Speaker 1: will probably be a story at some point here shortly,

460
00:21:58,760 --> 00:22:01,520
Speaker 1: but you can hear it when you talk to some

461
00:22:01,560 --> 00:22:05,000
Speaker 1: of those guys, like how much he asked of them,

462
00:22:05,119 --> 00:22:07,760
Speaker 1: but how much I think these guys look back and

463
00:22:07,800 --> 00:22:11,439
Speaker 1: are fortunate that they were around a guy like like like.

464
00:22:11,760 --> 00:22:14,639
Speaker 1: Both both players that I spoke to were very much

465
00:22:14,880 --> 00:22:17,360
Speaker 1: like at first when I entered the NFL and I'm

466
00:22:17,400 --> 00:22:20,040
Speaker 1: playing and I'm being asked a lot of like I

467
00:22:20,040 --> 00:22:22,080
Speaker 1: didn't really, you don't really understand it. I look back

468
00:22:22,119 --> 00:22:23,960
Speaker 1: and I'm like, I would never have had the tenure

469
00:22:24,080 --> 00:22:25,960
Speaker 1: career that I had if it weren't for a guy

470
00:22:26,000 --> 00:22:28,680
Speaker 1: like Brian floors around me every day. It's pretty interesting.

471
00:22:28,720 --> 00:22:31,720
Speaker 1: I mean, I also think Um and I've talked to

472
00:22:31,720 --> 00:22:35,080
Speaker 1: our rams rider, Jordan Rottery. She does an incredible job

473
00:22:35,240 --> 00:22:37,480
Speaker 1: at the Athletic and has for She's also been on

474
00:22:37,520 --> 00:22:42,119
Speaker 1: the podcast before she's she's she was around Kevin, Um

475
00:22:43,119 --> 00:22:44,919
Speaker 1: and West and a bunch of those guys and I

476
00:22:45,520 --> 00:22:48,920
Speaker 1: we were um talking a couple of weeks ago about

477
00:22:49,080 --> 00:22:52,240
Speaker 1: who the Vikings would hire defensively, just just like I,

478
00:22:53,040 --> 00:22:55,000
Speaker 1: as much as I can learn from people who've been around.

479
00:22:55,080 --> 00:22:57,360
Speaker 1: It's just I love doing it. And Jordan was talking

480
00:22:57,400 --> 00:23:01,360
Speaker 1: about in twenty twenty when Sean mcy hired Brandon Staley

481
00:23:01,400 --> 00:23:05,520
Speaker 1: to be his defensive coordinator and Kevin was the OC

482
00:23:05,680 --> 00:23:09,840
Speaker 1: at the time, that offense in LA and that defensive

483
00:23:09,840 --> 00:23:13,280
Speaker 1: staff McVeigh, Kevin and then Brandon Staley and his staff

484
00:23:14,000 --> 00:23:16,920
Speaker 1: fed so much off each other and helped each other

485
00:23:17,080 --> 00:23:19,879
Speaker 1: so much throughout the course of that training camp and

486
00:23:19,920 --> 00:23:22,159
Speaker 1: into that season that it helped their offense and it

487
00:23:22,200 --> 00:23:26,480
Speaker 1: helped their defense. And as I listened to both guys yesterday,

488
00:23:26,520 --> 00:23:29,639
Speaker 1: Brian and Kevin, I thought like, this could be a

489
00:23:29,680 --> 00:23:32,639
Speaker 1: way for Kevin to have that type of vibe again

490
00:23:32,680 --> 00:23:36,040
Speaker 1: of like this guy's gonna really help my offense. And

491
00:23:36,080 --> 00:23:38,560
Speaker 1: I think Brian feels the same way about Kevin really

492
00:23:38,600 --> 00:23:41,560
Speaker 1: helping what he's capable of defensively and that push pull.

493
00:23:41,600 --> 00:23:44,119
Speaker 1: I'm sure we'll see on a week to week basis

494
00:23:44,119 --> 00:23:47,159
Speaker 1: in training camp, but I just think there has to

495
00:23:47,200 --> 00:23:49,239
Speaker 1: be something with Kevin of like wanting to recreate that

496
00:23:49,280 --> 00:23:51,280
Speaker 1: feeling of like we're going at each other and learning

497
00:23:51,280 --> 00:23:54,199
Speaker 1: from each other every day. And so I think thinking

498
00:23:54,240 --> 00:23:56,840
Speaker 1: forward to training camp and what we see on the fields,

499
00:23:57,040 --> 00:23:59,280
Speaker 1: that's something that I think I'm really looking forward to.

500
00:23:59,600 --> 00:24:02,240
Speaker 1: I'm a big reader of body language. I really like

501
00:24:02,280 --> 00:24:04,600
Speaker 1: to see the physical cues when that kind of stuff happens.

502
00:24:04,600 --> 00:24:06,840
Speaker 1: And I don't know if I've ever seen Kevin not excited,

503
00:24:07,000 --> 00:24:09,440
Speaker 1: Like he just had this like smile on his face

504
00:24:09,880 --> 00:24:13,560
Speaker 1: that like you have seen before, but you could genuinely

505
00:24:13,600 --> 00:24:16,480
Speaker 1: tell he was like, I'm about to make this announcement

506
00:24:16,520 --> 00:24:18,240
Speaker 1: and this is going to be such a home run

507
00:24:18,280 --> 00:24:20,160
Speaker 1: and I can't wait to get going, and like this

508
00:24:20,200 --> 00:24:22,320
Speaker 1: is a great move for us, and this is I

509
00:24:22,720 --> 00:24:25,440
Speaker 1: believe in this so much and I love seeing that

510
00:24:25,520 --> 00:24:27,600
Speaker 1: just like in his face. He couldn't hide it at

511
00:24:27,680 --> 00:24:29,440
Speaker 1: all if he was trying to, I don't think he was.

512
00:24:29,520 --> 00:24:31,760
Speaker 1: It was funny, like I think Brian I lead with

513
00:24:31,800 --> 00:24:33,679
Speaker 1: this just because I don't. I don't know why. You

514
00:24:33,680 --> 00:24:37,240
Speaker 1: could just see it, but Brian like padded Kevin on

515
00:24:37,280 --> 00:24:39,480
Speaker 1: the shoulder and he was like, thanks, Kevin, that's the

516
00:24:39,560 --> 00:24:42,520
Speaker 1: nicest stuff you've said about Kevin was like, you got it.

517
00:24:42,720 --> 00:24:44,440
Speaker 1: It was just it was like the back and forth

518
00:24:44,440 --> 00:24:47,440
Speaker 1: that they probably have up there in the offices all

519
00:24:47,440 --> 00:24:49,200
Speaker 1: the time, but it was it was good to see.

520
00:24:49,240 --> 00:24:51,679
Speaker 1: And I mean I do think, like I've said a

521
00:24:51,680 --> 00:24:54,399
Speaker 1: couple of times, like this thing is so serious. There's

522
00:24:54,440 --> 00:24:56,720
Speaker 1: so much that does ride on the line in this

523
00:24:56,800 --> 00:25:01,639
Speaker 1: business that anytime you see guy, I mean, just like

524
00:25:01,680 --> 00:25:05,840
Speaker 1: the human side of it that you gotta like appreciate it,

525
00:25:05,920 --> 00:25:07,440
Speaker 1: or at least I do, so I don't, I don't

526
00:25:07,480 --> 00:25:10,119
Speaker 1: need to speaker. I'd just appreciate it, for sure. I

527
00:25:10,119 --> 00:25:12,080
Speaker 1: think two as Flores has you know, all of the

528
00:25:12,119 --> 00:25:15,520
Speaker 1: different experiences going from basically kind of the low level

529
00:25:15,560 --> 00:25:16,920
Speaker 1: to the high level the way to the head coach

530
00:25:16,920 --> 00:25:19,120
Speaker 1: and making those kind of decisions. I think a guy

531
00:25:19,119 --> 00:25:21,400
Speaker 1: like Flora's is going to be really interesting to see

532
00:25:21,680 --> 00:25:24,960
Speaker 1: what kind of decisions Kevin, you know, makes the same,

533
00:25:25,080 --> 00:25:27,600
Speaker 1: or what he changes up as a head coach, just

534
00:25:27,640 --> 00:25:29,600
Speaker 1: being able to, you know, talk shop with him a

535
00:25:29,640 --> 00:25:31,119
Speaker 1: little bit to see how he would handle some of

536
00:25:31,119 --> 00:25:33,760
Speaker 1: those things. And Kevin's his own guy, He's the ultimately

537
00:25:33,800 --> 00:25:34,840
Speaker 1: at the end of the day, he's the one that

538
00:25:34,840 --> 00:25:36,840
Speaker 1: has to answer for whatever happens on that field. But

539
00:25:37,119 --> 00:25:39,159
Speaker 1: I think having a guy like Flora's not only for

540
00:25:39,480 --> 00:25:42,520
Speaker 1: kind of personnel decisions, but I think being able to

541
00:25:42,600 --> 00:25:44,159
Speaker 1: lean on him as a head coach as well is

542
00:25:44,160 --> 00:25:45,840
Speaker 1: going to be interesting to see if there's any kind

543
00:25:45,840 --> 00:25:49,239
Speaker 1: of noticeable changes in how Kevin handles his coaching day

544
00:25:49,280 --> 00:25:51,520
Speaker 1: to day. I agree, And I also think, like I

545
00:25:51,560 --> 00:25:54,200
Speaker 1: think about some of the younger coaches on the staff,

546
00:25:54,400 --> 00:25:57,680
Speaker 1: Guys like Matt Daniels, guys like I don't know, I

547
00:25:58,040 --> 00:26:02,399
Speaker 1: can name a bunch of like Wes even phillips Um,

548
00:26:03,000 --> 00:26:05,560
Speaker 1: like just what they can learn from a guy like

549
00:26:05,640 --> 00:26:08,359
Speaker 1: Brian and what what Brian can learn from that. I

550
00:26:08,400 --> 00:26:10,840
Speaker 1: just think I don't know, there's always to me a

551
00:26:10,960 --> 00:26:16,119
Speaker 1: pretty unseen thing of the lessons that these guys share

552
00:26:16,200 --> 00:26:18,760
Speaker 1: with each other. And I think oftentimes, like as a writer,

553
00:26:18,920 --> 00:26:20,960
Speaker 1: my job, like you hear it years down the road

554
00:26:21,000 --> 00:26:22,760
Speaker 1: of like I remember when that person told me this,

555
00:26:22,840 --> 00:26:25,359
Speaker 1: You don't really see it every day, but these guys

556
00:26:25,400 --> 00:26:27,880
Speaker 1: get to live it, and so, um, you probably can't

557
00:26:27,920 --> 00:26:32,760
Speaker 1: put a value or projection on what these guys can

558
00:26:32,840 --> 00:26:35,120
Speaker 1: do for each other. Yeah, I do think it's almost

559
00:26:35,119 --> 00:26:38,119
Speaker 1: like a year to the day, not day, but like

560
00:26:38,240 --> 00:26:41,360
Speaker 1: week that they announced Kevin O'Connell was the day. Yeah

561
00:26:41,400 --> 00:26:43,680
Speaker 1: it was, you know, it was day after the Super Bowl, right,

562
00:26:43,760 --> 00:26:46,480
Speaker 1: so it was it was he went through the parade

563
00:26:46,960 --> 00:26:48,720
Speaker 1: and then literally hopped the plane the night of the

564
00:26:48,720 --> 00:26:51,439
Speaker 1: parade after the parade was done, and showed up the

565
00:26:51,440 --> 00:26:53,679
Speaker 1: next day. So I know that it's crazy to think

566
00:26:53,720 --> 00:26:56,240
Speaker 1: that because I remember when they got here. One of

567
00:26:56,240 --> 00:26:58,880
Speaker 1: their first things was we're all packing up and going

568
00:26:58,920 --> 00:27:00,879
Speaker 1: to the combine and like you've got I've got the

569
00:27:00,960 --> 00:27:03,560
Speaker 1: next out of business and so you know, Um, when

570
00:27:03,600 --> 00:27:05,520
Speaker 1: I talked to Flora's about that, I was like, yeah,

571
00:27:05,560 --> 00:27:08,040
Speaker 1: you know, see it the combined have fun, Like you know,

572
00:27:08,119 --> 00:27:10,280
Speaker 1: this is going to be exciting, and so I think, Um,

573
00:27:10,680 --> 00:27:13,280
Speaker 1: I think obviously that's what's next. He's such a great

574
00:27:13,280 --> 00:27:15,679
Speaker 1: evaluator of talent. I'm really excited to see what he

575
00:27:15,720 --> 00:27:19,639
Speaker 1: can add to that team that's going there. Um, Alec,

576
00:27:19,720 --> 00:27:23,160
Speaker 1: you are making your first trek to the NFL Combine,

577
00:27:23,240 --> 00:27:25,919
Speaker 1: the place where all the deals get made and the

578
00:27:25,960 --> 00:27:29,640
Speaker 1: relationships get forged. What are you most looking forward about it? Um,

579
00:27:30,359 --> 00:27:32,480
Speaker 1: that's a great question. I'm not sure you don't know

580
00:27:32,520 --> 00:27:35,920
Speaker 1: what to expect, right, Yeah, I mean, I I think

581
00:27:35,960 --> 00:27:37,640
Speaker 1: I'm just I mean, I'm looking forward to meeting as

582
00:27:37,680 --> 00:27:40,520
Speaker 1: many like meeting people and talking to people and having

583
00:27:40,600 --> 00:27:44,040
Speaker 1: real conversations with different types of people. I mean, that's

584
00:27:44,040 --> 00:27:47,080
Speaker 1: what I think. Like it's funny when I covered baseball

585
00:27:47,200 --> 00:27:49,239
Speaker 1: in Kansas City for three years and like early on

586
00:27:49,480 --> 00:27:51,600
Speaker 1: is like you're just trying to get your footing. Then

587
00:27:51,680 --> 00:27:54,520
Speaker 1: the next phase is kind of like you're you're trying

588
00:27:54,600 --> 00:28:00,680
Speaker 1: to meet people, established relationships, develop content acts, that type

589
00:28:00,680 --> 00:28:02,960
Speaker 1: of thing. And so I think being in Indianapolis where

590
00:28:03,000 --> 00:28:06,520
Speaker 1: so many people will be there and it's so clustered,

591
00:28:06,560 --> 00:28:09,040
Speaker 1: like from what I what I know, it's like I mean,

592
00:28:09,080 --> 00:28:12,920
Speaker 1: they're like these three blocks. Everyone's i mean everyone's eating

593
00:28:12,920 --> 00:28:15,440
Speaker 1: in these same restaurants, and so I think, I mean,

594
00:28:15,440 --> 00:28:17,480
Speaker 1: obviously it'll be great for me to meet a ton

595
00:28:17,520 --> 00:28:19,919
Speaker 1: of the athletics staff that I haven't but then to

596
00:28:20,080 --> 00:28:24,000
Speaker 1: be around Quaisi and Kevin m and then just a

597
00:28:24,040 --> 00:28:26,919
Speaker 1: bunch of football people who want to talk about the

598
00:28:27,000 --> 00:28:30,879
Speaker 1: game and about I don't know, writing and stuff. That's

599
00:28:30,680 --> 00:28:33,760
Speaker 1: it's it's what it'll be fun. Are you staying through

600
00:28:33,960 --> 00:28:37,480
Speaker 1: all of the drills and like those days too, because

601
00:28:37,880 --> 00:28:39,720
Speaker 1: I mean for a lot of people, it's like you

602
00:28:39,800 --> 00:28:42,239
Speaker 1: hit the pressors and you're out right because like the

603
00:28:42,280 --> 00:28:45,000
Speaker 1: TV rights aren't there, you can't really film it, you

604
00:28:45,280 --> 00:28:48,040
Speaker 1: don't really get access to the players afterwards. Everything is

605
00:28:48,080 --> 00:28:50,360
Speaker 1: like a build up event. It's like, oh, yeah, I

606
00:28:50,440 --> 00:28:52,640
Speaker 1: forgot they are going to be competing during that week

607
00:28:52,680 --> 00:28:55,880
Speaker 1: and running forties and things like that. Right, Yeah, I

608
00:28:55,880 --> 00:28:59,320
Speaker 1: think I'm staying I think until the Thursday of that week.

609
00:28:59,400 --> 00:29:02,840
Speaker 1: But yeah, pretty common the evaluating of the forty yard

610
00:29:02,920 --> 00:29:06,200
Speaker 1: dash times and the bench press and the vertical league

611
00:29:06,640 --> 00:29:10,840
Speaker 1: yeah whatever. Like I'm I am probably nerd, like kind

612
00:29:10,840 --> 00:29:13,120
Speaker 1: of a nerd in terms of like what I want

613
00:29:13,120 --> 00:29:15,440
Speaker 1: to learn in the game, so I like the rabbit

614
00:29:15,480 --> 00:29:19,320
Speaker 1: hole's never in, but yeah, that'll be I don't know,

615
00:29:19,360 --> 00:29:22,280
Speaker 1: maybe I'll just read Dane Bruegler, who does a good

616
00:29:22,360 --> 00:29:25,400
Speaker 1: job for us. In terms of those evaluates, You're probably

617
00:29:25,400 --> 00:29:27,200
Speaker 1: not going to get as close as the TV cameras

618
00:29:27,200 --> 00:29:29,080
Speaker 1: and all the evaluation anyway, so you could sit there

619
00:29:29,080 --> 00:29:31,200
Speaker 1: and watch on TV on that one. But yeah, that

620
00:29:31,200 --> 00:29:33,280
Speaker 1: that kind of reminds me. It's similar to the Super Bowl,

621
00:29:33,280 --> 00:29:34,840
Speaker 1: where there's a lot of you know, all the other

622
00:29:34,840 --> 00:29:36,800
Speaker 1: extracurricular stuff that goes on, and then as soon as

623
00:29:36,840 --> 00:29:39,040
Speaker 1: like game day happens. I was always told, if you

624
00:29:39,040 --> 00:29:40,880
Speaker 1: ever want to get like a celebrity autograph, just go

625
00:29:40,920 --> 00:29:42,880
Speaker 1: to the airport on Sunday morning of the Super Bowl

626
00:29:42,920 --> 00:29:45,760
Speaker 1: because then everybody's leaving already before the game starts. But

627
00:29:45,760 --> 00:29:48,400
Speaker 1: it's but it's the similar thing. It's almost like it's

628
00:29:48,400 --> 00:29:51,760
Speaker 1: the unofficial official kickoff to the NFL season, especially the offseason.

629
00:29:52,080 --> 00:29:53,960
Speaker 1: And I know for a lot of people, it's almost

630
00:29:54,040 --> 00:29:56,320
Speaker 1: kind of like UM shown up at summer camp again,

631
00:29:56,400 --> 00:29:58,400
Speaker 1: where you get to see everybody you didn't see until

632
00:29:58,640 --> 00:30:00,680
Speaker 1: you know since last year. UM. There's a lot of

633
00:30:00,680 --> 00:30:02,760
Speaker 1: people internally that you know, if there are people that

634
00:30:02,800 --> 00:30:04,920
Speaker 1: have left, it's always a way to reconnect with different

635
00:30:04,920 --> 00:30:08,120
Speaker 1: people that way too. So it it is the unofficial

636
00:30:08,280 --> 00:30:11,160
Speaker 1: official kickoff of the NFL season, and I think it'll

637
00:30:11,200 --> 00:30:13,960
Speaker 1: be once again. The Combine is always, you know, a

638
00:30:14,000 --> 00:30:16,959
Speaker 1: spectacle and everyone loves it. And so it was like

639
00:30:16,960 --> 00:30:19,880
Speaker 1: this the Senior Bowl though, like I got there Monday,

640
00:30:19,920 --> 00:30:23,000
Speaker 1: I think, and people were already there that Sunday night

641
00:30:23,120 --> 00:30:26,320
Speaker 1: that and then like I was staying till Thursday or Friday.

642
00:30:26,320 --> 00:30:28,520
Speaker 1: And by Thursday, I mean I think a lot of

643
00:30:28,520 --> 00:30:31,440
Speaker 1: people it was like, all right, we've had enough time

644
00:30:31,560 --> 00:30:35,320
Speaker 1: out late at night. We are out of here. So yeah,

645
00:30:35,360 --> 00:30:38,200
Speaker 1: I think it'll be I think it'll be really fun.

646
00:30:38,360 --> 00:30:43,120
Speaker 1: I'm excited to see the spectacle. And however, I don't

647
00:30:43,120 --> 00:30:45,480
Speaker 1: know whatever happens, we'll see. Now, you said you covered

648
00:30:45,520 --> 00:30:48,200
Speaker 1: baseball for three years and you nerd out about football.

649
00:30:48,240 --> 00:30:51,160
Speaker 1: It's football like the your first love, like you this

650
00:30:51,200 --> 00:30:53,800
Speaker 1: is what you want to be in, Yeah, without questions.

651
00:30:54,120 --> 00:30:57,120
Speaker 1: Growing up in Alabama, I mean you just hear Alabama

652
00:30:57,160 --> 00:30:59,240
Speaker 1: and like there are probably a few things you think

653
00:30:59,280 --> 00:31:01,120
Speaker 1: of and probably I mean they weren't you know that

654
00:31:01,160 --> 00:31:03,600
Speaker 1: they weren't bad when you were growing up at all, right,

655
00:31:03,640 --> 00:31:08,120
Speaker 1: Like it's funny. It's funny, that's true, and I like,

656
00:31:08,760 --> 00:31:11,200
Speaker 1: I mean, people ask me all the time, like are

657
00:31:11,240 --> 00:31:13,520
Speaker 1: you an Albama fan Auburn fan? And I've kind of

658
00:31:13,520 --> 00:31:15,880
Speaker 1: like bounced around. I'm kind of like a fair weather

659
00:31:15,960 --> 00:31:17,720
Speaker 1: and then I'm like a journalist, so you try to

660
00:31:17,720 --> 00:31:23,480
Speaker 1: be objective, but like I like Albam. I mean, it's funny,

661
00:31:23,480 --> 00:31:26,800
Speaker 1: Like I remember being two thousand and five, like they

662
00:31:26,800 --> 00:31:28,520
Speaker 1: weren't very I mean, I think they went ten and

663
00:31:28,560 --> 00:31:31,360
Speaker 1: two that year, but I think, god, they were so bad.

664
00:31:32,440 --> 00:31:35,280
Speaker 1: That was Mike Shula. And then I'll never forget. Yeah,

665
00:31:35,680 --> 00:31:38,440
Speaker 1: where I was when Nick Saban was hired. I was

666
00:31:38,440 --> 00:31:41,240
Speaker 1: in a friend's backyard and then from then on everything

667
00:31:41,400 --> 00:31:44,760
Speaker 1: everything kind of changed. So it's hard not to respect.

668
00:31:45,000 --> 00:31:47,440
Speaker 1: Like if you are, you know, a football fan and

669
00:31:47,520 --> 00:31:50,560
Speaker 1: you love watching the college game as much as I

670
00:31:50,600 --> 00:31:55,440
Speaker 1: hate Alabama with like every fiber of my being. I

671
00:31:55,440 --> 00:31:58,120
Speaker 1: didn't even this was not on purpose. I'm sorry. Um,

672
00:31:58,520 --> 00:32:01,840
Speaker 1: I have a lot of spacked obviously for Nick Saban

673
00:32:01,920 --> 00:32:04,080
Speaker 1: and what he's able to build and do year in

674
00:32:04,160 --> 00:32:06,640
Speaker 1: and year out. Now is he on the decline? Let's hope. So,

675
00:32:07,680 --> 00:32:10,320
Speaker 1: let's hope. So no, but I mean in all serieses,

676
00:32:10,480 --> 00:32:12,240
Speaker 1: I get it, like and being from the South and

677
00:32:12,360 --> 00:32:14,760
Speaker 1: the football is it and when you're in a state

678
00:32:14,800 --> 00:32:19,840
Speaker 1: like Alabama or Louisiana or Mississippi, you don't have a

679
00:32:19,880 --> 00:32:23,120
Speaker 1: professional team to root for. I mean in Louisiana you

680
00:32:23,160 --> 00:32:25,360
Speaker 1: do the Saints, but like Las Hue is just as big,

681
00:32:25,800 --> 00:32:28,240
Speaker 1: you know, like when you growing up, like you probably

682
00:32:28,240 --> 00:32:30,440
Speaker 1: were like, okay, so I'm getting games on TV. I'm

683
00:32:30,480 --> 00:32:34,160
Speaker 1: getting the Falcons, Titans, Titans or the Saints, like that's

684
00:32:34,280 --> 00:32:37,040
Speaker 1: kind of it. It was an NFC state, I'm sure,

685
00:32:37,200 --> 00:32:39,080
Speaker 1: although I guess if you've got the Titans, that was AFC.

686
00:32:39,240 --> 00:32:41,640
Speaker 1: But um, but yeah, like you you kind of like

687
00:32:41,720 --> 00:32:43,960
Speaker 1: with baseball, like I don't root for a professional team

688
00:32:43,960 --> 00:32:46,320
Speaker 1: because I didn't grow up with one, right, So yeah,

689
00:32:46,360 --> 00:32:48,440
Speaker 1: it's like your life bled down there. No, it really is.

690
00:32:48,480 --> 00:32:50,040
Speaker 1: And it's so I mean, I grew up with it,

691
00:32:50,120 --> 00:32:53,240
Speaker 1: and so I've always watched college football in the NFL.

692
00:32:53,320 --> 00:32:55,440
Speaker 1: And it's like when I was home, my Dad's like, so,

693
00:32:55,520 --> 00:32:57,520
Speaker 1: I mean, like what do you think you learn most

694
00:32:57,880 --> 00:33:00,960
Speaker 1: just cover covering football? Just being them? And I was

695
00:33:01,040 --> 00:33:03,680
Speaker 1: like I don't know. I watch all these games on

696
00:33:03,720 --> 00:33:05,479
Speaker 1: the couch my whole life, and you think you know

697
00:33:05,520 --> 00:33:07,160
Speaker 1: what you you think you know, and you're like, why

698
00:33:07,160 --> 00:33:09,000
Speaker 1: aren't they running the ball here? Or why aren't they

699
00:33:09,000 --> 00:33:11,040
Speaker 1: And then you cover it and you're around it every

700
00:33:11,120 --> 00:33:13,360
Speaker 1: day and you can have a five minute conversation with

701
00:33:13,400 --> 00:33:15,560
Speaker 1: the coach who could explain to you why they're not

702
00:33:15,640 --> 00:33:18,200
Speaker 1: running the ball, and you'd be like, oh, all right.

703
00:33:18,320 --> 00:33:20,880
Speaker 1: That's not to say they're not always that they're always

704
00:33:20,960 --> 00:33:23,280
Speaker 1: right or whatever. But there's so much. I think just

705
00:33:23,320 --> 00:33:26,120
Speaker 1: the casual fan just doesn't see which is good, which

706
00:33:26,160 --> 00:33:28,480
Speaker 1: is fine, Like fans just enjoy it how they want

707
00:33:28,520 --> 00:33:32,280
Speaker 1: to enjoy it. They yeah, but it's it's I mean,

708
00:33:32,320 --> 00:33:35,360
Speaker 1: I was just struck by the complexity of the whole thing. Um,

709
00:33:35,800 --> 00:33:37,640
Speaker 1: And I've I loved it. I mean I I had

710
00:33:37,640 --> 00:33:41,840
Speaker 1: a heck of a time. Um. Really fortunate to be

711
00:33:42,280 --> 00:33:44,440
Speaker 1: like in this role, to be here. I mean every

712
00:33:44,480 --> 00:33:46,920
Speaker 1: day I walk in this building, I think like, it's

713
00:33:47,040 --> 00:33:50,120
Speaker 1: not this nice, and I mean it's just it's just

714
00:33:50,240 --> 00:33:52,880
Speaker 1: not so like I I um, and the people have

715
00:33:52,920 --> 00:33:54,840
Speaker 1: been great. I mean I mentioned the Harrison Smith thing,

716
00:33:54,880 --> 00:33:58,280
Speaker 1: but I could I could go on and on so, um,

717
00:33:58,880 --> 00:34:00,960
Speaker 1: it's been a blast. We're happy to have you here.

718
00:34:01,080 --> 00:34:04,320
Speaker 1: This has been great. I know, Um, was it Chad

719
00:34:04,360 --> 00:34:06,680
Speaker 1: Graff that left to go to cover the Patriots and

720
00:34:06,720 --> 00:34:08,640
Speaker 1: you kind of took over for Jad Graff If anyone

721
00:34:08,680 --> 00:34:10,400
Speaker 1: back home remembers, Yeah, I know we had him on

722
00:34:10,400 --> 00:34:12,560
Speaker 1: the podcast as well because he gave us our Patriots

723
00:34:12,560 --> 00:34:15,640
Speaker 1: primer this year. But yeah, I know, you guys do

724
00:34:15,680 --> 00:34:17,680
Speaker 1: wonderful work over there. If you don't have a subscription

725
00:34:17,680 --> 00:34:19,920
Speaker 1: to the Athletic, I highly recommend it. A lot of

726
00:34:19,960 --> 00:34:22,480
Speaker 1: in depth writing, which I think is the point of

727
00:34:22,480 --> 00:34:26,120
Speaker 1: the Athletic, right, like to keep that alive and to

728
00:34:26,400 --> 00:34:28,960
Speaker 1: you know, if you're not getting a newspaper or whatever, right, Yeah,

729
00:34:29,000 --> 00:34:30,759
Speaker 1: I mean it's a lot of I don't know, I

730
00:34:31,480 --> 00:34:34,960
Speaker 1: it's a lot of analysis and dig deep and like

731
00:34:35,000 --> 00:34:37,240
Speaker 1: we're here every day, so you just try to provide

732
00:34:37,239 --> 00:34:40,560
Speaker 1: the most in depth kind of coverage. And I mean

733
00:34:40,880 --> 00:34:44,239
Speaker 1: also the feature stuff where it's it's just about the

734
00:34:44,360 --> 00:34:47,520
Speaker 1: people or somebody who like I went down earlier this year,

735
00:34:47,560 --> 00:34:50,480
Speaker 1: Tom I was doing a store on West Phillips offensive Cornell.

736
00:34:50,560 --> 00:34:52,920
Speaker 1: I went down to Houston, spend a day with Wade,

737
00:34:52,960 --> 00:34:56,960
Speaker 1: his dad, and we talked all about like just their

738
00:34:57,000 --> 00:35:01,080
Speaker 1: family football history and that type stop. I mean, that's why.

739
00:35:01,280 --> 00:35:03,359
Speaker 1: So you knew that Wade Philip wasn't going to come

740
00:35:03,360 --> 00:35:05,719
Speaker 1: here and be our new defense. You had that story

741
00:35:05,719 --> 00:35:10,240
Speaker 1: BeForever I bother, No, I didn't. Wait, it's Wade coaching

742
00:35:10,280 --> 00:35:13,839
Speaker 1: the XFL Houston Roughnecks. Like Wade has not slowed down.

743
00:35:14,160 --> 00:35:16,560
Speaker 1: He was the day before I went there, he had

744
00:35:16,600 --> 00:35:18,600
Speaker 1: a whole group of coaches at their house. They had

745
00:35:18,640 --> 00:35:21,520
Speaker 1: made chili, like and I was like, wait, Like in

746
00:35:21,600 --> 00:35:23,920
Speaker 1: West said earlier this year, He's like, yeah, my dad's

747
00:35:23,960 --> 00:35:29,840
Speaker 1: just never gonna stop. Yeah. Yeah, I mean, it's a

748
00:35:30,080 --> 00:35:33,239
Speaker 1: It's an unbelievable football family. And West's story I think

749
00:35:33,360 --> 00:35:35,840
Speaker 1: is kind of an embodiment of why the family has

750
00:35:35,880 --> 00:35:38,359
Speaker 1: been able to spend the test time. But that type

751
00:35:38,360 --> 00:35:40,560
Speaker 1: of story, that type of stuff that kind of goes

752
00:35:40,640 --> 00:35:43,279
Speaker 1: deeper is what we love to do. What I love

753
00:35:43,320 --> 00:35:46,080
Speaker 1: to do and fortunate that they gave me the space

754
00:35:46,120 --> 00:35:48,000
Speaker 1: to do it. Sometimes we do a great job, and

755
00:35:48,000 --> 00:35:49,880
Speaker 1: we're really happy that you're here. Thanks for being on

756
00:35:49,880 --> 00:35:52,680
Speaker 1: the Minnesota Vikings podcast. If I could just get one

757
00:35:52,760 --> 00:35:55,160
Speaker 1: housekeeping it him out of the way for fans, We've

758
00:35:55,200 --> 00:35:59,719
Speaker 1: got a group of really impressive Vikings Entertainment Network creative team.

759
00:35:59,719 --> 00:36:01,560
Speaker 1: We have a great creative team here, a lot of videographers.

760
00:36:01,560 --> 00:36:03,800
Speaker 1: I don't want to undersell them by just saying link videographers,

761
00:36:03,800 --> 00:36:08,040
Speaker 1: because they edited the whole piece together, right. And the Voyage,

762
00:36:08,080 --> 00:36:10,880
Speaker 1: which you guys may remember used to air in season

763
00:36:11,080 --> 00:36:14,240
Speaker 1: in previous years, is now going to be a four

764
00:36:14,480 --> 00:36:18,760
Speaker 1: episode recap of the entire twenty twenty two season, beginning

765
00:36:18,760 --> 00:36:23,160
Speaker 1: with training camp, and that drops on Tuesday. This is

766
00:36:23,200 --> 00:36:26,000
Speaker 1: coming up Tuesday, February twenty First, we had an amazing

767
00:36:26,080 --> 00:36:27,759
Speaker 1: night last night. We had a bunch of we had

768
00:36:27,800 --> 00:36:31,240
Speaker 1: two groups of season ticket members, about three hundred fans total.

769
00:36:31,719 --> 00:36:34,960
Speaker 1: Gets come through the facility, experience the sitt in the

770
00:36:35,000 --> 00:36:37,800
Speaker 1: team meeting room and watch the voyage on the screen

771
00:36:38,400 --> 00:36:42,400
Speaker 1: and nothing but great feedback. And I definitely recommend you

772
00:36:42,400 --> 00:36:46,080
Speaker 1: guys checking that out. It's going to be longer episodes too,

773
00:36:46,160 --> 00:36:49,680
Speaker 1: so it's a very in depth, long form piece of journalism,

774
00:36:49,680 --> 00:36:52,839
Speaker 1: which is wonderful. Season ticket holders. If you are when,

775
00:36:52,880 --> 00:36:54,959
Speaker 1: you will get the link in your email Monday before

776
00:36:54,960 --> 00:36:58,440
Speaker 1: the episodes drop on Tuesdays. They'll drop every Tuesday for

777
00:36:58,480 --> 00:37:02,440
Speaker 1: the next four weeks. In If you're not into watching

778
00:37:02,480 --> 00:37:05,040
Speaker 1: things on your phone or your computer, like some people aren't,

779
00:37:05,440 --> 00:37:08,200
Speaker 1: you can watch it on Fox nine Wednesdays at ten

780
00:37:08,360 --> 00:37:12,799
Speaker 1: thirty five also beginning February twenty second, so several ways

781
00:37:12,840 --> 00:37:16,080
Speaker 1: to watch the voyage. Just a couple of teasers with

782
00:37:16,120 --> 00:37:20,880
Speaker 1: that though, is these guys have been following around players, coaches,

783
00:37:21,080 --> 00:37:23,880
Speaker 1: micing up all the players and coaches and all that

784
00:37:23,960 --> 00:37:26,880
Speaker 1: kind of stuff since training camp, and it literally opens

785
00:37:27,000 --> 00:37:29,600
Speaker 1: up with like a player narrating and on his way

786
00:37:29,600 --> 00:37:33,719
Speaker 1: to training camp, and there are Kevin O'Connell's really and

787
00:37:33,800 --> 00:37:36,600
Speaker 1: Quacy have been really great about access this year. They

788
00:37:36,760 --> 00:37:39,920
Speaker 1: allowed us to film their team meetings every Wednesday, and

789
00:37:39,960 --> 00:37:42,360
Speaker 1: so there'll be a lot of snippets of the team

790
00:37:42,360 --> 00:37:45,399
Speaker 1: meetings that no one has ever seen before. And there's

791
00:37:45,440 --> 00:37:48,440
Speaker 1: just a lot of behind the scenes stuff that moments

792
00:37:48,440 --> 00:37:50,960
Speaker 1: that you may have not known happen in depth interviews

793
00:37:50,960 --> 00:37:55,320
Speaker 1: with Quacy and Kevin both preseason and after the season.

794
00:37:55,480 --> 00:37:57,839
Speaker 1: So it's it is really good and that's the stuff

795
00:37:57,880 --> 00:37:59,879
Speaker 1: that everybody loves, you know, like you were talking about

796
00:38:00,040 --> 00:38:02,080
Speaker 1: before here, Alec, it's the behind the scenes that just

797
00:38:02,120 --> 00:38:04,359
Speaker 1: trying to figure out how does this place really work,

798
00:38:04,440 --> 00:38:07,200
Speaker 1: What is it really like behind the scenes and are

799
00:38:07,200 --> 00:38:10,080
Speaker 1: they really who they are from what we're watching? Right? Like?

800
00:38:10,160 --> 00:38:12,839
Speaker 1: You hear a pressor, but is Kevin really like that? Right? Yeah?

801
00:38:12,880 --> 00:38:15,560
Speaker 1: I think for this group, they've they've had this kind

802
00:38:15,560 --> 00:38:17,319
Speaker 1: of mapped out all season and week to week just

803
00:38:17,360 --> 00:38:19,000
Speaker 1: trying to figure out, you know, how are we going

804
00:38:19,040 --> 00:38:21,839
Speaker 1: to continue the story and to really lay it out.

805
00:38:21,880 --> 00:38:24,000
Speaker 1: And you know, with all the exciting moments that we

806
00:38:24,040 --> 00:38:25,399
Speaker 1: had all season, I think it's going to be really

807
00:38:25,400 --> 00:38:27,440
Speaker 1: great for friends to really see behind the scenes of

808
00:38:27,480 --> 00:38:29,799
Speaker 1: what happened. Yeah, the challenge for them was trying to

809
00:38:29,840 --> 00:38:35,080
Speaker 1: fit August or July through January into four episodes. I

810
00:38:35,160 --> 00:38:37,280
Speaker 1: was gonna say, how many, how much? How many hours

811
00:38:37,280 --> 00:38:39,200
Speaker 1: of tape? Now I'm not having to watch from this

812
00:38:39,239 --> 00:38:41,840
Speaker 1: because I mean, I'm I'm all in. They've had hundreds

813
00:38:41,840 --> 00:38:43,680
Speaker 1: of hours of stuff, right they because they did their

814
00:38:43,719 --> 00:38:46,640
Speaker 1: own interviews, plus they reviewed pressors, plus they reviewed all

815
00:38:46,640 --> 00:38:50,320
Speaker 1: the mic deps, plus they went to had seventeen team meetings,

816
00:38:50,440 --> 00:38:53,840
Speaker 1: right Like, It's kind of the Vikings version of Hard Knocks,

817
00:38:53,920 --> 00:38:56,239
Speaker 1: like just all the behind the scenes access. So I

818
00:38:56,280 --> 00:38:59,160
Speaker 1: think people really will, you know, eat this up as

819
00:38:59,239 --> 00:39:00,880
Speaker 1: much as possible. It does help that it was like,

820
00:39:01,000 --> 00:39:04,040
Speaker 1: you know, in a thrilling thirteen and it was a

821
00:39:04,120 --> 00:39:07,960
Speaker 1: voyage for sure. Yeah. But yeah, if you guys could

822
00:39:07,960 --> 00:39:10,800
Speaker 1: just send me all seventeen team meeting videos, right, wouldn't

823
00:39:10,800 --> 00:39:13,120
Speaker 1: that be something? I mean, it is pretty cool though,

824
00:39:13,120 --> 00:39:15,120
Speaker 1: because you know, I think you do have to be

825
00:39:15,160 --> 00:39:17,200
Speaker 1: tricky because they do say things in there you're not

826
00:39:17,239 --> 00:39:19,720
Speaker 1: gonna want to air, right, But like, it was really

827
00:39:19,719 --> 00:39:23,440
Speaker 1: cool to see them in their seats because it's like college,

828
00:39:23,440 --> 00:39:25,400
Speaker 1: you like are in your lecture hall and you picked

829
00:39:25,400 --> 00:39:28,239
Speaker 1: the same seat every time. And like this precious team

830
00:39:28,320 --> 00:39:31,360
Speaker 1: season ticket member who was probably in his eighties and

831
00:39:31,400 --> 00:39:34,319
Speaker 1: has been a Minnesota Vikings fans since its inception, was

832
00:39:34,320 --> 00:39:36,480
Speaker 1: like sitting in justin Jefferson's scene, and we were like

833
00:39:36,520 --> 00:39:38,200
Speaker 1: able to tell him that it was just kind of

834
00:39:38,200 --> 00:39:41,239
Speaker 1: a neat little moment, right. So yeah, I think I

835
00:39:41,280 --> 00:39:43,400
Speaker 1: heard one of the season ticket holders that showed up

836
00:39:43,480 --> 00:39:46,040
Speaker 1: last night drove double digits ten hours yea from my

837
00:39:46,160 --> 00:39:48,960
Speaker 1: not South Dakota in bad weather, not North Dakota yet,

838
00:39:49,080 --> 00:39:51,480
Speaker 1: Did I say that South Dakota my bead? It's all good? No, Wow,

839
00:39:51,560 --> 00:39:52,960
Speaker 1: you guys are really going to clock me on that

840
00:39:53,000 --> 00:39:56,440
Speaker 1: one or two. No, it's but Eric, can you edit

841
00:39:56,480 --> 00:39:58,680
Speaker 1: that out? If you can't, that's okay. Just a testament

842
00:39:58,719 --> 00:40:00,520
Speaker 1: to you know, our fans just a how much they

843
00:40:00,520 --> 00:40:02,400
Speaker 1: really do, you know, love this and so that was

844
00:40:02,440 --> 00:40:04,520
Speaker 1: great to you know, have that kind of buy in

845
00:40:04,560 --> 00:40:07,000
Speaker 1: from season ticket members. And I think it's just gonna

846
00:40:07,000 --> 00:40:08,239
Speaker 1: be a lot of fun to watch this week to

847
00:40:08,280 --> 00:40:11,200
Speaker 1: week as this unfolds. I love how Jay corrected me

848
00:40:11,239 --> 00:40:15,160
Speaker 1: so politely, right like he wasn't like, hey, you dummy,

849
00:40:15,320 --> 00:40:18,480
Speaker 1: he was just like slow, so so on brand for you.

850
00:40:18,600 --> 00:40:20,560
Speaker 1: Jay really tracks You're welcome. All Right, Well, I'm gonna

851
00:40:20,560 --> 00:40:22,400
Speaker 1: go brush up on my geography. But thank you so

852
00:40:22,480 --> 00:40:25,840
Speaker 1: much to everyone for tuning into this episode of the

853
00:40:25,840 --> 00:40:28,279
Speaker 1: Minnesota Vikings podcast. Works at all