September 19, 2024 • 36 mins
Welcome back to another edition of the Vikings Tailgate presented by Ticketmaster - The official ticket marketplace of the Minnesota Vikings. The Texans are coming to town, but their fans are living in a ghost town… Luckily our old friend Blake Wexler from Phili jumped in to save the day and joined host Cy Amundson to talk about the state of the NFC. Cy and Blake get into the implication of Kirk Cousins beating the Eagles on Monday night, Jake Reed setting the third wide receiver standard, why Josh McCown is beloved by Eagles fans, and the types of statues on the horizon for a Vikings Super Bowl win. All of this and more is on today's episode of The Vikings Tailgate presented by Ticketmaster - The official ticket marketplace of the Minnesota Vikings.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
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Speaker 2 (00:12):
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They're the safest and most convenient marketplace to score fully
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(00:34):
Hey guys, it's another episode of the Vikings Tailgate, brought
to you by Ticketmaster, the official ticket marketplace of the
Minnesota Vikings. Guys, we have comics entertainers on this show.
We like them generally to be a fan of the
other team.
Speaker 3 (00:53):
But here's the thing.
Speaker 2 (00:54):
It's pretty hard to find a comedian who's a fan
of the Houston Texans. Apparently, Luckily for all of you,
fan favorite recurring guest on the show, Blake Wexler, stepped in.
You know him as an Eagles fan, so it was
fun to talk about the loss on Monday night, the
differences in the fan bases, and what's going on with
our team and throughout the NFC. This was a really
(01:16):
fun one and we really appreciate Blake joining the show.
I hope you guys like it.
Speaker 3 (01:25):
Recket, Reckett, I mere.
Speaker 2 (01:34):
Joining me now to talk all things NFL and honestly
to just sit there and listen to me talk about
how over the moon I am about my favorite football
team right now, Ladies and gentlemen. Recurrent guest on the program,
Philadelphia Eagles fan NFL Savant, Blake Wexler. You like that,
(01:56):
you like Savant Savant?
Speaker 3 (01:58):
I'm your first Savant. Yeah.
Speaker 4 (01:59):
Jason Savants, I believe was our wide receiver three for
a couple of years place for the University of Michigan. Yeah, No,
I love Savant.
Speaker 2 (02:07):
Does your fan base have an obsession with the wide
receiver three?
Speaker 4 (02:11):
Of course, I think every does every fan base have
an obsession. It's almost like a backup quarterback, but less important.
Speaker 2 (02:17):
Right There's something that I've noticed in Minnesota, and I've
been I think I've narrowed it down because Jalen Naylor
has come out and looks awesome for the Vikings. He
caught an incredible seam route to not seal the game,
but put us in that direction. He's got a touchdown,
he's looked good, he's finally healthy. People are really excited
about him. But the Vikings have always back to like
(02:41):
they were in on kJ Osborne all the way back
to jerryus Wright and on and on and on. There's
just been this obsession and I think it's because of
Jake Reid. The Vikings when Randy Moss came in had
one of the first I'm gonna say big time three
deep receiver. Course everybody thinks Randy Moss and Chris Carter,
(03:01):
but Jake Reid was a badass man. And I think
this like like, if you give a kid a snowmobile
for his ninth birthday, you still have to have nine
more birthday parties before he's out of your house. So
you got and I think that's what happened. You had
Moss and Carter and Jake Reid and everybody just keeps going.
So who's new Jake Reid. But this Jalen Naylor kid
(03:23):
has been incredible at the Gate.
Speaker 4 (03:25):
That's incredible for like, yeah, you guys just need more
good wide receivers. I think it's not enough to have
to It's funny. I think we've both gone through franchise.
Speaker 2 (03:33):
I forget that when I talk to you, you passed
your team passed on Justin Jefferson. I forget that.
Speaker 4 (03:41):
And even though we don't, we don't really talk about it.
We don't talk about it and we don't really have
a need to talk about it.
Speaker 2 (03:47):
The funny thing about a Philadelphia Eagles fans psychology is
even though you have Aj Brown and DeVonta Smith, even
though you've had one of the better offenses in the league.
When I said, when I started talking about your like
you got a little bit.
Speaker 3 (04:01):
Of like a twitch. Yeah, no, for sure a twitch.
Speaker 4 (04:05):
And it's a similar thing too where I still talk
about the quarterback rule where now you need fifty quarterbacks
on your roster. If Heaven forbid, one through five of
your quarterbacks get injured, which is what happened during the
NFC Championship game against the forty nine ers that we
were playing. And you remind me, you go, Blake, that's
a game you want. Why are you complaining about this? Well,
(04:27):
they were complaining about it, and I feel like it
delegitimizes the win.
Speaker 3 (04:30):
But you are right. There's a laundry list of vendettas.
Speaker 2 (04:34):
Speaking of quarterbacks, everybody is going nuts about Sam Donald,
and I can talk about Sam Donald at length. I
would be thrilled too, But I want to talk about
something that nobody's talking about. That you have a connection
to perhaps the most underrated higher across the NFL this offseason,
I believe, was Josh McCown as quarterback coach for the
(04:56):
Minnesota Vikings. Everybody tied it to this idea that we
were going to get Drake may. I think it's beyond that.
If you really and Blake you had him in Philadelphia.
He was the emergency backup during the COVID year, right
oh yeah?
Speaker 3 (05:08):
If, oh yeah.
Speaker 2 (05:09):
If you deep dive Josh McCown and you learn about
him in Cleveland and Philadelphia, there is this unending list
of stories of supporting young quarterbacks and helping him along.
I think he is perfectly built for today's generation of athletes.
I think he's probably gonna wind up being a head coach.
(05:31):
If Sam Darnold continues to perform the way he has,
He's gonna deserve a lot of the credit.
Speaker 4 (05:38):
I totally agree, and I think he relates so well
to these quarterbacks because he was kind of just in
the league and I think even when he was playing,
to your point, one of the most interesting jobs, so
forget sports, just jobs in the history of occupation, was
during COVID, we paid Josh McCown to be on the
(05:59):
right and just hang out at his house and join
Zoom meetings for twelve thousand dollars a week. That was
his job and also very special place in my heart
for Josh McCown. This guy is such a gamer that
I believe. So Carson Wentz was the quarterback and we
ended up losing this game in the playoffs seventeen to nine.
I believe it was twenty twenty to the Seahawks. Josh
(06:22):
McCown comes in almost leads us back to victory while
playing on a torn hamstring that came off the bone.
This dude was limping around the field and was still plague.
So if you think a guy you know, not collecting
workmen's comp is not going to be popular in Philadelphia,
you're wrong because he.
Speaker 2 (06:45):
We can talk a little bit about your game on Monday,
and you guys getting put down by Kirk no.
Speaker 4 (06:50):
We could skip it and talk about Justin Jefferson. Sounds
like a nicer thing to talk about, to be completely
honest at this point.
Speaker 2 (06:56):
But before we do that, or you know, maybe we
can avoid it. But when Kirk left, there was so
much time spent baiting him and his value and his
greatness or lack thereof that. I don't know that people.
It was a lot like politics. People had their sides
and no matter what happened, they were going to frame it.
(07:19):
But we've arrived at this place where Donald and Kevin
O'Connell as a partnership seems to have worked so well,
at least through two weeks. It is almost like it
has erased that vibe from our fan base because he
is you can see Kevin O'Connell really, as the children say,
(07:42):
going into his bag a bit, being a little bit
more aggressive. Yeah, you're welcome being more aggressive. And what
I didn't know about Sam Donald because I didn't know
anything about Sam Donald, but I didn't know this dude had.
Everybody says big arm. You hear the term big arm
all the time time, but holy like that throw against
(08:05):
the Niners, I don't it seems I'm not saying it
seems simple, but it seemed like a pitch and catch,
like a deep ball. But anytime you drop back into
your end zone on a play action, there's the inherent
risk of giving up two or six if anything goes wrong.
So to sit in there with that pressure somewhere rattling
around in your thought process, step up and deliver a ball.
(08:27):
And this is for the second time in two weeks,
Blake deliver a ball down the field to Justin Jefferson
in perfect stride. A lot of guys can throw the
ball fifty five yards, but to hit him in perfect stride,
it's been really, really, really fun. I'm sure there are
some difficult moments ahead of us, but at least for
(08:48):
two weeks, everything that's happening in the quarterback room feels
really great and it feels really fun.
Speaker 4 (08:55):
It's cool to watch too, because he was obviously an extreme,
highly touted pick, Like was he number.
Speaker 2 (09:02):
One or number three? He's three, number three out of.
Speaker 4 (09:04):
USC Yeah, in twenty eighteen, right, and he was always
a guy with all the tools. And it's interesting he's
only twenty seven, but his career to this point may
not have gone the way that he wanted it to. Go,
and I think often people either figure it out immediately
or they never figure it out, and he I have
(09:27):
a you know, it's really cool watching his story because
he's someone who it's taking a little bit longer than
I think other players, maybe a little bit longer than
he wants it to, but he's stuck just the strength
of character and resolve and also maybe he's finally found
the right situation also the right quarterback coach like McCown
(09:47):
to help him, you know, like it's it's fun to watch.
Speaker 2 (09:49):
Do you think do you think there's this new thing coming?
Because the running back position obviously has changed right running back,
The way they draft, roster, pay use running backs doesn't
look anything like it looked ten to fifteen years ago.
So it's kind of been one of two paths with quarterbacks.
(10:10):
Either you have one or you don't. Either they can
play or they can't, whether you're starting them or not.
Either they're they're gonna get paid or they're not. And
that has led to guys like you have your elite
quarterbacks and then you have like your Mahomes, your Burrow,
your Allen. But then you have your guys that are
in that next tier, your Kirk Cousins, Jared Goff, Dak Prescott,
(10:34):
all these guys, and they're all getting paid. Jordan Love's
getting paid, and it seemed like there's just no ine
between you either get paid or you don't get paid.
And I wonder, with this happening to Baker Mayfield, I wonder,
with this happening to Gino Smith and now a third time,
if Darnold has a good season, will we enter into
(10:55):
a new NFL universe where there's this third tier. You know,
there's always been the journeyman that you start and move
on from. But Mayfield and Geno are solutions. They're not
stop gaps, and they're at the right price given you know,
the salary cap equation and how it affects quarterbacks. So
(11:16):
I don't know, I'm really fascinated. I'm both fascinated to
see it and Blake and I can't stop thinking about
which former busts that I would want the opportunity because
it's all tied. Here's the crazy thing, it's all tied to.
I feel like I'm writing a verbal manifesto right now.
Speaker 4 (11:37):
But this is how you speak. I don't know if
this is news to you. This is how you've always spoken.
Speaker 2 (11:42):
It's it's disgusting what a I did not expect us
to be two and oh. It is disgusting what a
two and oh start does to me. It's not it's
not good for my relationship, it's not good for my
free time, it's not good for anything. But I'm I'm
so deep down into this thing right now.
Speaker 4 (12:03):
It's pathetic is that you should try a ten in
one start like we had last year and then see
what happens after that.
Speaker 3 (12:11):
Not a lot of good stuff.
Speaker 4 (12:12):
What if I like, it was very clear that I
haven't watched football in a long time, Like, yeah, you know,
so you got the Trent Dilfers of the world where
they can just come in there last second, and when
you was Super Bowl, it's like, wait, has this guy
been sleep for twenty five years?
Speaker 2 (12:24):
It's just a new thing. Cunningham was like a one
year reclamation project in Minnesota. We haven't seen this thing
that's happening. By the way, it's it is very tied
to the McVeigh Shanahan tree. If you do a little sleuthing,
a little football sleuthing. Blake Gino Smith was with Shane
(12:46):
Waldron in Seattle that was his coordinator. Waldron was a
McVeigh guy, and then Baker Mayfield spent his first year
with Dave Canalis, who was under Waldron in Seattle. He's
spending his second year with Liam Cohen when he's really
breaking out right now. Liam Cohen last year was under McVeigh.
Kevin O'Connell was obviously under McVeigh. It's these young coaches
(13:10):
that prioritize efficiency and game planning and their system that
seemed to be able to do this. So I can't
stop thinking about which bust. For some reason, Akille Smith
always comes into my brain first, just because that's an
all time name. It's a great, great name. I'd love
(13:33):
to see a Johnny Manzell resurrection, just for the reality
show that would probably come with it.
Speaker 3 (13:39):
I would.
Speaker 4 (13:39):
For me, I'm Mark Sanchez. I think would be a
fantastic one.
Speaker 2 (13:43):
Dude. Yeah, battling back from the butt fumble, the butt
fumble redemption, Oh yeah.
Speaker 3 (13:49):
That's a fantastic story.
Speaker 2 (13:51):
Imagine imagine him leading a team to like twelve and five,
scoring a touchdown in the playoffs and doing a butt
fumble celebration just to give it all back. That would
have been a good one.
Speaker 4 (14:02):
The whole time, just in his pants in the back,
there's just a football per butt cheek and he just
takes them both out and throws them into the stands.
I would how can you not cheer for that story?
Speaker 2 (14:13):
Tim Couch would be a good one, just because Robert Sofa. Yeah,
there's not a I'm going the other way with names.
There's not a funnier name. Although, god, there's one really
terrible all time name, Blake Bortles. Dude, I'm not convinced
Blake Bortles wasn't a good quarterback. No, I'm not now
(14:33):
and now with what's happening, I'm not convinced Blake Bortles
didn't have all the tools and he just didn't have
the right coach.
Speaker 3 (14:39):
I'm totally with you.
Speaker 4 (14:40):
You and I have a Blake Bortles theory that we
bring up every year and a half, and it's that
Blake Bortles was not a bad quarterback. Got his name
was just so silly, too hard. You can't be silly
of a name.
Speaker 2 (14:51):
Your last name can't rhyme with Jordles or Chortles and
be a pro quarterback. How many If here's the thing,
if you bust it out as a core You're for
sure sitting around right now going I'm for sure blaming
my career on not getting to play during the mcveay
Shanahan Tree era.
Speaker 4 (15:09):
If Blake Bortles had a name like Matt Leonard or
Sam Bradford, you know, like some cool name, it would
be like, yeah, he'd still be in the league.
Speaker 2 (15:18):
I think that's what the name was I was trying
to think of. I think there is a quarterback Jr.
Producer can look this up. I think there was a
quarterback a long time ago for the Detroit Lions named
Chuck Long. Incredible, not a stage name. He's not an
actor playing a character that's sort of based on Joe Namath.
(15:39):
He's a real human being named Chuck Long who wound
up being a professional quarterback.
Speaker 4 (15:47):
Like did you see that cigarette commercial starring Chuck Long?
It's like, yeah, what else would he endorse? It's cigarettes?
Speaker 2 (15:55):
Did you yep? From Jay? That's that is it's Chuck
longs QB. Yeah, that's the sort of guy who only
sells whiskey and cigarettes. That's it. That's all that guy.
Most of his commercials are him on a horse, like
I'm hey, I'm Chuck Long, quarterback of the Detroit Lions,
and I'm ready to heave that ball down the field.
(16:19):
Like that didn't have anything to do with the product.
Speaker 3 (16:21):
Chuck, I'm Chuck Long.
Speaker 4 (16:23):
Have you tried revenge getting revenge on someone who's wrong
to you? It's like, I can't buy revenge, Chuck. Who's
paying for this ad space?
Speaker 2 (16:32):
Oh? I just I just love it a whole lot.
Where So let's talk a little bit about the NFC.
The Vikings fan base I think split up in your
Monday Night loss. I think when Kirk threw short of
the sticks, half the state rejoiced on third down and
(16:54):
they're like, there it is. And then when he drove
down the field and he beat the Eagles and you
guys lost, the other half of the state, it was like,
there it is. There was a there was a real,
like a really divided fan reaction to who people were
rooting more against.
Speaker 4 (17:16):
Yeah, it's it's so so it's really really funny that
how you bring this up, because again, I think one
of the most interesting things about this show is that
you get the perspective of other fan bases and it's
almost exactly like your own, except you know, different players,
different names, different fans, and this is the first time I've.
Speaker 2 (17:35):
Never thrown a battery at a child.
Speaker 4 (17:37):
Yeah, well, you know, I think you need to move
on from things that happened in the past.
Speaker 3 (17:41):
Like I don't think it's healthy to dwell.
Speaker 2 (17:43):
So well, that's what you have to do with court cases,
or you'd be depressed all the time.
Speaker 3 (17:48):
Yeah, and I know, and I'm a happy guy.
Speaker 4 (17:53):
But it's funny that you brought up Kirk and the
Falcons because I don't even remember playing them.
Speaker 3 (17:58):
Because when we.
Speaker 4 (18:00):
Talk about that loss, it's all our fault, So Kirk
has nothing to do with it. It's he was a
nameless face that happened to be in a blank jersey.
It was the Eagles defense that led us down. It
was the Eagles offense, it was the coaches, it was
all this stuff. That's how the fan base is interpreting
(18:20):
this loss. Kirk just it could have been anyone. It
could have been Chuck Long, you know, who was defeating us.
No matter who was in that uniform. In Eagles fans's
you know, heads, it was we were gonna lose that
game because that's what we've been doing.
Speaker 3 (18:35):
So in terms of Kirk, Kirk was not Kirk was Kirk.
Speaker 4 (18:39):
You know, he ended up winning, but he didn't do
anything special. I don't think he's the reason why they won,
just like he wouldn't have been the reason why they lost.
He just happened to be a guy playing for the team.
Speaker 2 (18:54):
What what was the vibe like in that stadium when
Sakuon dropped the paths? Because I can tell you when
Aaron Jones fumbled going into the goal line. I'm I
was not in Minnesota Sunday, and from states away, I
could hear the state go no like I could feel them.
(19:17):
I could feel them tightening up in the oh my gosh,
here we go again.
Speaker 3 (19:23):
Way.
Speaker 2 (19:24):
It is the fact that the entire Philly fan base is,
you know, their personalities based off a restaurant bar worker
who somehow got on the team. Does that not allow
you to worry about those sort of moments? Do you
guys just pop pali your way through it? Or was
the stadium concerned in that marment?
Speaker 4 (19:45):
So I think you're looking for the phrase of like
blue collar hard worker, you know, the backbone of this
country might be the phrase that you're thinking of. But
you know that's why I'm here to try to clarify
these things for you, so you know, not everything is
a Mickey Mouse character of a cultures, but as much
as we like to pretend that it is. So it's interesting,
Saquan may have been the only guy on the field
(20:05):
that we would have had this like a non like matriolic,
venomous reaction to a mistake like that, because he has
been so good where he was a contract where it
was uncharacteristic of the Eagles and honestly any NFL team
to give a running back that amount of money, you know,
twelve plus million a year. And he also, you have
(20:28):
to think, is a Penn State player, so Philly doesn't
is not a college football city, so you know, Penn
State's like three four hours away, but that's kind of
the football school. So he had over one hundred yards
in the first game, won us that first game with
three touchdowns, most touchdowns in a debut I think since
Terrell Owens and this game. He was playing incredibly well too,
(20:51):
So when he dropped that ball to get us past
the sticks, which would have allowed us to run out
the clock and win or score, everyone was just in
kind of shock and looking for someone else to blame
in that situation where like, we can't blame Saquon, this
is the only positive thing that's happening for us right now.
We cannot blame him. Who whose fault is this? Because
(21:13):
it can't be his?
Speaker 3 (21:15):
It was. It was a huge bummer.
Speaker 2 (21:16):
The Vikings take on the Houston Texans on Sunday. I
think there are very few people who thought they would
be too and zero. I think the team is displaying
an interesting amount of confidence. And I've always I've always
thought despite how the fans and media perceive football and
(21:39):
football team's journey and and and how they end up
being good or not good as a team, I tend
to think guys who play no pretty quickly, especially if
they're veterans, if you have an older team, I don't
think they go to like they get to week one
and go, huh, we are bad. I think they knew
(21:59):
it right. So I think the niners wins surprised a
lot of people, and even surprised a lot of Viking fans.
I do not think it surprised the locker room. That
being said, I think the Houston Texans are a whole
different sort of challenge. I don't think they're gonna mess
(22:21):
around I don't think they're gonna dink and dunk. I
don't think they're gonna control the game. I think they're
gonna look at how good this defense has been and
they're gonna go screw it. I'm heaving the ball like
six seven play drives, not fourteen to fifteen play drives.
I think they're gonna come out and be willing to
engage in a shootout and see if we can keep up.
(22:43):
It is a pretty interesting test for a team that
no one believed would have this opportunity this early.
Speaker 4 (22:50):
Yeah, it's it's interesting, and obviously it's early in the season,
but to me, this game will tell us a lot
about the forty nine ers, also because the forty nine
ers is everybody's pick, or it was everybody's pick to
come out of the NFC.
Speaker 2 (23:05):
Is this Are you doing the thing where you make
this like no matter what I talk about, you bring
up somebody who cheated on you, like a girlfriend who
cheated on you. Is is that what's happening here?
Speaker 3 (23:15):
Well, what I was trying to say, no, no, So
I'm not doing that at all.
Speaker 4 (23:18):
What I'm trying to say is you're gonna like, you
know the fact that you were able to overcome the
forty nine ers seventy five quarterbacks, makes you in a
good position to who knows how many quarterbacks Houston's gonna
bring to the table. No, I do think that it's
a similar situation in that, like, you know, the weapons
that the skill position weapons that Houston has are kind
(23:40):
of similar to that of probably a letter grade down
from that of the forty nine ers.
Speaker 3 (23:47):
I think you have a better quarterback in my.
Speaker 2 (23:49):
Opinion, and better quarterback, maybe more speed. I don't know.
The Stefan Diggs thing is crazy. What I'm honestly most
curious about is how Stefan Diggs will be received like
this and as a as an absolute lunatic who disrespects
anyone who dares put on a different jersey, you know,
(24:11):
you and your city. I imagine if he went back
to Philly, go poorly. I'm really hoping that the Viking
fans greet him with a bunch of love, regardless of
his exit, regardless of anything else. He is responsible for, arguably,
if not inarguably is that a word. Yeah, he is
(24:32):
responsible for the greatest moment in the franchise's history. From
an excitement standpoint, From an iconic standpoint. When they write
the book on the greatest plays that have ever happened
in NFL history, no matter how many years from now
it will be, that is going to be right up
at the tippy top of the list. It's so I
hope he gets the love he deserves, and then I
(24:53):
hope he gets one catch for eleven yards and fumbles
a pass into a defender's hand.
Speaker 4 (25:00):
This is how I would want from Philadelphia pans, where
it's like, I don't let's.
Speaker 3 (25:04):
Not have any bad pr here. Let's just have them
come out.
Speaker 4 (25:08):
Don't give away anything that can be thrown, don't give
anything that can amplify a human's voice.
Speaker 3 (25:15):
Louder than it should be.
Speaker 4 (25:17):
Let the player come out, get mute all the microphones,
give them an ovation or whatever.
Speaker 3 (25:23):
Play a little highlight reel.
Speaker 4 (25:25):
Because here's the thing with the that's a great point
with the iconic play, where if you put that play
up on the Megas screen, you know, up on the
Titan tron, the whole crowd's going to go nuts like that.
I'm getting goosebumps thinking about that play, and I'm not
even a Minnesota fan. So I feel like that's the
change is there?
Speaker 2 (25:43):
Anything that Nick Foles could do, like literally, like when
he left, is there anything he could have done to
hurt I mean that's a different level because it's a
Super Bowl, right. I feel like Nick Foles could marry
your wife and set your house on fire and you'd
still You'd be like, I gotta get in the burning
house and.
Speaker 3 (26:01):
Save his jersey.
Speaker 4 (26:03):
Yeah, so this is not an interesting answer, but the
answer is no, there's nothing wrong that he can do.
I'm trying to think of another similar thing where McNabb
might be an interesting one. Wherefore before we got the
Super Bowl, because McNabb is the best quarterback the Eagles
have ever had he left and even better than people
(26:26):
you know. It might it might sound surprising because obviously
he played for the Vikings too, But McNabb had a
much better career for the Eagles than Randall Cunningham did,
and he was better than Ron Jaworski. He was better
than you know everyone. But who has a statue outside
the stadium. It's Nick Foles. So nick Foles is his
own weird thing. But when McNabb came back, it was
(26:47):
mixed emotions and mixed reception because he didn't have that
one iconic moment. He just had overall a great career.
It would be as if Iverson's another one were like
if Iverson had somehow join the Knicks or something and
had a great career, but he was so iconic for us.
If they had laid his step over of Tyron Lou
(27:10):
or something, the whole crowd would still go nuts. So yeah,
it's Philly's interesting where it's the personality and how they
conducted themselves. I'm sure that's the same thing with any
sports city. It's not just specific Afhilly.
Speaker 2 (27:22):
Well, it's not the same. It's there are some things
specific to Philly. But I can't stop thinking about how
that is funny that they built Nick Foles a statue.
It makes sense. But if the Vikings won a Super Bowl,
I don't even know if they make enough medal. I
don't know if anybody's mind enough metal for the amount
they'd be like, should we what about the security guard
(27:44):
who worked outside the stadium? Should we get him a statue?
Like that's a super interesting thing. With the Donald thing,
I think I don't want to get ahead of ourselves here.
Speaker 4 (27:52):
You no no predict what's your prediction side, what's gonna
happen two games into the season. But what where's Sam
Donald's statue? You're gonna go outside of your stadium?
Speaker 2 (28:07):
Listen to me, I don't. This is all gravy for me.
I went into this season and my brain was, they
got seventy five million bucks in cap room next year.
If Jordan Addison, Dallas Turner, and Ivan Pace are all
big time guys, we're about to have a really fun
three or four years at least. And so I was
(28:28):
not connected to the record. Now you sucker me in.
I'm getting a little connected to the record. So I
like this team, could they could go thirteen and four
or they could go, you know, six and eleven. I'm
not necessarily connected to that. I'm saying in a hypothetical
world where something crazy happens and this season takes off
(28:50):
like no one imagined Nick Foles would lead the Philadelphia
Eagles to a Super Bowl Absolutely no one. I can
tell you if, whether Sam Donald or anyone else, But
let's talk about Donald because he's in the position. If
somehow some miracle run happened and the Vikings went from
cellar dweller predictions across the media to Super Bowl champions.
(29:13):
I don't think you could count the amount of statues.
I think there would be people that this fan base
is so desperate for a winner of any type in
any sport, but specifically the Vikings. I think there would
be people who had Sam Donald's statues in their front lawns.
I think there would be Sam Donald elementary schools. I
think I think that's a guy who you just you live.
(29:36):
You can't leave the state anymore. You're too famous. You're
more important in Minnesota than David Hasselhoff ever was in Germany.
Speaker 4 (29:45):
No, and shout out to Germany, and I I also
know I do agree. Yeah, it's it's unquantifiable, you know,
like the Sam Donald thing is because he is that
same underdog story too, like or or even maybe more accurately,
Nick Mullins or Brett Rippion somehow leads you guys to
a super Bowl. You know, it's such a crazy story,
(30:10):
Like just like you.
Speaker 2 (30:10):
Guys, it took you so long to win a super Bowl.
It feels like when they finally win one, you won't
get to do it through like and then we drafted
our future Hall of Famer and he led us to
a super Bowl. It feels to me that it's gonna
be like and then we found this guy throwing footballs
to a janitor behind the stadium, and we gave him
(30:31):
like it to break the Vikings Super Bowl curse. It
almost seems like it's gonna take something weird and herculean
that you didn't expect that Nick Foles year, it was
Case Keenum. There's no one on the planet who's like
Case Keenum's almost gonna win a super Bowl and he
almost Dude, imagine if he didn't won a super Bowl
in your home stadium.
Speaker 3 (30:53):
That's it would have imploded. Yeah, that is a.
Speaker 2 (30:55):
Level of I think there are people who still have
are still taking pete.
Speaker 4 (31:01):
I've taken a life pto from that super Bowl where
I don't really have goals anymore. I used to be
really goal oriented and ambitious. But I'm like, so I
did I did that. I won a super Bowl and
it's it's still daily the best thing in the entire world.
And I'm not being funny here, Like the amount that
(31:24):
that is elevated my general mood and happiness on a
day to day basis is by I'm trying to give
you a real number here. I'm not going to exaggerate
at all thirty five to forty five percent on a
daily basis. I'm happier from a thing that happened in
twenty eighteen. That's it's forty one to thirty three. It's truly,
(31:46):
and that weight, it's it's horrible the weight. Probably if
the amount of years that this is added to my life,
I don't know, like three years of happiness. The amount
of years that watching Philadelphia sports in general have taken
away from my life.
Speaker 3 (31:59):
Probably thirty one years.
Speaker 4 (32:00):
So it's not really you know, it's a net negative
watching Philly's sports, But you're right if you got when
you get it, whether it's a Sam Darnold, whether it's
McCarthy who, whether it's a trade, Uh, there's gonna be
a statue because the longer you wait for a title.
Speaker 2 (32:16):
The bigger the statue gets.
Speaker 4 (32:19):
Exactly, it's gonna be the half the stadium is going
to be made out of the statue, you know, like
his head, Yeah.
Speaker 2 (32:25):
His statue.
Speaker 3 (32:25):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (32:26):
What I'm over the tush push. It's just become boring.
It's not even like I dislike it. It's so boring,
like defend it, please, it's so unruly boring. I care
about it. So little. Please make it illegal, just to
(32:47):
bring interest back to fourth and third downs.
Speaker 3 (32:50):
I hear you.
Speaker 4 (32:51):
It's not our faultet that it's boring. It's because so
much hype was built around it by people who have
nothing interesting to say and who want to ruin our
our fourth down. Can versions that it became boring. So
what the tush push is is a quarterback sneak. That's
all it is. DeVante Smith weighs one hundred and fourteen pounds. Okay,
(33:11):
the fact that he is pushing Jalen Hurts isn't really
making up three yards. Jalen Hurts. His ability to his
leg strength is what makes the playwork. It wasn't even
Jason Kelsey. It's timing and how strong our quarterback's legs are.
Speaker 3 (33:27):
Remember like Tom.
Speaker 4 (33:28):
Brady had the craziest QB sneak percentage for years and
he just fell forward. Like there's just something. It's a
quarterback thing and it's called you know, I think it
has so much hype because that is a funny name,
the tush push, and then they ruin that they call
it the brotherly shove.
Speaker 2 (33:46):
God, you're uncreative. City full.
Speaker 4 (33:51):
Joe, eat a cheese curd. Go dip it. Go dip
your cheese curd and ranch by the lake.
Speaker 2 (33:58):
We I'll definitely do it by the like. And for
the people who are listening from Philadelphia, that's a large
body of water, and water is something that people use
to clean themselves.
Speaker 4 (34:09):
But we have those outside our homes. When the fire
extinguisher breaks, we have lakes.
Speaker 2 (34:13):
Let's close on this. So the Detroit loses, by the way,
the Bucks that I'm gonna answer my ound question before
I even ask it. But as you're looking around the NFC,
you know there's some teams that are like, oh, are
the Cardinals good? The Lions lose one? You know, the
Bucks are fascinating to me. I think they're scary good.
(34:34):
I think the Baker thing is really interesting. I don't
know how we haven't recognized that Chris Godwin and Mike
Evans are as good as they are. I mean, maybe
that's just me, but it feels like they've been heavily overlooked.
But as you a team who thinks you have Super
Bowl aspirations, that's a thing that you believe. Is there
anyone that genuinely worries you?
Speaker 3 (34:55):
The Philadelphia Eagles terrify me. The most.
Speaker 4 (34:57):
I would say they scare me more than any other team.
I would say, honestly, it's so early. Detroit is a
team that I think will get its legs underneath itself.
And I really do think the Niners just have so
much talent. Honestly, watching watching Dallas in that first game,
that win was so big over Cleveland, and then the
(35:22):
way they.
Speaker 2 (35:22):
Just beautiful, you know, beautiful. Yeah, it was gorgeous, really
really beautiful.
Speaker 4 (35:28):
If I was an impartial observer, which I couldn't, that's
going to be the name of my next album. I
would say it's been an interesting two weeks because a
lot of these teams that everybody thought was unassailable have
lost at least one game.
Speaker 3 (35:41):
Yeah, and the Bucks look good.
Speaker 2 (35:43):
And the Bucks look good. Yeah, Okay, buddy, Well I
I appreciate you doing it.
Speaker 3 (35:47):
Thank you, Thank you for being here.
Speaker 2 (35:49):
Thank you for stepping in on a week where it
turns out there aren't comedians from Houston. Uh they're from there,
but they don't care about the team. So we'll talk
talk little Eagles, we'll talk little Vikings, and we will
see you all next week. Thank you again to Blake
for joining us this week. Please check us out on
(36:10):
all of your platform's. iHeart Apple, any of it, and
thank you to Ticketmaster. The tailgate is brought to you
by Ticketmaster, the official ticket marketplace of the Minnesota Vikings.
We will see you all again next week
Hey, Vikings fans, Benlever here, I'm so excited to be
a new Lifetime member, and so are my kids. They
love the tennis, the pickaball the basketball, and of course
the yummy cafe. Check them out at Lifetime dot life
to find a club nearest you.
Speaker 2 (00:12):
As the official ticket marketplace of the Minnesota Vikings and
the NFL, Ticketmasters got the best way to take it
to the house when it comes to being there live.
They're the safest and most convenient marketplace to score fully
verified Vikings tickets. So get those touchdown celebrations ready and
score your tickets today at ticketmaster dot com slash Vikings.
(00:34):
Hey guys, it's another episode of the Vikings Tailgate, brought
to you by Ticketmaster, the official ticket marketplace of the
Minnesota Vikings. Guys, we have comics entertainers on this show.
We like them generally to be a fan of the
other team.
Speaker 3 (00:53):
But here's the thing.
Speaker 2 (00:54):
It's pretty hard to find a comedian who's a fan
of the Houston Texans. Apparently, Luckily for all of you,
fan favorite recurring guest on the show, Blake Wexler, stepped in.
You know him as an Eagles fan, so it was
fun to talk about the loss on Monday night, the
differences in the fan bases, and what's going on with
our team and throughout the NFC. This was a really
(01:16):
fun one and we really appreciate Blake joining the show.
I hope you guys like it.
Speaker 3 (01:25):
Recket, Reckett, I mere.
Speaker 2 (01:34):
Joining me now to talk all things NFL and honestly
to just sit there and listen to me talk about
how over the moon I am about my favorite football
team right now, Ladies and gentlemen. Recurrent guest on the program,
Philadelphia Eagles fan NFL Savant, Blake Wexler. You like that,
(01:56):
you like Savant Savant?
Speaker 3 (01:58):
I'm your first Savant. Yeah.
Speaker 4 (01:59):
Jason Savants, I believe was our wide receiver three for
a couple of years place for the University of Michigan. Yeah, No,
I love Savant.
Speaker 2 (02:07):
Does your fan base have an obsession with the wide
receiver three?
Speaker 4 (02:11):
Of course, I think every does every fan base have
an obsession. It's almost like a backup quarterback, but less important.
Speaker 2 (02:17):
Right There's something that I've noticed in Minnesota, and I've
been I think I've narrowed it down because Jalen Naylor
has come out and looks awesome for the Vikings. He
caught an incredible seam route to not seal the game,
but put us in that direction. He's got a touchdown,
he's looked good, he's finally healthy. People are really excited
about him. But the Vikings have always back to like
(02:41):
they were in on kJ Osborne all the way back
to jerryus Wright and on and on and on. There's
just been this obsession and I think it's because of
Jake Reid. The Vikings when Randy Moss came in had
one of the first I'm gonna say big time three
deep receiver. Course everybody thinks Randy Moss and Chris Carter,
(03:01):
but Jake Reid was a badass man. And I think
this like like, if you give a kid a snowmobile
for his ninth birthday, you still have to have nine
more birthday parties before he's out of your house. So
you got and I think that's what happened. You had
Moss and Carter and Jake Reid and everybody just keeps going.
So who's new Jake Reid. But this Jalen Naylor kid
(03:23):
has been incredible at the Gate.
Speaker 4 (03:25):
That's incredible for like, yeah, you guys just need more
good wide receivers. I think it's not enough to have
to It's funny. I think we've both gone through franchise.
Speaker 2 (03:33):
I forget that when I talk to you, you passed
your team passed on Justin Jefferson. I forget that.
Speaker 4 (03:41):
And even though we don't, we don't really talk about it.
We don't talk about it and we don't really have
a need to talk about it.
Speaker 2 (03:47):
The funny thing about a Philadelphia Eagles fans psychology is
even though you have Aj Brown and DeVonta Smith, even
though you've had one of the better offenses in the league.
When I said, when I started talking about your like
you got a little bit.
Speaker 3 (04:01):
Of like a twitch. Yeah, no, for sure a twitch.
Speaker 4 (04:05):
And it's a similar thing too where I still talk
about the quarterback rule where now you need fifty quarterbacks
on your roster. If Heaven forbid, one through five of
your quarterbacks get injured, which is what happened during the
NFC Championship game against the forty nine ers that we
were playing. And you remind me, you go, Blake, that's
a game you want. Why are you complaining about this? Well,
(04:27):
they were complaining about it, and I feel like it
delegitimizes the win.
Speaker 3 (04:30):
But you are right. There's a laundry list of vendettas.
Speaker 2 (04:34):
Speaking of quarterbacks, everybody is going nuts about Sam Donald,
and I can talk about Sam Donald at length. I
would be thrilled too, But I want to talk about
something that nobody's talking about. That you have a connection
to perhaps the most underrated higher across the NFL this offseason,
I believe, was Josh McCown as quarterback coach for the
(04:56):
Minnesota Vikings. Everybody tied it to this idea that we
were going to get Drake may. I think it's beyond that.
If you really and Blake you had him in Philadelphia.
He was the emergency backup during the COVID year, right
oh yeah?
Speaker 3 (05:08):
If, oh yeah.
Speaker 2 (05:09):
If you deep dive Josh McCown and you learn about
him in Cleveland and Philadelphia, there is this unending list
of stories of supporting young quarterbacks and helping him along.
I think he is perfectly built for today's generation of athletes.
I think he's probably gonna wind up being a head coach.
(05:31):
If Sam Darnold continues to perform the way he has,
He's gonna deserve a lot of the credit.
Speaker 4 (05:38):
I totally agree, and I think he relates so well
to these quarterbacks because he was kind of just in
the league and I think even when he was playing,
to your point, one of the most interesting jobs, so
forget sports, just jobs in the history of occupation, was
during COVID, we paid Josh McCown to be on the
(05:59):
right and just hang out at his house and join
Zoom meetings for twelve thousand dollars a week. That was
his job and also very special place in my heart
for Josh McCown. This guy is such a gamer that
I believe. So Carson Wentz was the quarterback and we
ended up losing this game in the playoffs seventeen to nine.
I believe it was twenty twenty to the Seahawks. Josh
(06:22):
McCown comes in almost leads us back to victory while
playing on a torn hamstring that came off the bone.
This dude was limping around the field and was still plague.
So if you think a guy you know, not collecting
workmen's comp is not going to be popular in Philadelphia,
you're wrong because he.
Speaker 2 (06:45):
We can talk a little bit about your game on Monday,
and you guys getting put down by Kirk no.
Speaker 4 (06:50):
We could skip it and talk about Justin Jefferson. Sounds
like a nicer thing to talk about, to be completely
honest at this point.
Speaker 2 (06:56):
But before we do that, or you know, maybe we
can avoid it. But when Kirk left, there was so
much time spent baiting him and his value and his
greatness or lack thereof that. I don't know that people.
It was a lot like politics. People had their sides
and no matter what happened, they were going to frame it.
(07:19):
But we've arrived at this place where Donald and Kevin
O'Connell as a partnership seems to have worked so well,
at least through two weeks. It is almost like it
has erased that vibe from our fan base because he
is you can see Kevin O'Connell really, as the children say,
(07:42):
going into his bag a bit, being a little bit
more aggressive. Yeah, you're welcome being more aggressive. And what
I didn't know about Sam Donald because I didn't know
anything about Sam Donald, but I didn't know this dude had.
Everybody says big arm. You hear the term big arm
all the time time, but holy like that throw against
(08:05):
the Niners, I don't it seems I'm not saying it
seems simple, but it seemed like a pitch and catch,
like a deep ball. But anytime you drop back into
your end zone on a play action, there's the inherent
risk of giving up two or six if anything goes wrong.
So to sit in there with that pressure somewhere rattling
around in your thought process, step up and deliver a ball.
(08:27):
And this is for the second time in two weeks,
Blake deliver a ball down the field to Justin Jefferson
in perfect stride. A lot of guys can throw the
ball fifty five yards, but to hit him in perfect stride,
it's been really, really, really fun. I'm sure there are
some difficult moments ahead of us, but at least for
(08:48):
two weeks, everything that's happening in the quarterback room feels
really great and it feels really fun.
Speaker 4 (08:55):
It's cool to watch too, because he was obviously an extreme,
highly touted pick, Like was he number.
Speaker 2 (09:02):
One or number three? He's three, number three out of.
Speaker 4 (09:04):
USC Yeah, in twenty eighteen, right, and he was always
a guy with all the tools. And it's interesting he's
only twenty seven, but his career to this point may
not have gone the way that he wanted it to. Go,
and I think often people either figure it out immediately
or they never figure it out, and he I have
(09:27):
a you know, it's really cool watching his story because
he's someone who it's taking a little bit longer than
I think other players, maybe a little bit longer than
he wants it to, but he's stuck just the strength
of character and resolve and also maybe he's finally found
the right situation also the right quarterback coach like McCown
(09:47):
to help him, you know, like it's it's fun to watch.
Speaker 2 (09:49):
Do you think do you think there's this new thing coming?
Because the running back position obviously has changed right running back,
The way they draft, roster, pay use running backs doesn't
look anything like it looked ten to fifteen years ago.
So it's kind of been one of two paths with quarterbacks.
(10:10):
Either you have one or you don't. Either they can
play or they can't, whether you're starting them or not.
Either they're they're gonna get paid or they're not. And
that has led to guys like you have your elite
quarterbacks and then you have like your Mahomes, your Burrow,
your Allen. But then you have your guys that are
in that next tier, your Kirk Cousins, Jared Goff, Dak Prescott,
(10:34):
all these guys, and they're all getting paid. Jordan Love's
getting paid, and it seemed like there's just no ine
between you either get paid or you don't get paid.
And I wonder, with this happening to Baker Mayfield, I wonder,
with this happening to Gino Smith and now a third time,
if Darnold has a good season, will we enter into
(10:55):
a new NFL universe where there's this third tier. You know,
there's always been the journeyman that you start and move
on from. But Mayfield and Geno are solutions. They're not
stop gaps, and they're at the right price given you know,
the salary cap equation and how it affects quarterbacks. So
(11:16):
I don't know, I'm really fascinated. I'm both fascinated to
see it and Blake and I can't stop thinking about
which former busts that I would want the opportunity because
it's all tied. Here's the crazy thing, it's all tied to.
I feel like I'm writing a verbal manifesto right now.
Speaker 4 (11:37):
But this is how you speak. I don't know if
this is news to you. This is how you've always spoken.
Speaker 2 (11:42):
It's it's disgusting what a I did not expect us
to be two and oh. It is disgusting what a
two and oh start does to me. It's not it's
not good for my relationship, it's not good for my
free time, it's not good for anything. But I'm I'm
so deep down into this thing right now.
Speaker 4 (12:03):
It's pathetic is that you should try a ten in
one start like we had last year and then see
what happens after that.
Speaker 3 (12:11):
Not a lot of good stuff.
Speaker 4 (12:12):
What if I like, it was very clear that I
haven't watched football in a long time, Like, yeah, you know,
so you got the Trent Dilfers of the world where
they can just come in there last second, and when
you was Super Bowl, it's like, wait, has this guy
been sleep for twenty five years?
Speaker 2 (12:24):
It's just a new thing. Cunningham was like a one
year reclamation project in Minnesota. We haven't seen this thing
that's happening. By the way, it's it is very tied
to the McVeigh Shanahan tree. If you do a little sleuthing,
a little football sleuthing. Blake Gino Smith was with Shane
(12:46):
Waldron in Seattle that was his coordinator. Waldron was a
McVeigh guy, and then Baker Mayfield spent his first year
with Dave Canalis, who was under Waldron in Seattle. He's
spending his second year with Liam Cohen when he's really
breaking out right now. Liam Cohen last year was under McVeigh.
Kevin O'Connell was obviously under McVeigh. It's these young coaches
(13:10):
that prioritize efficiency and game planning and their system that
seemed to be able to do this. So I can't
stop thinking about which bust. For some reason, Akille Smith
always comes into my brain first, just because that's an
all time name. It's a great, great name. I'd love
(13:33):
to see a Johnny Manzell resurrection, just for the reality
show that would probably come with it.
Speaker 3 (13:39):
I would.
Speaker 4 (13:39):
For me, I'm Mark Sanchez. I think would be a
fantastic one.
Speaker 2 (13:43):
Dude. Yeah, battling back from the butt fumble, the butt
fumble redemption, Oh yeah.
Speaker 3 (13:49):
That's a fantastic story.
Speaker 2 (13:51):
Imagine imagine him leading a team to like twelve and five,
scoring a touchdown in the playoffs and doing a butt
fumble celebration just to give it all back. That would
have been a good one.
Speaker 4 (14:02):
The whole time, just in his pants in the back,
there's just a football per butt cheek and he just
takes them both out and throws them into the stands.
I would how can you not cheer for that story?
Speaker 2 (14:13):
Tim Couch would be a good one, just because Robert Sofa. Yeah,
there's not a I'm going the other way with names.
There's not a funnier name. Although, god, there's one really
terrible all time name, Blake Bortles. Dude, I'm not convinced
Blake Bortles wasn't a good quarterback. No, I'm not now
(14:33):
and now with what's happening, I'm not convinced Blake Bortles
didn't have all the tools and he just didn't have
the right coach.
Speaker 3 (14:39):
I'm totally with you.
Speaker 4 (14:40):
You and I have a Blake Bortles theory that we
bring up every year and a half, and it's that
Blake Bortles was not a bad quarterback. Got his name
was just so silly, too hard. You can't be silly
of a name.
Speaker 2 (14:51):
Your last name can't rhyme with Jordles or Chortles and
be a pro quarterback. How many If here's the thing,
if you bust it out as a core You're for
sure sitting around right now going I'm for sure blaming
my career on not getting to play during the mcveay
Shanahan Tree era.
Speaker 4 (15:09):
If Blake Bortles had a name like Matt Leonard or
Sam Bradford, you know, like some cool name, it would
be like, yeah, he'd still be in the league.
Speaker 2 (15:18):
I think that's what the name was I was trying
to think of. I think there is a quarterback Jr.
Producer can look this up. I think there was a
quarterback a long time ago for the Detroit Lions named
Chuck Long. Incredible, not a stage name. He's not an
actor playing a character that's sort of based on Joe Namath.
(15:39):
He's a real human being named Chuck Long who wound
up being a professional quarterback.
Speaker 4 (15:47):
Like did you see that cigarette commercial starring Chuck Long?
It's like, yeah, what else would he endorse? It's cigarettes?
Speaker 2 (15:55):
Did you yep? From Jay? That's that is it's Chuck
longs QB. Yeah, that's the sort of guy who only
sells whiskey and cigarettes. That's it. That's all that guy.
Most of his commercials are him on a horse, like
I'm hey, I'm Chuck Long, quarterback of the Detroit Lions,
and I'm ready to heave that ball down the field.
(16:19):
Like that didn't have anything to do with the product.
Speaker 3 (16:21):
Chuck, I'm Chuck Long.
Speaker 4 (16:23):
Have you tried revenge getting revenge on someone who's wrong
to you? It's like, I can't buy revenge, Chuck. Who's
paying for this ad space?
Speaker 2 (16:32):
Oh? I just I just love it a whole lot.
Where So let's talk a little bit about the NFC.
The Vikings fan base I think split up in your
Monday Night loss. I think when Kirk threw short of
the sticks, half the state rejoiced on third down and
(16:54):
they're like, there it is. And then when he drove
down the field and he beat the Eagles and you
guys lost, the other half of the state, it was like,
there it is. There was a there was a real,
like a really divided fan reaction to who people were
rooting more against.
Speaker 4 (17:16):
Yeah, it's it's so so it's really really funny that
how you bring this up, because again, I think one
of the most interesting things about this show is that
you get the perspective of other fan bases and it's
almost exactly like your own, except you know, different players,
different names, different fans, and this is the first time I've.
Speaker 2 (17:35):
Never thrown a battery at a child.
Speaker 4 (17:37):
Yeah, well, you know, I think you need to move
on from things that happened in the past.
Speaker 3 (17:41):
Like I don't think it's healthy to dwell.
Speaker 2 (17:43):
So well, that's what you have to do with court cases,
or you'd be depressed all the time.
Speaker 3 (17:48):
Yeah, and I know, and I'm a happy guy.
Speaker 4 (17:53):
But it's funny that you brought up Kirk and the
Falcons because I don't even remember playing them.
Speaker 3 (17:58):
Because when we.
Speaker 4 (18:00):
Talk about that loss, it's all our fault, So Kirk
has nothing to do with it. It's he was a
nameless face that happened to be in a blank jersey.
It was the Eagles defense that led us down. It
was the Eagles offense, it was the coaches, it was
all this stuff. That's how the fan base is interpreting
(18:20):
this loss. Kirk just it could have been anyone. It
could have been Chuck Long, you know, who was defeating us.
No matter who was in that uniform. In Eagles fans's
you know, heads, it was we were gonna lose that
game because that's what we've been doing.
Speaker 3 (18:35):
So in terms of Kirk, Kirk was not Kirk was Kirk.
Speaker 4 (18:39):
You know, he ended up winning, but he didn't do
anything special. I don't think he's the reason why they won,
just like he wouldn't have been the reason why they lost.
He just happened to be a guy playing for the team.
Speaker 2 (18:54):
What what was the vibe like in that stadium when
Sakuon dropped the paths? Because I can tell you when
Aaron Jones fumbled going into the goal line. I'm I
was not in Minnesota Sunday, and from states away, I
could hear the state go no like I could feel them.
(19:17):
I could feel them tightening up in the oh my gosh,
here we go again.
Speaker 3 (19:23):
Way.
Speaker 2 (19:24):
It is the fact that the entire Philly fan base is,
you know, their personalities based off a restaurant bar worker
who somehow got on the team. Does that not allow
you to worry about those sort of moments? Do you
guys just pop pali your way through it? Or was
the stadium concerned in that marment?
Speaker 4 (19:45):
So I think you're looking for the phrase of like
blue collar hard worker, you know, the backbone of this
country might be the phrase that you're thinking of. But
you know that's why I'm here to try to clarify
these things for you, so you know, not everything is
a Mickey Mouse character of a cultures, but as much
as we like to pretend that it is. So it's interesting,
Saquan may have been the only guy on the field
(20:05):
that we would have had this like a non like matriolic,
venomous reaction to a mistake like that, because he has
been so good where he was a contract where it
was uncharacteristic of the Eagles and honestly any NFL team
to give a running back that amount of money, you know,
twelve plus million a year. And he also, you have
(20:28):
to think, is a Penn State player, so Philly doesn't
is not a college football city, so you know, Penn
State's like three four hours away, but that's kind of
the football school. So he had over one hundred yards
in the first game, won us that first game with
three touchdowns, most touchdowns in a debut I think since
Terrell Owens and this game. He was playing incredibly well too,
(20:51):
So when he dropped that ball to get us past
the sticks, which would have allowed us to run out
the clock and win or score, everyone was just in
kind of shock and looking for someone else to blame
in that situation where like, we can't blame Saquon, this
is the only positive thing that's happening for us right now.
We cannot blame him. Who whose fault is this? Because
(21:13):
it can't be his?
Speaker 3 (21:15):
It was. It was a huge bummer.
Speaker 2 (21:16):
The Vikings take on the Houston Texans on Sunday. I
think there are very few people who thought they would
be too and zero. I think the team is displaying
an interesting amount of confidence. And I've always I've always
thought despite how the fans and media perceive football and
(21:39):
football team's journey and and and how they end up
being good or not good as a team, I tend
to think guys who play no pretty quickly, especially if
they're veterans, if you have an older team, I don't
think they go to like they get to week one
and go, huh, we are bad. I think they knew
(21:59):
it right. So I think the niners wins surprised a
lot of people, and even surprised a lot of Viking fans.
I do not think it surprised the locker room. That
being said, I think the Houston Texans are a whole
different sort of challenge. I don't think they're gonna mess
(22:21):
around I don't think they're gonna dink and dunk. I
don't think they're gonna control the game. I think they're
gonna look at how good this defense has been and
they're gonna go screw it. I'm heaving the ball like
six seven play drives, not fourteen to fifteen play drives.
I think they're gonna come out and be willing to
engage in a shootout and see if we can keep up.
(22:43):
It is a pretty interesting test for a team that
no one believed would have this opportunity this early.
Speaker 4 (22:50):
Yeah, it's it's interesting, and obviously it's early in the season,
but to me, this game will tell us a lot
about the forty nine ers, also because the forty nine
ers is everybody's pick, or it was everybody's pick to
come out of the NFC.
Speaker 2 (23:05):
Is this Are you doing the thing where you make
this like no matter what I talk about, you bring
up somebody who cheated on you, like a girlfriend who
cheated on you. Is is that what's happening here?
Speaker 3 (23:15):
Well, what I was trying to say, no, no, So
I'm not doing that at all.
Speaker 4 (23:18):
What I'm trying to say is you're gonna like, you
know the fact that you were able to overcome the
forty nine ers seventy five quarterbacks, makes you in a
good position to who knows how many quarterbacks Houston's gonna
bring to the table. No, I do think that it's
a similar situation in that, like, you know, the weapons
that the skill position weapons that Houston has are kind
(23:40):
of similar to that of probably a letter grade down
from that of the forty nine ers.
Speaker 3 (23:47):
I think you have a better quarterback in my.
Speaker 2 (23:49):
Opinion, and better quarterback, maybe more speed. I don't know.
The Stefan Diggs thing is crazy. What I'm honestly most
curious about is how Stefan Diggs will be received like
this and as a as an absolute lunatic who disrespects
anyone who dares put on a different jersey, you know,
(24:11):
you and your city. I imagine if he went back
to Philly, go poorly. I'm really hoping that the Viking
fans greet him with a bunch of love, regardless of
his exit, regardless of anything else. He is responsible for, arguably,
if not inarguably is that a word. Yeah, he is
(24:32):
responsible for the greatest moment in the franchise's history. From
an excitement standpoint, From an iconic standpoint. When they write
the book on the greatest plays that have ever happened
in NFL history, no matter how many years from now
it will be, that is going to be right up
at the tippy top of the list. It's so I
hope he gets the love he deserves, and then I
(24:53):
hope he gets one catch for eleven yards and fumbles
a pass into a defender's hand.
Speaker 4 (25:00):
This is how I would want from Philadelphia pans, where
it's like, I don't let's.
Speaker 3 (25:04):
Not have any bad pr here. Let's just have them
come out.
Speaker 4 (25:08):
Don't give away anything that can be thrown, don't give
anything that can amplify a human's voice.
Speaker 3 (25:15):
Louder than it should be.
Speaker 4 (25:17):
Let the player come out, get mute all the microphones,
give them an ovation or whatever.
Speaker 3 (25:23):
Play a little highlight reel.
Speaker 4 (25:25):
Because here's the thing with the that's a great point
with the iconic play, where if you put that play
up on the Megas screen, you know, up on the
Titan tron, the whole crowd's going to go nuts like that.
I'm getting goosebumps thinking about that play, and I'm not
even a Minnesota fan. So I feel like that's the
change is there?
Speaker 2 (25:43):
Anything that Nick Foles could do, like literally, like when
he left, is there anything he could have done to
hurt I mean that's a different level because it's a
Super Bowl, right. I feel like Nick Foles could marry
your wife and set your house on fire and you'd
still You'd be like, I gotta get in the burning
house and.
Speaker 3 (26:01):
Save his jersey.
Speaker 4 (26:03):
Yeah, so this is not an interesting answer, but the
answer is no, there's nothing wrong that he can do.
I'm trying to think of another similar thing where McNabb
might be an interesting one. Wherefore before we got the
Super Bowl, because McNabb is the best quarterback the Eagles
have ever had he left and even better than people
(26:26):
you know. It might it might sound surprising because obviously
he played for the Vikings too, But McNabb had a
much better career for the Eagles than Randall Cunningham did,
and he was better than Ron Jaworski. He was better
than you know everyone. But who has a statue outside
the stadium. It's Nick Foles. So nick Foles is his
own weird thing. But when McNabb came back, it was
(26:47):
mixed emotions and mixed reception because he didn't have that
one iconic moment. He just had overall a great career.
It would be as if Iverson's another one were like
if Iverson had somehow join the Knicks or something and
had a great career, but he was so iconic for us.
If they had laid his step over of Tyron Lou
(27:10):
or something, the whole crowd would still go nuts. So yeah,
it's Philly's interesting where it's the personality and how they
conducted themselves. I'm sure that's the same thing with any
sports city. It's not just specific Afhilly.
Speaker 2 (27:22):
Well, it's not the same. It's there are some things
specific to Philly. But I can't stop thinking about how
that is funny that they built Nick Foles a statue.
It makes sense. But if the Vikings won a Super Bowl,
I don't even know if they make enough medal. I
don't know if anybody's mind enough metal for the amount
they'd be like, should we what about the security guard
(27:44):
who worked outside the stadium? Should we get him a statue?
Like that's a super interesting thing. With the Donald thing,
I think I don't want to get ahead of ourselves here.
Speaker 4 (27:52):
You no no predict what's your prediction side, what's gonna
happen two games into the season. But what where's Sam
Donald's statue? You're gonna go outside of your stadium?
Speaker 2 (28:07):
Listen to me, I don't. This is all gravy for me.
I went into this season and my brain was, they
got seventy five million bucks in cap room next year.
If Jordan Addison, Dallas Turner, and Ivan Pace are all
big time guys, we're about to have a really fun
three or four years at least. And so I was
(28:28):
not connected to the record. Now you sucker me in.
I'm getting a little connected to the record. So I
like this team, could they could go thirteen and four
or they could go, you know, six and eleven. I'm
not necessarily connected to that. I'm saying in a hypothetical
world where something crazy happens and this season takes off
(28:50):
like no one imagined Nick Foles would lead the Philadelphia
Eagles to a Super Bowl Absolutely no one. I can
tell you if, whether Sam Donald or anyone else, But
let's talk about Donald because he's in the position. If
somehow some miracle run happened and the Vikings went from
cellar dweller predictions across the media to Super Bowl champions.
(29:13):
I don't think you could count the amount of statues.
I think there would be people that this fan base
is so desperate for a winner of any type in
any sport, but specifically the Vikings. I think there would
be people who had Sam Donald's statues in their front lawns.
I think there would be Sam Donald elementary schools. I
think I think that's a guy who you just you live.
(29:36):
You can't leave the state anymore. You're too famous. You're
more important in Minnesota than David Hasselhoff ever was in Germany.
Speaker 4 (29:45):
No, and shout out to Germany, and I I also
know I do agree. Yeah, it's it's unquantifiable, you know,
like the Sam Donald thing is because he is that
same underdog story too, like or or even maybe more accurately,
Nick Mullins or Brett Rippion somehow leads you guys to
a super Bowl. You know, it's such a crazy story,
(30:10):
Like just like you.
Speaker 2 (30:10):
Guys, it took you so long to win a super Bowl.
It feels like when they finally win one, you won't
get to do it through like and then we drafted
our future Hall of Famer and he led us to
a super Bowl. It feels to me that it's gonna
be like and then we found this guy throwing footballs
to a janitor behind the stadium, and we gave him
(30:31):
like it to break the Vikings Super Bowl curse. It
almost seems like it's gonna take something weird and herculean
that you didn't expect that Nick Foles year, it was
Case Keenum. There's no one on the planet who's like
Case Keenum's almost gonna win a super Bowl and he
almost Dude, imagine if he didn't won a super Bowl
in your home stadium.
Speaker 3 (30:53):
That's it would have imploded. Yeah, that is a.
Speaker 2 (30:55):
Level of I think there are people who still have
are still taking pete.
Speaker 4 (31:01):
I've taken a life pto from that super Bowl where
I don't really have goals anymore. I used to be
really goal oriented and ambitious. But I'm like, so I
did I did that. I won a super Bowl and
it's it's still daily the best thing in the entire world.
And I'm not being funny here, Like the amount that
(31:24):
that is elevated my general mood and happiness on a
day to day basis is by I'm trying to give
you a real number here. I'm not going to exaggerate
at all thirty five to forty five percent on a
daily basis. I'm happier from a thing that happened in
twenty eighteen. That's it's forty one to thirty three. It's truly,
(31:46):
and that weight, it's it's horrible the weight. Probably if
the amount of years that this is added to my life,
I don't know, like three years of happiness. The amount
of years that watching Philadelphia sports in general have taken
away from my life.
Speaker 3 (31:59):
Probably thirty one years.
Speaker 4 (32:00):
So it's not really you know, it's a net negative
watching Philly's sports, But you're right if you got when
you get it, whether it's a Sam Darnold, whether it's
McCarthy who, whether it's a trade, Uh, there's gonna be
a statue because the longer you wait for a title.
Speaker 2 (32:16):
The bigger the statue gets.
Speaker 4 (32:19):
Exactly, it's gonna be the half the stadium is going
to be made out of the statue, you know, like
his head, Yeah.
Speaker 2 (32:25):
His statue.
Speaker 3 (32:25):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (32:26):
What I'm over the tush push. It's just become boring.
It's not even like I dislike it. It's so boring,
like defend it, please, it's so unruly boring. I care
about it. So little. Please make it illegal, just to
(32:47):
bring interest back to fourth and third downs.
Speaker 3 (32:50):
I hear you.
Speaker 4 (32:51):
It's not our faultet that it's boring. It's because so
much hype was built around it by people who have
nothing interesting to say and who want to ruin our
our fourth down. Can versions that it became boring. So
what the tush push is is a quarterback sneak. That's
all it is. DeVante Smith weighs one hundred and fourteen pounds. Okay,
(33:11):
the fact that he is pushing Jalen Hurts isn't really
making up three yards. Jalen Hurts. His ability to his
leg strength is what makes the playwork. It wasn't even
Jason Kelsey. It's timing and how strong our quarterback's legs are.
Speaker 3 (33:27):
Remember like Tom.
Speaker 4 (33:28):
Brady had the craziest QB sneak percentage for years and
he just fell forward. Like there's just something. It's a
quarterback thing and it's called you know, I think it
has so much hype because that is a funny name,
the tush push, and then they ruin that they call
it the brotherly shove.
Speaker 2 (33:46):
God, you're uncreative. City full.
Speaker 4 (33:51):
Joe, eat a cheese curd. Go dip it. Go dip
your cheese curd and ranch by the lake.
Speaker 2 (33:58):
We I'll definitely do it by the like. And for
the people who are listening from Philadelphia, that's a large
body of water, and water is something that people use
to clean themselves.
Speaker 4 (34:09):
But we have those outside our homes. When the fire
extinguisher breaks, we have lakes.
Speaker 2 (34:13):
Let's close on this. So the Detroit loses, by the way,
the Bucks that I'm gonna answer my ound question before
I even ask it. But as you're looking around the NFC,
you know there's some teams that are like, oh, are
the Cardinals good? The Lions lose one? You know, the
Bucks are fascinating to me. I think they're scary good.
(34:34):
I think the Baker thing is really interesting. I don't
know how we haven't recognized that Chris Godwin and Mike
Evans are as good as they are. I mean, maybe
that's just me, but it feels like they've been heavily overlooked.
But as you a team who thinks you have Super
Bowl aspirations, that's a thing that you believe. Is there
anyone that genuinely worries you?
Speaker 3 (34:55):
The Philadelphia Eagles terrify me. The most.
Speaker 4 (34:57):
I would say they scare me more than any other team.
I would say, honestly, it's so early. Detroit is a
team that I think will get its legs underneath itself.
And I really do think the Niners just have so
much talent. Honestly, watching watching Dallas in that first game,
that win was so big over Cleveland, and then the
(35:22):
way they.
Speaker 2 (35:22):
Just beautiful, you know, beautiful. Yeah, it was gorgeous, really
really beautiful.
Speaker 4 (35:28):
If I was an impartial observer, which I couldn't, that's
going to be the name of my next album. I
would say it's been an interesting two weeks because a
lot of these teams that everybody thought was unassailable have
lost at least one game.
Speaker 3 (35:41):
Yeah, and the Bucks look good.
Speaker 2 (35:43):
And the Bucks look good. Yeah, Okay, buddy, Well I
I appreciate you doing it.
Speaker 3 (35:47):
Thank you, Thank you for being here.
Speaker 2 (35:49):
Thank you for stepping in on a week where it
turns out there aren't comedians from Houston. Uh they're from there,
but they don't care about the team. So we'll talk
talk little Eagles, we'll talk little Vikings, and we will
see you all next week. Thank you again to Blake
for joining us this week. Please check us out on
(36:10):
all of your platform's. iHeart Apple, any of it, and
thank you to Ticketmaster. The tailgate is brought to you
by Ticketmaster, the official ticket marketplace of the Minnesota Vikings.
We will see you all again next week
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