Alec Lewis Interview | Minnesota Vikings #skol | NFC North | NFL Week 1 | Fellowship of the Rink

joining the show today is one of us by way of two seasons going on three now as the beat writer for your Minnesota Vikings over at the athletic Alec Lewis thanks for jumping on with us Alec yeah of course I was talking before we came on um this heat reminds me of growing up in Alabama and the time I spent in Missouri uh going to college there so uh yeah we're we're recording this on I mean it's a humid it's unbelievable out there sticky as it gets but um I mean it's also almost football weather so uh good to be with you guys I'm excited about um these next couple weeks it is a total uncertainty that this team this team is a total uncertainty so it should be fun it should be interesting I mean that's pretty much the current the the constant state of Minnesota sports in general and at minnesotans being as weird as we are I'm sure you've kind of come to understand this they wouldn't have any clue what I'm talking about except for the fact that it is State Fair week so the day we're talking about is the steamy disgusting first Monday of the State Fair everyone's going to go back like oh yeah that day yep it's funny I actually I was out so I went there I went to the fair Saturday night and I've never really like done the fair like I never I've been out there before but never enjoyed it gone with friends had uh a drink or seven uh eating a lot of the cookies and all that stuff out there so I I uh that was Saturday was my first exposure to it and then I had to Monday I was doing some radio out there um the today the day we're recording this and uh yeah I I think I walked it felt like I walked from the Calgary from Calgary or something which you guys are probably way more familiar than I am um just with how far I had to walk to get out there but uh no it was good it was good I any time to get out in the sun uh given that we're going to be probably buried inside for months uh I'm all I'm all for it that's the standard and so you've been here a couple years now obviously adapted to a lot of the the Minnesota whatever you want to call it I imagine you've at least seen in passing the Minnesota Wild logo correct that's correct yeah 100% green yep what is it is it what a good question is it an M what what is it there hockey sticks on it or something I I don't know you've got a jersey behind yeah you don't even give me a free clue preview no I I I I kind of like I gotta I gotta say this um I like I didn't grow up with hockey there you go there you go it's a it's a wolf or something I guess which then it's the wild um there you go trees and stuff this is embarrassing for me but I'll say this like I was never a uh I was never a hockey guy I didn't grow up with it but ever since I've gotten here like I've wanted to read Joe and and Russo and kind of just like follow it with them but the problem is it's so intricate and they're so detailed and so good that I've like if I miss a few stories I'm like it's all over my head we've got uh there's so much going on anyway yeah the wild you're you're you're that was that was mean kind of just imagine Joe at your next performance review you're actually doing your job too well too intricate too detailed uh can't say who it came from but uh a coworker planned with all the new systems we have about you know ratings our stories it'll I'll I'll take a I'll take a thumbs up at this point so it's great um as you can tell Alec our name of our podcast is H Fellowship of the rink uh stick tap to Lord of the Rings we are both Lord of the Rings fans here um and we always ask our guests what's their biggest nerd itches like what's if you haven't you're not a Lord of the Rings fan you maybe you're Lord of the Rings fan but if you have like a a book series movie series you collect stuff you know uh anything that's kind of like your nerded like this is my off the- field kind of people might not be surprised about yeah I mean maybe it's not surprising because I'm a writer I love reading and like all kind of books and novel so that's one of them but I am a Star Wars guy like I I grew up watching the movies like I would play the video games uh I've seen like all of their breakout shows the Mandalorian all that stuff like I I that is that's the one thing where like I I think sometimes I try to put off this Vibe of like modern 27y old guy who goes out but like there are times where people are like you like Star Wars that much I'm like yeah it's it's freaking sick like it's it's very cool it's very enjoyable the characters are great um I thought you were gonna ask me like a Lord of the Rings trivia and I'm thinking to go back to back with not knowing the Wild logo and then not knowing anything about Lord of the Rings that would have been kind of embarrassing so I'm I appreciate you handl it the way you did but no Star Wars is kind of my that's uh that's that's what I'd say so we'll see how big of a Star Wars fan you are then because my two things that like I've worked with a lot of nerds in my time like working in Tech and the two things that are guaranteed to get them riled up are referring to it as Star Trek intentionally or saying that episode one is the best movie in all of the trilogies yeah that's not true yeah in Star Trek yeah it's ridiculous but no I'm not like a no I mean I'm I'm not I mean it's funny it's a it's a good question because like people like what they like like I've got friends who just you would never expect and they're like the biggest like hobby box sports card collectors and it's like where does that come from I've got like it it it is I like the question because it is um you never know we all have we all have the like right now like I'm I I go in in phases sometimes with like TV shows but like the the new show on Apple Bad Monkey with Vince vaugh like I'm all in and like I I'm like refreshing for when it comes out on Tuesday like I I get in these modes where I've got to break away from football which I think about way too much and um yeah Star Wars the Mandalorian all the shows can be can be one of them yeah and so tell me how do you go from covering the Kansas City Royals to being on the Minnesota beat it's just a very interesting uh career path yeah good question my whole the whole path is pretty interesting um I mean or not maybe I think it's interesting because it's my paast and that's probably all human beings we we like our own stories your parents care too your parents care too yeah no they do they do no no I appreciate that but no I mean I I really had this dream for a long time of wanting to do Sports writing grew up in in Alabama and uh I went to missou for for journalism and my senior year at the time the athletic I mean they were really hiring people to do everything all over the country and different roles and the I mean I guess the best way to say is like it was a lot they had a lot of money and they could spend it however they wanted so I was at missou as a senior and they hired me to write a story a week on missou football I was still in college I don't really know how they found me I think they just did that because they knew they could pay me very little and it would work and my stories would fit whatever Market they wanted but then our Royals writer at the time is a guy Rustin Dodd who um grew up in Kansas City really good at his job he was elevated into kind of a national role and they needed a Royals writer and they wouldn't tell me this but I know the backstory they offered it to this person they don't declined they offered it to this person declined they offered it to someone else declined so it's like all right we're swinging and missing here like uh I I mean in a bad way and they needed somebody and I was close and they had familiarity so they ended up hiring me in the in March of my senior year and I would commute on the weekends to start covering the Royals and then once I graduated I was full-time on the rose it was absurd it was crazy uh they got me for a very good price for them is what I would say which is probably saying too much but that's the reality um and so and I was never a baseball guy but I I mean the opportunity to cover professional sports um right out of college was like an absolute no-brainer for the athletic which at the time had kind of started to to become um one of the preeminent I think spots to to read about sports and so it was great I ended up like like I said I was not a baseball guy but I loved a lot of the advanced metrics I loved the statistics I love the amount of access you had and how close you could get with the players I was a glorified Prospect writer essentially selling hope year after year which which didn't come until now this year uh but ultimately after three years I was kind of like you know I've always wanted to do football um I had immense respect for the people in this market and and Michael Russo and John krinski um and Aaron gleeman and Dan Hayes and and some of our national people and so I kind of threw my name in the ring and uh and and was like look I'd love to cover the NFL the editor said are you sure you want to live in this climate I said no I'm not sure at all but I'll bite the bullet and do it because of the amount of respect I have for people so um yeah moved up here in 22 and a week before the season didn't do any of training camp I remember my first day uh the Darius Smith was hosting it was like a a huge scrum next to his locker he's talking about Aaron roders I just been talking about baseball prospects I was like what the heck is going on and then that season was obviously crazy they won 13 games um a lot of pinch myself moments but it's been a blast and like Joe know this but I I mean the respect that I have had from afar of the people that worked in this market for us has only accelerated since being here I John Kinski goes to almost all the games we've had some meetups and stuff and it's been fun and I mean like I I joke that in terms of following hockey at the g at the beginning but there is not without question a a tag team of people covering a hockey team in this country better than what Russo and Joe are doing and I don't I'm not getting paid to say that uh Fellowship The Fellowship of the rink wasn't like bring me on to say that but but it's it's literally the the reality um and I've seen them work and uh and it's it it's kind of one of those motivating things every day I mean Joe will pop Joe is like he'll have a feature on like one week and like it's incredible access and the next week he pops another one out I'm like how does this guy have the time to do all this stuff and spend this time and structure it so anyway I I I uh yeah that it's it's it's been a very cool ride and being here and kind of working alongside these guys it's a it's a great group and it's part of why I moved from Florida too from Tampa to move into this market and as a hockey Market I mean football is King in a lot of places but hockey is just tremendous here and um it got to be along John krinski at the covering the Timberwolves playoff run last year and see how he works and obviously being up front with with Mike and yourself so yeah I don't know if you had a welcome to Minnesota fan moment like I know for me it was like for hockey if people recognizing you in like duth and stuff but I don't know if the Vikings fan like you're like holy crap people really care the give a [ __ ] meter is really high here well I I mean I I would say like a few weeks in or no actually two weeks in into my first year 2022 uh the Vikings had beaten the Packers in Kevin okell's first game incredible performance really one of the best in Kevin OK connell's time here and then they go to Philadelphia I think that was a Monday night game and I remember Joe Buck and Troy Aman were on the call and they were giving up so many yards defensively like just getting gashed defensively and Troy amegan was crushing ated donatell the defensive coordinator and and it was a brutal game ER Smith drops a wide open TouchDown the sideline this a very visceral game for me and I remember writing after and the story afterward probably had like 300 something comments of people just going back and forth they're bitching they're upset they've had so little success they're have they feel like their hopes have been dashed already and I remember my mom calls me and she still lives in Alabama and she's not the biggest sports fan she's like why are these people in the comments so mad I can't understand it it's just Sports I'm like Mom you don't understand these people really really freaking care and and I yeah I mean since then I've had run-ins with people and it's cool to hear that they they recognize or support or what have you but but I have like I I've tell friends it's like I see shirts around town of like disappointed Vikings fans or like the it's Minnesota Sport and I'm like I I want this to change I don't know if it the wild needs to win the Stanley Cup I don't know if the twins need to go on a run but like I'm the negativity I'm a pretty like upbeat joyful Rosy guy and so I'm I'm I'm I'm ready for win Anthony Edwards does whatever he does and they win a championship not because I'm rooting for it but because I just want people to be happy here they should be it's a good town if if only man yeah since 91 for men's pro teams since early 2000s if we're going to include go for hockey I have one of the shirts it's the purple shirt with the yellow text and the text just says I drink because of my team it's brutal I feel for people it's it's brutal um but I mean talking about the comments what's been uh more interesting of late for you the comments from people looking for fantasy football tips or how long hackinson is going to be out or the people that are coming in droves probably to defend Mo Ibrahim the funny thing is that they signed Mo Ibrahim and like the engagement i i i i his agent actually texted me with it and uh and I me the engagement is like unbelievable on Twitter I'm like what people love this guy but I watched him play in college he's he's a good player um no the fantasy stuff is Relentless and it's it's not something I UND stood really before covering the NFL like there is this entire i' I've got a buddy who always says like there's a world with everything there's a world with if you're if you like watches there's a whole world if you're a biker there's a whole world and you only like your passions you get to know but fantasy football like I'm not I'm not breaking news here it is like people are ravenous in terms of where they will go to find information and I'm getting aggregated about saying Tai Chandler is going to get carries and it's it is uh it is it's hilarious it's Relentless like I grew up loving fantasy but I've drifted from it just because I I I just don't have the time to allocate to read beat Riders reports of backup running backs but uh yeah people are people are Relentless and if that's why they consume and more power to him well I I don't think Sam darnold was gonna go like the top six quarterbacks taking in the fantasy draft uh but he's a very important piece for the Minnesota Vikings season as we now know we probably would anyways even with McCarthy if even if he was healthy but just what's reasonable to expect from darn this year um in terms of like will there be as big of a drop off people might think with cousins not being here versus obviously he never had this kind of weapons that I think in his career uh to work with yeah I mean it's it's really the ultimate question of how this bking season like where it ends up I think it really it it it hinges so much on Sam darnold play and you know I spent a lot of time this summer on a story that has not published yet um about Sam darnold's past and kind of what he's the road that he's traveled to get to this point and I think when you really peel the layers back and you re you listen to people talk about his entry in the NFL in New York with the Jets and then his second opportunity in Carolina with the Panthers and the Dynamics that played a role in in his up and down and a lot lot really down um kind of entry into the NFL you you listen it's almost like you know we talk about these quarterbacks like they do it all themselves like it it's either they're great their team's great or they're bad and and the team's bad and while the position has such a grand importance in the sport no question about it I don't I I think it's almost a we never put enough into like well if Sam Ron plays well it's probably in large part because the system is tailored to him correctly the play calling is good that he feels a belief from the coaching staff in the locker room the skill players are healthy like all of that stuff to me matters probably close to as much if not more than just the the innate Talent of a guy and so I think it's part of why this is such a fascinating experiment you're taking a guy who has been in those poor situations and you're giving him his best surroundings does that lead to more success and ultimately what does that look like it it is it's the the number one most interesting question of this team it's it's why I think even people nationally are like semi-in interested in the Vikings to see how this plays out and uh and I don't think there's an obvious answer like I will say watching the watching him practice every day there's no question the arm talent and the athleticism is like unteachable stuff and that's why you get drafted third overall like he was in 2018 but the more you're around football as you guys know and and probably hockey and every sport it's like what is the mental aptitude what is the processing ability on on the field in the game when you've got to make split decisions with stuff flying in front of you like the more I cover Sports the more I think like that that what mental skill set ability is is is just so Paramount to guys who has have success and so I think if if Sam darnold if the Vikings can put him in a situation where he can Max that part of himself um and not turn the football over then they could probably exceed expectations but I really think it's it it it's gonna take all of that and all of those pieces kind of working in tandem what's your sense on just like the organizations feel for Sam darnold right like is this a guy that like a lot of fans outside looking in might think oh they brought him in because that's an easy guy for JJ to a plant later in the season are they going to ride the entire season with him or do you think that're looking to see who else might be available out there yeah I I mean I think the plan would be for him to start and you're going to give him a Runway and there's not really going to be a short leash and and I mean but that's plans and you guys have heard the Tyson quote 7,000 million times and the plan is only as good until you get punched in the mouth and I mean punch in the mouth in this circumstance to me is turning the football over if he's fumbling if he's throwing interceptions at a high high clip the way he has at times in the past then it gets it gets really tough but the problem is I mean they don't really have a a a a a real reliable option behind Nick Mullins is a is I mean he's pretty much a career backup who has had success in spurts jiren Hall is a young guy who performed well in the preseason and showed some development but I don't think you can have a crazy amount of optimism and what he could provide from what I know they've been a little bit in the the backup quarterback Market and and there's some interest there uh but I think it has to really fit for them for that for them to really make a move like that to to to kind of fortify that room overall so I mean I really think this is Sam darnold show and again it's why um I go back to head coach Kevin oconnell who is the play caller quarterback's coach Josh maccau the skill players the offensive line the system in general like all of that uh the running game probably maybe even more than all the other stuff like all of that stuff has to be good so that when it goes bad when when there are the lows and and kind of offsetting the highs can they can they lean on that stuff to stabilize it and to keep Sam darnold on a path where he is confident and where he does feel the belief like I I sat down with Josh Macau last week and Josh is the Vikings quarterback's coach he was a teammate of Sam's rookie year in New York and and Josh is like I believe in this guy like I I watch him work every day I see see it um and and it's great that for Sam to hear that but it's also only as good as when you're standing in New York and that Giants crowd is bearing down on you can you can you make plays with with uh everything flashing in front of you that's that's uh it's something that you can believe as much as you want internally but uh we'll see what happens well as you know like I went to the University of Michigan um the other U ofm as they say it in here in the Twin Cities um so I followed JJ McCarthy pretty closely in his career at Michigan went to the title game in Houston when they won the championship um read your drifing story on him early on think he talked to people from Michigan and some of the coaches there about his Readiness like what were some early impressions of him clearly he's the guy going forward potentially starting next year but were some early Impressions from him that maybe might surprise some Vikings fans where I think people assume that he was more of like a a system guy in Michigan they ran the ball so much right they ran the ball so much he wasn't have to win the games with him but like what was your impression around him and and expectations of him Beyond after this year when he's healthy yeah you know it's such an interesting question like I've said it three times but I'm from Alabama so like my mind when they drafted Jacob McCarthy it went directly to the Rose Bowl game and to him ultimately like leading the drive that knocked off Alabama which made me very sad but it was impressive to watch watch him produce in in in that environment on that stage and um I mean when they drafted him it it wasn't that surprising to me he's a guy having talked to a lot of different people um like who who seem to fit Kevin okell's system then he comes in in the spring and it wasn't it wasn't perfect like there were practices where the balls were errant there and and and I I try not to react to a lot of those daily practices because I think the more uh you kind of react the more that it can skew The Narrative one day one way or another on just a minor data point which is one day of practice so I didn't really write a ton about it I didn't really make much of it I knew he was in the process of of developing and changing some footwork so that was probably impeding him but it really wasn't perfect and so um he stayed over the summer which not all guys do and it's not something you have to do that's not mandated he chose to do that uh because as we've come to find out he's as committed as they come in terms of both the work that he puts in and how much he wants people internally to respect him um and the way he goes about it and then we show up to training camp and from the get-go I mean it was like man this is like impressive and it was I mean from just early on the velocity uh on some of the passes the accuracy to both sides which people dinged him around the draft time about his ability to throw to the left that was I mean it was not a problem at all um I mean the aura kind of on the field he would make an amazing throw and go celebrate and chest bump the tight end and it was he was all over the place so just I I I he seemed ahead of schedule talking to people internally they they said he was ahead of schedule and who knows how it would have turned it with the rest of training camp I still think Sam Don would have started um and I think the Vikings wanted to take a long-term view from the Geto because he is still so young but it was I mean it was everything you want to see in a Young quarterback on the field off the field work ethic uh disposition maturity like it was it was it was the whole package and that's why when Kevin oconnell explained the news that he had undergone the full repair and of his meniscus that he' gotten hurt it's why Kevin was as uh outspoken as he was about like you guys as fans can feel comfortable that we have the future quarterback in this building and I don't think he says that if he himself a guy who knows quarterbacks at a level that I will never uh doesn't feel as as confident as as he does about the direction so it was a bummer like the injury thing uh just as someone who I mean again like I talked about the positivity The Vibes like it was it was cool to see that the way the way that people here had gravitated around him and it was cool to watch a guy develop and people gravitate toward him towards him the way they did so um to see him go down was brutal but uh all great things take time and so uh yeah I think that's that's where they're at in terms of the future but I mean nothing really crazy blew me away other than I went and spent a day with his his his family at his house in Chicago and they were it was so normal like there weren't jerseys everywhere there weren't pictures of him anywhere we sat on the back porch of their house and there's like this kind of like the porch was not cleaned up even though a reporter was coming it was just so like run-of-the-mill middle class like a normal uh like mother and father just proud of their their son but also proud of their other kids and and so that was really more than anything throughout this time like that's what blew me the way blew me away the most like I kind of imagine with a lot of these quarterbacks the parents are helicopter they're always on them they're watching everything they the pride is on display at all times and it it And while they are proud just the the normal see that they kind of acted kind of blew me away so if anything that's kind of where my mind goes I know it's a quarterback driven league and quarterbacks drive a lot of the conversation but they don't play every position it's not the only thing that happens in the football field and determin success like who are some under the radar players for the Vikings that can make a break whether this team is 500 or below or makes a playoff run here yeah the two two guys to me offensively and defensively um that I don't even hesitate with are running back Aaron Jones and linebacker Ivan p J and like fans NFL fans know both of these guys Aaron Jones has had years of success in Green Bay he is torched the Vikings numerous times he had two 100 two different 100 yard games in the playoffs last year for the Packers but it's been very low-key this Camp how good he's looked how how athletic he looked how motivated he looks um and so I just expect given how much I think they're gonna need to run the ball for Sam darn to have a lot of success I I I just think it's going to be a great year for him and then Ivan Pace Jr the undrafted linebacker out of Cincinnati who I still don't understand how he wasn't drafted given the col College production that he had um was really good last year he played a lot of games he had a bunch of big plays including interception in Vegas that kind of won the game sealed the game but he just looks more confident more um comfortable more more physical more explosive and the way they're going to play defense this year I think they're going to be more stunts and games on the front which suits his skill set so I just expect those two guys who you know like we we people know them people know what they can do I expect them to just have massive years as long as uh they stay healthy which is the key in in every Regard in the NFL but that that's that's where my mind goes and um yeah and quarterback aside what would you say are the biggest concerns entering the season probably for me I would start with the interior of the offensive line offensively and then defensively um I mean they've shored up the quarterback spot in a way by signing Stefan Gilmore and and sha Griffin at cornerback but I'd say cornerback or or inter teer the defensive line um and just the overall depth so and tier the offensive line really because I mean again I I I kind of just said but I think for Sam Donal to be good this year they're gonna need to run the football well and and while Aaron Jones I just raved about him I think so much of running the football is is not just scheme it's not just running back but it's obviously your blocking ability and this interior is familiar guys Center Garrett Bradberry who who had a solid year last year I felt like Right Guard Ed Ingram who still leaves a little to be desired and then left guard Blake brandell who is a total question mark like that unit if they can exceed ation then I think there's a reason to be thinking very positively about what might be possible offensively defensively um they want to play more man coverage and playing more man coverage is kind of like play like playing man-to-man in basketball you need good Defenders to be able to do that you need Defenders on the outside to be able to cover to be able to drape the receivers as they're running their routes that requires cornerbacks and and like I said they fortified it a little bit but I'm a little also tentative in general about like the depth at every spot like if one player and this is in every NFL building I'm sure but if one player goes down at so many positions it's almost like a house of cards then you're relying on the backup and maybe the person behind them and you really don't want to be ring on on on that much depth so um yeah that we'll see how it plays out but those are the spots that give me pause when I'm looking at this roster like you was at the fair and actually did a k fan appearance with Russo and we hosted a show we had d muani on there good friend of ours and asked him like the over under preseason for wins if you had to pick the over runder and he said well I think it's right now six or seven wins I think is the is like the six and a half the number yeah like where's your read is it like he's like just pumped the over like I mean know that's optimism run the muck but like where's your like expectations at like was your over under on like the the wins for the season yeah probably around seven um I went I went through the schedule with a buddy of mine the other night uh who's a big fan and he was just asking like what do you think on a week to week basis and and I mean it's so funny because like all of these games come down to one score really like I mean I 75% of the game seem to come down to one score no matter who you're playing the the Bears have hype the lions are amazing uh like the 49ers the Texans Super Bowl favorites like odds are the game probably will come down to round a touchdown and then we'll see I mean I I think um you could sell me either way on pupping the over or being like I don't know five six wins the T I mean really like I I I I just have a little hesitation with the potential for turnovers and then the overall depth like I just said th those those kind of make me not as pessimistic but I but I I could easily flip that and say I think nationally people aren't talking about the defense who which is really well coached by Brian Flores which has gotten better at almost every spot which is more athletic more it's it's it's faster it's more versatile so there is reason to think like they anchor your team and then if you can just get better run game and and and semic consistent play from Sam darnold you can win eight or nine games um so it I mean I know I'm like being political and couching it one way on both sides but I I just it it's just a total crap shoot to me like I just I just don't know um I I I just the schedule's hard too so how does that factor in last year's defense was really good but against a lot of pretty poor quarterbacks so uh it's just so hard to Peg it's so uncertain which is part of the excitement that I have and will have when I'm flying to New York next weekend yeah and you say no one's talking about the Vikings defense or Brian Flores toaga vioa seems to have a lot to say Tu it did have a lot to say um and that I mean it's it's very interesting you know I uh I sat down last year maybe towards the end of the year maybe week 15 with Brian Flores in his office and we talked about a lot of stuff we talked a lot about coaching philosophies about his development growth um we we talked about Tua and I talked to other people who were in the Miami Building and and uh and and you know it's it's it's interesting like part of me you know with a lot of these former bellich assistants they seem to they adopt a lot of the style that they learn in New England and that style is very it's very harsh it's very in yourf face it's very um it can be aggressive at times and I I go back and forth to it I'm like in this day and age from a coaching perspective even in the NFL which is as physical and Smashmouth as it gets you need to be more come alongside guys than than attacking but also like if you were in the Bel the the New England Building and you saw the amount of success they had with that philosophy you probably think that's the philosophy that that that can be successful so there's a lot there it's very interesting and it gets to a bro which which was why I enjoyed doing the story on flows like it gets to broader themes of of coaching philosophy of the changing of time of um coaching quarterbacks which is entirely different beast in itself so all that stuff yeah the two of comments were very interesting and uh and the reaction and all of that was very interesting but um you know it's like it's in a different way but with Sam darnold like part of his past there have been times where he's felt he he's been in buildings and he's like they they say I'm the starter but they don't really believe in me and I think we can all relate to that like in your job with your boss or the people that you look up to it's like do they really believe in me like you can kind of feel sometimes when there's like a crack in that and so I I think that applies and is is very uh Universal kind of to beyond the football field so yeah the two the comments were interesting but um it it is a sign I think too of of just the changing of the times in terms of these coaching the these coaches in the NFL and their Styles and what works now days that might not have worked years ago and vice versa well we lost you Joe now you've been here same amount of time I've been here a couple years sorry I was uh muted there for a second um top three places to get a beer in the in the Twin Cities wow that's good Joe that puts me on the spot um I'll go with three different kinds so I live in the Northeast area and so like there are nights where I'll just walk and get something and and I would say like some of my spots over here at like a Max industrial or a YY Saloon like I'll do I'll hit one of those so that that's where I'll start in the north loop I I this is gonna make me sound pretentious but it's also a place I love the Hing rooftop I think is awesome and uh they have a Tom's logger there that I drink more than I probably should so that that's a that's a spot um let's see if I can get creative for the last one uh I'm gonna kind of cheat uh sanan the restaurant is more of a food place that I it's more of a food place that I love I don't really go there to drink but I do enjoy drinking while I'm eating there so um those are kind of three different spots but like I I I don't know like I could hit Grays I could free house is great uh I've done Cowboy Jacks more than probably should and probably shouldn't say that on a podcast but that's the reality so uh yeah it's it's it's it's the town I didn't know the town had what it has when I got up here I really didn't and I I've grown to kind of love it in a way that I don't know if I thought I would love that well we're going to put you on the spot one more time here final question brought to you as always by our good friends at waggle golf first make sure you head over to getyou wagle on.com throwing promo code sp10 to take 10% off your entire order whether or not you're a big golfer we're still going to run with it give me three guys Dead or Alive athlete celebrity doesn't matter that would round out your dream golf force them good one no I I do like golf I I I haven't played in a while because uh I don't know if you guys know the season is approaching so I have not gotten out there as much as I would like um and I'm stalling for this answer for sure three people I would want to play golf with wow um uh this is tough let's see I guess I'll pick an athlete maybe like a maybe like a musician and someone and maybe like a sports writer somebody I respect uh let's go John Mayor he probably doesn't play golf but I like playing golf I would like to play golf with him and pick his brain about music um athlete Anthony Edwards would be hilarious and like I mean I mean I don't know if he probably thinks he's good but he's probably not um and then someone else this is a weird threesome very weird threesome um Dane mizutani a friend someone I know who would enjoy yeah he could talk to John Mayor about Taylor Swift who whom they used to have a relationship with and then we would all just enjoy Anthony Edwards so that's the most random Threesome that could ever be put together and that's what I'll say looking forward to have day on later in the season for him pick you too I'm sure he'll pick you one great think I'm thinking think nice I'm thinking nice guys who I play who I would know I know they're they're not going to be take it too seriously it's da yeah he's see I didn't know that so you're you're like Bama born and raised are does that mean that you I don't know I would have thought like a Nick Savin might sneak in there are you not a Bama guy are you uh going no I I I am a Bama guy and I probably could have picked Nick Savin and I I I really felt I really was feeling nervous on that answer I'm not going to lie like it was there was like this internal anxiety that I was like very uh I was like uh struggling with but no Savin would be up there yeah if I were to you know at the athletic sometimes we do seven thoughts or power rankings or some of this stuff if I were to do that Sab would be up there no question about it no question well for the record Dane's fun to golf with that we went together a few times so and he's not he's not extremely great so you you won't have to worry about that but you know you probably go off together as it was so um I'm not I'm not great either but uh yeah I'm not good but sometimes I try to act like I'm good but I'm but in reality I know I'm not I'm not that good but I do enjoy playing and it's been that's another thing in Minnesota I didn't realize like I mean I guess with waggle here it's pretty obvious but I didn't I didn't like when I moved here I didn't realize golf was so big um and so that's been a been a cool deal hey you just only get to play for like two or three months but people love it get it all in it's yeah it's awesome it's fun to be out there well we'll see if the Vikings are good or not so good this season pretty soon as they get season rolling and I'm sure fans would love to follow the coverage for Alec Lewis there at the athletic uh.com um a lot of good stuff as he mentioned some stories he's been working on that'll be probably coming out uh at the beginning of the Season or during the season so um anyways thanks so much for coming on I'm sure uh you want to plug your podcast too and we have a podcast going on right now do you want to plug yours uh yeah yeah hting a uh got real creative with the name and did the Alec Lewis show so real real creative stuff on my end but yeah I don't really know what I'm doing over there um just kind of messing around with it and enjoying it uh and uh yeah so no it's been it's been good but no I yeah the stories that I've got for preseason and kind of end of the season pretty excited about so um it'll be a whirlwind as it always is uh with these Seasons but um should be fun and I wish I gave you a I wish I just gave you the you know they sent us the script of the season the other day but I I didn't want to give I didn't want to break that on this podcast you know it's too good would have been yeah good would have been happy with me so I mean and I think Joe's characterization of Dane is probably gonna be perfect for the Vikings this year just not extremely great we shall see oh no TBD no it was it was yeah no it will be fun no it's it was fun hopping on um like I said when the wild season is back up and going I'll be trying to keep up with you guys but failing because it's just it's Relentless um Relentless you guys do a good job thank you man appreciate it same same to you and thanks for coming on and we'll look forward to see and following you for either Vikings or fantasy football purposes uh yeah exactly that there you go that's 75% of my audience is all selfish reasons there's no reason other than selfish reasons so appreciate it yeah no it's very human no thank you guys appreciate you having me [Music]