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Kirk Cousins
As reported last time, the Minneosta Vikings it was the least vaccinated team in the NFL. According to the Washington Post, 30% of its players were still unvaccinated as of early August.
Several of the confirmed unvaccinated players are team leaders, notably the quarterback. Kirk Cousins, the receptor Adam Thielen, the deep Harrison Smith and the defensive tackle Sheldon Richardson.
Legendary running back Chuck Foreman, who helped the Vikings play in three Super Bowls in the 1970s, was highly critical of players who have refused to get vaccinated and says they can put a successful season at risk.
Foreman: “I would not get into a pineapple with Kirk Cousins”
In a exclusive interview with Pioneer Press, Foreman shared his thoughts on the talent on the team and how it would be spoiled if players were not available due to COVID-19 protocols.
Despite the talent on the team, Foreman worries that important players may miss games or that the team will be seen as lost some games. Predicted a 6-11 mark for this season:
Vikings have enough talent to have a good season. However, with all the COVID, I don’t know how they will handle the situation, since most of the team leaders have not been vaccinated yet. I think there will be problems, especially if someone gets infected and affects the whole team. They may not collect your salary. That will create problems in the locker room.
I’m not sure if a team can recover if they lose a game. If I was vaccinated, but other players did not and that is why we have they will give us a game as lost, and that is why I am not going to collect my salary – and we are talking about very high salaries. In my time it was not like that. Maybe he was charging $ 2,500 per game.
Now most players charge hundreds of thousands dollars per game. And that will affect the team and the season. I really do.
I stand by my prediction of a 6-11 mark for the Vikings.
He also criticized quarterback Kirk Cousins, saying unvaccinated players are “irrational and selfish.”
In my opinion, players who are not vaccinated are irrational and selfish.
I have no problem with your personal decisions. I understand that, but this sport requires everyone to agree. You cannot have three or four people who think differently. I do not understand how it could work, especially when there are key players who have not yet been vaccinated. If you do not agree to get vaccinated, then you should not play and let the team go their way without those problems… potential problems.
It’s my opinion, but I wouldn’t get into the huddle with (Camp Marshal Kirk) Cousins. He is not vaccinated. And that for me would be a problem.
I want to be very clear: I have no problem with what you do. But don’t expect me to huddle with you, especially if I’m vaccinated and thinking in a certain way.
Foreman Reflects On His Playing Days And The Chemistry Needed To Make It To A Super Bowl
In a brief moment of humor, Foreman recalls how much the players’ breathing could feel after a play and that the virus is almost inevitable in a sport like football.
I remember being knocked down and having opponents on top of me. When they breathed, I could tell who drank what kind of alcohol. I would say to them: “what did you drink last night?” I’m not lying. You can smell it. That’s how hard they breathe.
If you are not vaccinated, then you have a good chance of staying out (of games because you are sick). I am saying that in addition to having to worry about the team you are going to face, you will also have to worry about your own teammates and what they plan to do to stay healthy and what they will do to prevent you from getting sick.
It is a difficult situation. Especially in this type of sport, it cannot work.
Foreman reflected on his last season in the NFL, in 1980 with the New England Patriots, a team that went 10-6 but missed out on the postseason:
Chemistry within the team is vital to being successful. Of course yes. And I’ll tell you something. When I played in New England, they had more talent there than we (the Vikings). It was a young team. They weren’t experienced enough to win at that level. Maybe they were good in college, but what I mean is that when I played with the Patriots they had much more talented players than when I played with the Vikings. The Vikings weren’t up to par with the Patriots. However, in Minnesota there was great commitment, and they knew how to win.
The environment here he helped the success of the Vikings. Bud Grant and, the team leaders at the time – Jim Marshall, Carl Eller, Paul Krause, Mick Tingelhoff and Fran Tarkenton. And also Alan Page. They all led differently. Alan Page was a quiet leader, but he performed very well. His performance spoke for him. He worked hard every day, and I admire him because he did so much and didn’t have to talk too much to be so respected.
I’m just saying they had very good players in New England and I believed at the time that they had better players there than they did in Minnesota. But in Minnesota they had what it took, and that was a group of players who gave their all on every play.
So it’s not the talent you have. It’s what you do with and how you use it.
He closed the interview with Pioneer Press by suggesting that this will be Mike Zimmer’s most difficult year:
For Mike Zimmer this will be his most difficult year. In addition to your job, you are also going to have to worry if one of your players is exposed to other people, or if your family has been exposed to someone. And then they have to go to training. There are so many things that are not normal.
As for the team, I think they have talent, definitely. But it is the external that can affect them. Now we worry about who will be able to play and who will have COVID.
READ MORE: Which players could the Cowboys receive in possible trade for a defensive figure?
This is the original version of Heavy.com por Trevor Squire
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