Latest / Scene Projects Sports Network / Steve Reed on Vikings' Future, Fan Engagement, and Season Prospects

Transcript

Steve Reed on Vikings' Future, Fan Engagement, and Season Prospects · Scene Projects Sports Network

• 0:14
  Welcome into the Scene Project Sports Network.
• 0:17
  I am your host, Bubba Starts, and with me today, the manager of premium seating and
• 0:21
  season tickets for the Minnesota Vikings, Steve Reed.
• 0:25
  Steve, welcome to the show.
• 0:26
  Bubba, thanks so much for having me.
• 0:27
  I appreciate that.
• 0:29
  Yeah.
• 0:29
  We appreciate you.
• 0:30
  Obviously, fans of the network know we have a a weekly Minnesota Viking centric NFL show,
• 0:36
  Vikings United.
• 0:38
  I really appreciate you taking some time for us today.
• 0:40
  Talk about the team.
• 0:41
  Talk about ways that, fans can get into a premium experience inside a US Bank Stadium.
• 0:48
  But before we get into all that, we'd love to get a little bit of your backstory, and we'll
• 0:53
  pick it up from there.
• 0:54
  Awesome, man.
• 0:55
  Bubba, thank you so much.
• 0:56
  I'm from Iowa, and as you know, there's no professional sports team there.
• 1:01
  So when I was a kid, I picked, my three favorite, sports teams, at age seven.
• 1:06
  I picked the reds, vikings, and lakers, the last two because I like the color purple, but I
• 1:10
  I've been loyal ever since, so there's something to be said for loyalty.
• 1:14
  And so keep that in mind as I got older.
• 1:17
  Went to or so from Davenport, Iowa.
• 1:21
  Went to University of Iowa, graduated, and then, I went to school to be a sports reporter.
• 1:26
  So not what I'm doing now, but, tried that.
• 1:30
  And as I learned when you went I went out of school, not as easy to find a decent paying
• 1:36
  reporting job as one would think.
• 1:39
  So I made my way into sales and management with Kinko's Copy Center.
• 1:42
  Not many people might even remember that now.
• 1:44
  They were bought out by FedEx.
• 1:46
  But, I saw in my twenties Kinko's Copy Center.
• 1:50
  And then I was in Ohio at the time, and my girlfriend at the time wanted to move back to
• 1:55
  the Quad Cities, where Davenport is, one quarter of the Quad Cities.
• 1:59
  So at that point, I said, let's explore sports.
• 2:02
  So I contacted, the three minor league teams they had there, and I was blessed to, get a job
• 2:08
  with the Quad City Thunder of the CBA, Continental Basketball Association.
• 2:13
  And I love that.
• 2:14
  Absolutely love working for my hometown team.
• 2:17
  Love the Thunder, everything about it.
• 2:19
  And then as I saw our players getting called up to the NBA, I thought, hey, man.
• 2:24
  I'd like to get called up.
• 2:26
  And I thought, when you're a player, you're kind of at the whim of whatever team selects
• 2:31
  you.
• 2:32
  But if you're in the front office, you can pick and choose who you go interview for.
• 2:36
  So I I looked at my three favorite teams, and I hate traffic.
• 2:40
  So I ruled out the Lakers, which is probably a mistake.
• 2:43
  But then I thought, how about the Reds or Vikings?
• 2:47
  And a couple years after I worked I joined the Thunder, so about '98, the Reds had a
• 2:52
  merchandise position open, and I went out and interviewed for that.
• 2:56
  And my heart wasn't in it.
• 2:57
  I mean, merchandise, you had the basement or Riverfront Stadium, so I really didn't invest
• 3:01
  my heart into it.
• 3:03
  But in '99, the Vikings had a corporate sales position open.
• 3:07
  I thought, alright.
• 3:08
  Let's go for that.
• 3:09
  So I I came up here.
• 3:11
  I interviewed.
• 3:11
  I gave the interview of a lifetime, bubba.
• 3:14
  I killed it.
• 3:14
  I was so happy.
• 3:15
  I felt so comfortable being here.
• 3:17
  And you know what they told me?
• 3:20
  They told me no, and I was crushed.
• 3:24
  And they so they were telling me, you cannot have your dream job.
• 3:27
  You cannot work here.
• 3:29
  And I was so disappointed, but I was also angry and determined.
• 3:33
  So I followed up every single month for a full year, And they told me, we don't have anything.
• 3:39
  You're the most persistent person that we know, but Phil in the ticket office does have an
• 3:44
  opening.
• 3:44
  So I contacted Phil Hebner in the ticket office.
• 3:47
  I came up and interviewed again.
• 3:49
  I wasn't sure how it went.
• 3:50
  I thought it went well.
• 3:51
  And then but I'm blessed to say a month after a a month of follow-up, Phil hired me, and that
• 3:57
  was twenty seven years ago, and here I am still going strong.
• 4:01
  Incredible story, of resilience.
• 4:04
  And if you want something, you you can't just leave it to chance.
• 4:09
  You have to be persistent.
• 4:10
  For the things that we really want in this life, you can't expect them to just fall into
• 4:15
  your lap.
• 4:16
  Now there are those few instances for some, that that does happen.
• 4:22
  That's never happened for me, Steve.
• 4:23
  So very much like you, I have to keep on knocking.
• 4:27
  Reminds me of in my twenties.
• 4:30
  I was selling magazines door to door for a period of my life.
• 4:33
  And I bring a lot of those skills and that, gumption to keep pressing on and knocking on
• 4:40
  every door in that neighborhood, and I bring that now to our podcasting world.
• 4:46
  And that's kinda what brought us together.
• 4:48
  I've been hammering on LinkedIn in the same way that you have.
• 4:51
  I have my favorite teams.
• 4:52
  My family's originally from the Chicago area.
• 4:55
  I grew up rooting, for the black hawks, the bears, and the the bulls in the nineties was a
• 5:00
  real good run.
• 5:01
  And my cubbies still close to my heart.
• 5:05
  And in the process of, you know, starting the the sports division of this podcast is like,
• 5:11
  well, like, we want to cover the biggest teams in the league, but you have to go with the
• 5:17
  people who say yes.
• 5:18
  So most of our conversations have been with, you know, people that are in lower leagues, the
• 5:23
  Northwoods League.
• 5:24
  We've had a couple conversation with GM and coaches in there and the Sioux Falls Canaries,
• 5:29
  which is not too far from me, and they're very interested in working with us.
• 5:33
  So it's not always about that top.
• 5:35
  But if you don't knock on that door of US Bank Stadium, you're never going to get in.
• 5:41
  So that's kinda what brought me to to finding you and connecting with you on LinkedIn and now
• 5:46
  getting to have this conversation and hopefully getting to take in a game or two this year,
• 5:51
  standing together on the concourse and watching some big Vikings wins.
• 5:56
  Bubba, I would love that.
• 5:57
  I think about all the time.
• 5:59
  I think about my life.
• 6:00
  And if I just taken that no that they gave me and just accepted it, I wouldn't be where I'm
• 6:05
  at right now.
• 6:06
  So, I mean, that's a message for everybody.
• 6:08
  I mean, just follow your dreams.
• 6:09
  If you have a dream, work so hard for it, and just make it come true because it can come
• 6:13
  true.
• 6:14
  Well and our cohost, coach Cody Hamedal, he, is the new head coach of the Saint Paul Bears
• 6:20
  again this year, was working.
• 6:22
  So he's working in the arena football space.
• 6:25
  And these guys have been told no probably hundreds of times, these athletes.
• 6:29
  And, to hear not only coach's story, but to hear the story of the players that we've heard.
• 6:35
  And now some of them are going up in the arena football leagues.
• 6:39
  Eventually, one of these guys are gonna get called by the NFL.
• 6:41
  And in fact, one of them has been called to go do a tryout with the saints, and they want Cody
• 6:47
  to come along with the process and to meet them.
• 6:50
  And, you know, if you stopped along any of that point when you were told no or a door was
• 6:55
  closed in your face violently sometimes, that you wouldn't be where you are today.
• 7:02
  And I think that it's a beautiful story that you have now starting your twenty seventh
• 7:07
  season with the Minnesota Vikings.
• 7:09
  You've seen some changes over that time.
• 7:12
  A couple of head coaches, you know, a new stadium, and a a lot a a lot of great great
• 7:20
  memories that you've been able to build.
• 7:22
  And not from the outside as just a fan, but from the inside as someone who has at least a
• 7:27
  little hand in building that experience for other fans.
• 7:31
  Oh, man.
• 7:32
  You're so right.
• 7:32
  I've run the numbers.
• 7:34
  I've been here for six head coaches, three stadiums, 85 heartbreaking losses, and two
• 7:39
  ties.
• 7:41
  It's, it it's quite the journey.
• 7:43
  I and I I was telling you earlier that I've seen everything but a Super Bowl.
• 7:47
  We did host a Super Bowl, and I did work that Super Bowl, but I haven't seen the Vikings in
• 7:51
  the Super Bowl, and that's the goal, man.
• 7:52
  One before I die.
• 7:54
  Well and now, hopefully, a a draft coming in the next few seasons.
• 8:00
  Really excited about that as well.
• 8:03
  Now that hasn't been finalized, but the team did put in a bid.
• 8:06
  Correct?
• 8:07
  That's a 100% correct.
• 8:08
  And we're super optimistic that in 2028, Minneapolis will be hosting the draft.
• 8:14
  That's so exciting too.
• 8:15
  Well, and a lot easier for Minneapolis to host the draft in April than a Super Bowl in
• 8:20
  February.
• 8:21
  Right?
• 8:22
  Yeah.
• 8:22
  Amen to that.
• 8:24
  Not that we wouldn't love the opportunity to do that again, but, yeah, we wanna make sure that
• 8:29
  the team is at a position where they could be playing in their home stadium for that Super
• 8:34
  Bowl.
• 8:34
  That would just be really such an incredible experience.
• 8:38
  And, I mean, you talk about incredible experiences.
• 8:41
  We've been to a few NFL games.
• 8:44
  We've been to a game every season for the past four years, I think.
• 8:47
  My wife and I, my brothers have come as opposing fans.
• 8:50
  My brothers still root for the bears.
• 8:52
  I actually came as an opposing fan the first couple of times, but the experience in the
• 8:57
  stadium is really second to none.
• 9:00
  Oh, man.
• 9:00
  Bubba, you're so right.
• 9:01
  In fact, you mentioned the second to none.
• 9:03
  Our US Bank has been voted the Vikings game day has been voted, the tops in the NFL, and we've
• 9:10
  been in the top one or two, virtually since the stadium's opened.
• 9:14
  And fan experienced show rate, You probably saw that our players association voted ownership in
• 9:22
  the top one or two over the last several years.
• 9:25
  Everything our arrow is pointing up.
• 9:27
  I'm just so excited.
• 9:27
  We got the best state in the NFL.
• 9:29
  I really think our time is coming.
• 9:32
  No doubt.
• 9:33
  Yeah.
• 9:33
  You you just need the, the play on the field to match the experience in the stadium.
• 9:38
  And it's not just in the stadium itself.
• 9:40
  It's all around it.
• 9:41
  The tailgate experience out near the longhouse and around there.
• 9:45
  I've had friends that have played on the stage out there.
• 9:48
  Shout out to Corey Waller and the wicked things who were out there last season.
• 9:53
  And, I think two years in a row now that they've done that.
• 9:56
  Just an incredible vibe oozing around it.
• 10:00
  We were able to go to the new location of the Viking World Order.
• 10:04
  Sir Death host a tailgate on the, you know, southwest of the stadium there.
• 10:10
  An incredible experience all the way around, and I love being friends with the the super fan
• 10:16
  groups.
• 10:17
  Obviously, fans of the show know we just had John McDonald on the show this week, the
• 10:22
  international fan of the year who got to go out there and announce the draft pick.
• 10:27
  Charles Demings, I do believe, was the draft pick that he got to announce.
• 10:31
  How important is it for you all that are in the front office, the the fan experience?
• 10:37
  I I mean, with it being voted that, that's not that's a conscious decision to say, we are
• 10:42
  going to be the best.
• 10:43
  And, yes, we care about football and wins matter, but the experience in the stadium is
• 10:48
  what keeps people coming back year after year after year and it becoming something that is a
• 10:53
  generational fandom.
• 10:55
  Oh, Bubba, you're so right.
• 10:56
  I mean, we still have some legacy season ticket owners from the sixties, and it it all started
• 11:02
  I mentioned Phil Hebner, the gentleman who hired me.
• 11:04
  He referred to our our season ticket owners as the trunk of the tree as far as our fan base,
• 11:10
  the people who provide us the energy, the resources to be able to do what we do.
• 11:16
  And in the last several years, we've added a customer service team to to enhance our
• 11:23
  seasoned ticket owners as well, make them feel so valued and make sure that they feel like
• 11:28
  they're an important part of the team because to us, they actually are an important part of
• 11:32
  the team.
• 11:32
  We just wanna make sure that they feel that way.
• 11:35
  And I feel like that's been reciprocated in the fact that we have a very, very long waiting
• 11:40
  list for season tickets.
• 11:42
  We've got a waiting list for suites.
• 11:44
  We're just in such a great position.
• 11:46
  And just like you were talking about, it's the fans.
• 11:48
  They they value that experience.
• 11:50
  They feel they feel part of what we're doing, and it it's lending itself to people in in the
• 11:57
  in the stands, but also people who wanna get in the stands too.
• 12:01
  Yeah.
• 12:01
  And I think that gets lost on a on a lot of organizations that you're I mean, in some ways,
• 12:07
  I mean, they're not part owners.
• 12:08
  We're not the we're not the packers, right, giving out a a certificate of ownership to
• 12:13
  everybody in Wisconsin.
• 12:14
  But that being said, they really are.
• 12:19
  Right?
• 12:19
  Season ticket owners are the lifeblood of an organization because without them, you don't
• 12:26
  have the funding to do a lot of these stadium stuff.
• 12:29
  Now it doesn't affect payrolls at all, probably.
• 12:32
  Right?
• 12:32
  That it's different pools of money, I'm sure, and not knowing much about, you know, the front
• 12:37
  office of those.
• 12:38
  But it does allow you to reinvest into that fan experience, to reinvest some of that into
• 12:44
  forecast things that you could do.
• 12:46
  You know, even just to think about the amount of foam that drops from or snow that drops from
• 12:52
  the, the ceiling, everything, like, you're talking about probably thousands of dollars of
• 12:56
  foam fluid every game just to provide that little bit.
• 13:00
  I'll never forget the first time of being in the stadium, and all of a sudden, it just
• 13:05
  starts snow falling.
• 13:07
  And the players are getting ready to run out on the field and the the flugelhorn going.
• 13:11
  It just like, the entire thing, it just it gives me chills talking about it, Steve.
• 13:15
  Oh, man.
• 13:15
  I love to hear that because I make sure no matter like, from the two hours when doors open
• 13:20
  until kickoff, that's my busy busy time on game day.
• 13:23
  I go around and see my clients, make sure everybody's getting what what we promised them.
• 13:27
  But I make sure I'm somewhere where I can see our our player intros, our our game day, the
• 13:33
  the fifteen minutes before kickoff because it it's your hair stands on end.
• 13:37
  It's such a a a great presentation.
• 13:41
  Yeah.
• 13:41
  I there's really, nothing better.
• 13:44
  I I I make it a point, especially my wife likes to be in her seats.
• 13:48
  Me, I'm like, I kinda like to walk around.
• 13:49
  The concourse is so fun, and I have enough friends in one forty now that always have an
• 13:54
  extra empty seat next to them possibly.
• 13:56
  So it's worth, floating around sometimes.
• 13:59
  But, that to be next to the drum as they are beating this, and that's a real drum, folks.
• 14:06
  This isn't done for TV.
• 14:08
  He is up there beating the hell out of that thing, and it's an incredible experience to be
• 14:14
  standing right next to it.
• 14:16
  And there's really there's truly not a bad seat in the house.
• 14:18
  I I've sat in the 300 level, you know, right up against the front.
• 14:21
  Now I haven't gone all the way to the nosebleeds, but once you're in the building,
• 14:25
  just milling around the concourse, there's plenty of areas to stand and watch the game and
• 14:30
  to be inside of that experience.
• 14:33
  And I know a lot of people and especially season ticket holders that it is less about the
• 14:39
  it's less about the product that's on the field and the game that's being played, and it's more
• 14:44
  about spending the day with your family and friends and celebrating this team and and
• 14:49
  celebrating football in general.
• 14:52
  Oh, yeah.
• 14:52
  It's a great four hour block of FaceTime for family, clients, employees.
• 14:57
  I mean, that's that's it's what we do.
• 14:59
  It's and it's, we put on a great a great, presentation, not excluding the product on the
• 15:05
  field, but then you get to the product on the field, and that's getting better too.
• 15:09
  And in fact, it's been quite well on the field.
• 15:12
  Just haven't made the playoffs every year.
• 15:16
  No.
• 15:16
  And and, you know, there's only room for so many in that, and there are waves to this.
• 15:22
  And, obviously, you know, your part in the front office has no control over that.
• 15:27
  And to you know, the coaches and everyone doesn't have much control over it.
• 15:31
  The only people who have control of that game on the field are the players themselves.
• 15:35
  And bread putting them in the position to succeed, now that's the coach's job, but
• 15:41
  providing an atmosphere that feels like an advantage on that home field is really what
• 15:47
  your job and your team and and everyone in the stands, that's our job.
• 15:52
  Right?
• 15:53
  It's to make sure that we are that home field advantage.
• 15:55
  And I don't know very many, I don't know if there's a stadium out there.
• 15:59
  I know Seattle gets a a real good rep for having the twelfth man, but, US Bank, when it
• 16:04
  is rocking on third and fourth down, is it's deafening inside of that stadium.
• 16:10
  Oh, man.
• 16:11
  You're so right, Bubba.
• 16:12
  I've always said to myself, you know, obviously, I want us to help win a Super Bowl.
• 16:16
  And the two things I can do, put loud, loyal fans in the stadium in the stands to help give
• 16:22
  us a true home field advantage and then, of course, generate the revenue that we need to be
• 16:26
  successful.
• 16:27
  I'd like to say, look at look at the end of the day, I think I'm trying to do what I can, and
• 16:31
  it's working out for us.
• 16:33
  And, we're all pulling the rope in the same direction.
• 16:36
  Well and, obviously, you're doing your part now, selling spots on a waiting list for season
• 16:41
  tickets.
• 16:42
  You know, your job in many ways, you know, even leading up to the season now is, you know, not
• 16:48
  done, but it's not, you know, right on the forefront that we gotta make sure that we get
• 16:53
  these extra seats and suites sold out.
• 16:57
  They're already done, and in fact, they're done hopefully for decades into the future and well
• 17:03
  beyond, your retirement as well, Steve.
• 17:06
  Yeah.
• 17:06
  You got that right.
• 17:07
  When you have a seat license, I mean, that's your little piece of the stadium.
• 17:10
  And our renewal rate for season tickets is over 99.6%.
• 17:14
  So we're we're so blessed.
• 17:16
  I mean, so, I told folks, yeah, I'd like to try and get a better seat.
• 17:20
  Well, if you take a look at the 100 seats around you, there's less than one person
• 17:24
  leaving that location on a season on a yearly basis.
• 17:29
  Yeah.
• 17:29
  Those are crazy.
• 17:30
  Now you know what?
• 17:31
  We're gonna give you the point o 4%.
• 17:34
  And
• 17:34
  Well, that that's pretty much my height.
• 17:37
  Well, Steve, we'd be remiss if we didn't talk a little bit of, you know, product on the field.
• 17:44
  The draft just concluded a few weeks ago.
• 17:48
  We were talking a little bit off camera.
• 17:50
  I think we're both pretty bullish on the team coming in this year.
• 17:53
  We got, you know, another quarterback in the room, adding Kyler Murray this year.
• 17:59
  What's your thoughts on the team, going into the twenty twenty six, twenty seven season?
• 18:05
  I'm excited because what we did, we took a look around and said what what do we need to
• 18:10
  improve.
• 18:11
  And the defensive line was clearly one of those areas that we need to improve.
• 18:15
  And so you look at Caleb Banks, Dominique Orange.
• 18:18
  And right now, I wanna go on record as saying, let's call our defense the orchard because we
• 18:22
  we've got you know, everybody calls Dominique Orange the big citrus.
• 18:26
  Let's just call the defense the the orchard.
• 18:28
  I'm just starting that right now.
• 18:29
  Of course, we need another fruit or two to add to it, but but we got big stout guys up front.
• 18:34
  And when you have big guys up front, that allows your linebackers to get in and make the
• 18:38
  tackles.
• 18:39
  And and that's why we resigned Eric Wilson because he was phenomenal at that last year.
• 18:44
  We had a Jake all day in the second round from Cincinnati.
• 18:47
  Those are the kind of guys who are gonna make an impact because you've got the big boys like
• 18:51
  Banks, and then you get, Jalen Redmond from last year, Tyrone Ingram Dawkins, another big
• 18:57
  guy.
• 18:58
  Of course, we got Rodriguez, and then you had Big Citrus.
• 19:02
  So now we got all this beef up front.
• 19:04
  That's gonna let your linebackers do some work.
• 19:07
  No.
• 19:08
  And I don't think people understand how big of a guy Jake Galday is.
• 19:13
  Six four, two forty plus.
• 19:16
  He's a big dude, and he can move around.
• 19:19
  I think he played some, was playing snaps at Nickelback as well.
• 19:23
  So you talk about a guy that fits that Brian Flores mold, and it seemed like, you know, with
• 19:28
  the guys that they picked, obviously heavy on the defense this year, that B Flo had his hands
• 19:33
  all over this draft.
• 19:35
  Obviously, with Rob stepping in on, into that GM role this year, assuming you have a
• 19:41
  relationship with some of these people, and I know Rob's been around a long time, talk about
• 19:46
  what it is to mean for somebody that's always been a little bit more in the background.
• 19:50
  Obviously, he's been kind of the capologist if you for lack of a better term.
• 19:54
  Yeah.
• 19:55
  But to see someone like that that kind of gets thrust up the ladder and promoted at least for
• 20:01
  the moment into a a really star role like that, What is the feeling inside of that building
• 20:07
  seeing, you know, really one of your guys Yeah.
• 20:09
  Get to take a lot bigger role on the team and get a little bit of press out there?
• 20:14
  I think he's ready for it.
• 20:15
  As as you said, he was the best cap guy, not was, but still is the best cap guy in the
• 20:21
  league.
• 20:22
  And he's got the relationships internally, externally.
• 20:25
  He knows agents.
• 20:26
  He knows our own guys, our scouts.
• 20:29
  I already handled the draft spectacularly.
• 20:31
  I think he's gonna do a great job if, you know, we haven't named him yet, but I think it would
• 20:37
  be a great a great fit for the team because he's already done a great job for the past
• 20:41
  twenty six years.
• 20:42
  I mean, he's been around as long as I have.
• 20:43
  So he knows the people here.
• 20:46
  He knows he works with other teams, other agents to, to get players signed.
• 20:50
  So he's got relationships all over the league.
• 20:52
  I think that's a huge asset.
• 20:54
  I think it'd be a great fit.
• 20:56
  Well, in a relationship with ownership as well, which I know that they take to heart now.
• 21:00
  It's been already reported that they've hired an outside agency to help them in their search,
• 21:04
  and they don't want to you know, there's due diligence.
• 21:07
  You're talking about one of only 32 jobs inside of the league.
• 21:11
  So you wanna make sure that you have that guy and that you're not just, you know, promoting
• 21:16
  it up there.
• 21:16
  I hope Rob is putting his name in that hat to do there.
• 21:20
  I think even if he doesn't, he would still have his go back to his role in the building and to
• 21:26
  do that.
• 21:27
  But I think it's gotta be really exciting for him as well to be in that position and get to
• 21:31
  be in the room with the coaches.
• 21:33
  And not that he wasn't in, you know, in the the war room, if you will, before.
• 21:37
  But now to be the guy that gets to put his stamp on it, that had to be really gratifying
• 21:41
  for a guy that's been with an organization for a quarter of a century and finally getting a
• 21:46
  shot.
• 21:47
  And I think, honestly, one of the better drafts, not just in the NFL this year, but I
• 21:52
  think as this thing plays out, every single player that they drafted this year can be
• 21:57
  impactful this season.
• 21:59
  Even down to your, you know, sixth and seventh round picks there at the end, you know, you
• 22:04
  never know when guys on the offensive line are gonna get hurt, and you have a, you know, a a a
• 22:09
  short list on that depth chart at the center position.
• 22:12
  So there there's chances for everybody to be a contributor if not in this season, but in the
• 22:18
  near future.
• 22:19
  Oh, that's a great point.
• 22:21
  And people say we've had a quiet off season, but, actually, I think one of the the
• 22:25
  underlooked areas is bringing Brian Flores back.
• 22:29
  And then you fast forward to the draft, and we not only took best player available, we took
• 22:35
  guys that fit his scheme.
• 22:36
  And I think that's where you're gonna see it show up.
• 22:38
  It's like you're talking about guys who can contribute this year.
• 22:41
  I think these guys are gonna contribute because he handpicked these fellas to fit his scheme
• 22:48
  and do exactly what he wants.
• 22:50
  And then you talk about Jake Goulday, where he can do a little bit of everything.
• 22:53
  I mean, that's the perfect role.
• 22:55
  And and so Brian's gonna use these guys like chess pieces.
• 22:58
  I think it's gonna be phenomenal to watch them come together.
• 23:00
  I'm just so excited for the defense.
• 23:02
  And then you talk about Kyler Murray.
• 23:04
  He's been in the league a while, so he he knows he knows how to be handle himself as a
• 23:08
  professional quarterback.
• 23:10
  We've got and then we've got experienced, skill position players around him.
• 23:14
  It's gonna be an exciting year.
• 23:16
  No.
• 23:16
  I think that defense is gonna be dangerous, and and they're going to be a nightmare as this
• 23:22
  team starts to gel.
• 23:23
  I mean, we Hitman still has not announced the retirement, so you kinda maybe have an ace in
• 23:29
  the hole at some point during the season in a short phone call.
• 23:33
  And, you know, we're definitely waiting to see developments on that side, but I think you got
• 23:38
  a really great safety in Jacoby Thomas in the draft that can step in and play right now and
• 23:43
  talk about a young man that can drop the hammer.
• 23:46
  I think we got some phenomenal players, and they might not have fallen on, you know, ESPN's
• 23:51
  big board or some of the other draft analysis analyst boards, but they're judging it from a
• 23:58
  overall standpoint where it really felt like there was a there was a list that said these
• 24:03
  are the guys that fit the profile, the athletic makeup, and the intelligence level needed to
• 24:09
  play in a Brian Flores defense.
• 24:11
  And B Flo was the number one free agent on our list.
• 24:14
  Right?
• 24:15
  And we said it repeatedly at this show.
• 24:17
  Like, look.
• 24:17
  If you don't get that deal done and you don't have him back, you're in a world of hurt.
• 24:23
  So I appreciate kind of the the process of it allowing, you know, someone who they obviously
• 24:30
  have a tremendous amount of respect for to go out and to explore his options on the open
• 24:35
  market, to see and to judge his value for himself, and then to come back even more
• 24:40
  committed now, not that there was ever any, you know, bad blood, I would say, but to to allow a
• 24:45
  man to go out there and to not hire someone in that space.
• 24:50
  Right?
• 24:50
  To not go out and to say, oh, well, you're gonna go out and try your well, we're gonna go
• 24:54
  hire somebody else.
• 24:55
  I think that would have been absolutely the wrong move.
• 24:57
  And while it made everyone, you know, tread with a little trepidation for a few weeks as we
• 25:04
  were going through it, like, is he gonna get a job?
• 25:07
  You know?
• 25:07
  Once that Pittsburgh one seemed like it fell off and the Ravens obviously made a pretty
• 25:11
  quick move, those to me were like the two where once they were off the table, it was pretty
• 25:15
  evident that Brian was gonna be coming back.
• 25:18
  And, man, we're just so happy to have him.
• 25:19
  He these gonna be you know, it's gonna hurt to maybe watch him leave one day because I don't
• 25:26
  think you can do what he does as a defensive coordinator and not get that opportunity in the
• 25:31
  future, but he can also be selective.
• 25:33
  He's being paid very, very well-to-do what he does.
• 25:36
  Yeah.
• 25:36
  No doubt about that.
• 25:37
  And I hope his assistants are paying attention so they can pass that along.
• 25:41
  But right now, we've got him in the fold, and I'm just I'm excited.
• 25:45
  No.
• 25:46
  And you know what?
• 25:47
  You we touched on Kyler Murray a little bit, but I'm still pretty bullish on the young man,
• 25:51
  JJ McCarthy.
• 25:52
  I know a lot of people, you know, got on his case last year.
• 25:56
  Talking about a 22 year old kid in his first time, had no off had no season last year, had
• 26:02
  almost no off season nursing and injury and getting back.
• 26:05
  I'm really excited to see how the young man looks coming into practice.
• 26:09
  You know?
• 26:10
  Also had a baby in season and got married in the off set.
• 26:13
  That's a lot of stuff going on.
• 26:14
  I remember being 22 years old.
• 26:17
  I I was never ready for that.
• 26:18
  And I think that, you know, with a little bit of seasoning now and going through those trials
• 26:23
  and tribulations the last season, that he's gonna be a different player.
• 26:27
  And I think that's something that is a little bit under the radar as it seems like half of
• 26:31
  this fan base is completely out on the young man after a small handful of games.
• 26:36
  Yeah.
• 26:36
  A very small sample size, and but he played well.
• 26:39
  And when he was in last year at the end of the season, I mean, people are saying, oh, five
• 26:44
  game winning streak against poor competition, but that Dallas game was nice.
• 26:47
  That was a good win.
• 26:49
  I like I like his future.
• 26:51
  Yeah.
• 26:51
  Everybody likes to give the caveats all the well, but you never get any credit for losing
• 26:55
  to good teams, do you?
• 26:57
  Right on.
• 26:57
  You don't.
• 26:59
  I absolutely am looking forward to being, in US Bank this season, being around the stadium,
• 27:06
  around the team, obviously.
• 27:08
  We're really looking forward to becoming more and more a part of the experience and the fan
• 27:13
  experience.
• 27:14
  We are known for bringing in not just other creators, but giving the fans a voice on our
• 27:19
  show as well.
• 27:20
  So we would love to, maybe make some connections through you with some of your
• 27:24
  season ticket holders and your clients and to have them come on and talk about their
• 27:28
  experience and what their thoughts on the team because everybody's got opinions in sports.
• 27:33
  Right, Steve?
• 27:33
  They sure do.
• 27:34
  And I'd be happy to connect you too.
• 27:35
  I got I work with so many great people who love what we do.
• 27:38
  I'm sure I can bring you some folks.
• 27:40
  Oh, man.
• 27:41
  That would be incredible.
• 27:42
  Well, Steve, we ran your email out there.
• 27:44
  I'm gonna put it out there one more.
• 27:46
  That's reeds@vikings.nfl.net.
• 27:49
  If you guys are interested in getting on the waiting list for season tickets.
• 27:54
  Now it's a low percentage of people that leave, but they do leave.
• 27:57
  And, you know, even if you're, you know, a young person, now is the time to get on.
• 28:03
  You might not get those seats until you're my age.
• 28:05
  I just turned 40 yesterday, but you, at least you get on the list.
• 28:09
  And you never have a chance like you, Steve, if you don't knock on the door and put your name
• 28:13
  in that hat.
• 28:14
  Oh, you absolutely have to.
• 28:16
  I just keep trying and follow your dreams and have a happy birthday too.
• 28:19
  I appreciate that.
• 28:20
  Well, you know, I wish I had an in season birthday so I could celebrate it at US Bank,
• 28:26
  but, you know, maybe, my daughter has an October birthday.
• 28:30
  So maybe we'll get down there one year on her birthday for a game, and we'll get to take it
• 28:34
  all in.
• 28:35
  They're growing up huge Vikings fans themselves.
• 28:38
  So, Steve, thank you so much, for your time today.
• 28:41
  It's been a a thrilling conversation.
• 28:44
  Looking forward to spending some time with you in the stadium.
• 28:47
  And, yeah, thank you for being part of the scene and scold Vikings.
• 28:51
  Skull, Bubba.
• 28:52
  Thanks so much for having me.
• 28:57
  So the beast tech is an incredible tool no matter what age kid that you have, but just to
• 29:01
  be able to work and making sure that their hands are getting to the right position as they
• 29:06
  hit the ball.
• 29:07
  It
• 29:07
  is something you don't have
• 29:08
  to go chase balls any of those things, but this beast tag is incredible because when you get
• 29:13
  that twelve six rotation, it's real easy to tell that you're putting a good swing on that.
• 29:18
  And my kids is after I teach them what they're looking for and they can work on it on their
• 29:22
  own if they want to.
• 29:23
  So a great training tool for a team, great training tool for individuals.
• 29:27
  So I highly highly recommend you purchasing a Beast Tack so that your player can be the best
• 29:33
  that they can be on the baseball field.