Purple Insider - a Minnesota Vikings and NFL podcast - What does it mean if Flores takes a lateral move? 9 Q's with Ahmad Hicks

Episode Date: January 17, 2026

Ahmad Hicks of Fox9 joins the show to discuss Brian Flores' future and what it means for Minnesota, the outlook for J.J. McCarthy, and more in this edition 9 questions. The Purple Insider podcast is brought to you by FanDuel. Also, check out our sponsor HIMS at https://hims.com/purpleinsider Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

This episode of Purple Insider is presented by Fandul. Hey, everybody, welcome to another episode of Purple Insider. Matthew Collar here and returning to the show from Fox 9 and also as his podcast must be two sides. Amad Hicks, what's going on, Amad? How are you? I'm good. I'm good. Just enjoying some cold, snowy weather here in Minnesota nonetheless, but enjoying the offseason time to kind of wind down after that biking season.

Yeah, it's the, it is the hardest probably. I've had time walking my dog from all of the years that I've lived here. Everything is just frozen and he's sliding all over the place. Has not been an ideal situation. But we're going to have some fun on the show. Usually when you come on, we do nine questions with Amad Hicks because Fox 9. It's incredibly clever. So why don't we run down those questions?

We'll get into some conversations and see where this world takes us. Here's where I want to begin, Amon, is with. the end of year press conference that happened this week with Quasi Duffel, Mentson, and Kevin O'Connell. First question for you was, how did you interpret their comments regarding J.J. McCarthy? That they want him to be better. I think they want some competition around him. I think last year, maybe they made the assessment, early assessment, that they didn't need

to have a quarterback competition heading into training camp based on what he looked like in the previous training camp in those couple of weeks. But I guess they were wrong. And so I think they realized that I think they want J.J. McCarthy to be the guy. They've seen some things from him that show he can be that guy. But I think they want competition because competition makes everybody better, including your starting quarterback. Well, I think with the competition part, it's what's hard to figure out is to what level of competition.

Are we talking about JJ's got to beat out somebody else or somebody else has got to beat out JJ? How did you take that part? I think it all depends on what they do. this offseason, what quarterbacks are available, what quarterbacks they bring in. Now, if you bring in a guy, make a trade for Joe Burrell, Lamar Jackson, obviously, you got to compete. He's maybe going to lose that. You bring in maybe a Malik Willis, something like that. All right, you still got to compete. Maybe you get the edge to whoever has the better training camp, you know. But if you

bring in another guy, say like a Marcus Mariotta, something like that, maybe it's just one of those veterans to say, hey, he's right behind you. You need to keep your foot on the gas pedal, but maybe you don't have too much to worry about. So I think it all depends on who they bring in. And where do you personally stand on that? Like, do you think, I mean, clearly, I think you and I would agree. If Joe Burrow becomes available, you trade for Joe Burrow, however, that is possible. But the guy who gets discussed on the show here probably the most and debated is like, what if Kyler Murray says, I want to play for the Minnesota Vikings? Like, that's a starting quarterback or because the drop down from Kyler to the next best guy is probably Gino Smith. And we don't even know if Mac Jones is going

to be available if San Francisco is actually going to trade him or if he would trade him to the Minnesota Vikings, right? So that's kind of the top name of if you're looking for a starter, that's the guy that you would be trying to get. Yeah. I mean, look, Kyler Murray, I've never been sold on. Just watching him play football, you know, he's a great athletic talent. But I just think when it comes to seeing the defense, seeing your receivers, progressing the field, getting the ball out of your hands, he struggles. And a lot of plays he has to make on the run. And we all know in Kevin O'Connell's offense, you need to be able to sit in that pocket and deliver the football in a timely fashion. So, but if a Joe Burrow, if they make a trade for like a Joe Burrow or something like that, you love to see

it. But my number one thing, when you make a trade for a high quality quarterback like that, where are you willing to give up on the team? Right. Because you have other pieces that you need to fill on this team. And if you pay a quarterback, $40, $50 million, well, now you're a little bit limited and you go back to the situation they were with and with with Kirk cousins. So this kind of brings us to question number two of our nine questions with the Mon Hicks. How fixable do you think the main issue with J.J. McCarthy is and that comes down to his mechanics because we know that he has athletic traits and we know he has arm strength and he can scramble for touchdowns. He can complete some deep passes on the move. But what we haven't

seen from him is play in and play out consistently, drop back, hit the back foot, let it go, throw with anticipation, touch to a spot, hit Justin Jefferson. We just saw that with no consistency whatsoever. And to me, that comes down to the basic fundamental things of playing quarterback. How far do you think he can come in that regard over the next couple of months? I think he can make drastic strides. I mean, you look at a lot of quarterbacks in this league that are now having success outside out of like Patrick Mahomes and Joe Burrell.

Not a ton of them had success in their rookie years. You talk about Josh Allen, the MVP candidate. He had to retool his entire throwing motion. Like a lot of quarterbacks go through that where they have to touch up mechanics because you can be taught one thing in high school and college and then you get to the NFL and it's like, whoa, this is a totally different B. So I think it's totally fixable.

And I think outside of mechanics, I think the biggest problem for J.J. McCarthy this season was confidence. And as a former football player, I can tell you when I've made the decision, to go from D2 to D1 and walked on to a team. It took me two years to fully feel confident in that playbook, that system, and to go out there without overthinking. And when you could go play without overthinking, then you play freely.

Then you play fast. And like you said, get to that third step, get the ball out. So I think confidence is key for J.J. McCarthy. And I think a step away from football, a step away from all the doubters, naysayers,

will do him right. And then he'll touch up on those mechanics. And I think he'll have a better third year, but actually second year playing. Yeah, the one struggle for me with the comparisons to other quarterbacks who have made the jump is that usually those quarterbacks played football. Like Josh Allen in his first two seasons by the end of his second season had thrown 900 passes, where J.J. McCarthy's only thrown 243 and dropped back to pass less than 300 times in his first two seasons. So that's my question is not it's not if, but it's can you do it in this time frame that the Vikings

need. And I think that you make a very valid point about the confidence part of it where you can project confidence and you could say, oh, yeah, yeah, I'm very, very confident. But when you have the type of pressure that was put on him, you're moving on from Sam Darnold. You got to be the guy. And then right away, you get smacked in the mouth by, I mean, Chicago was a tough game, comes out on top, but then Atlanta and then you get hurt. And then it's like the realities of the NFL take over and everybody's pointing the finger at you saying you're the reason that. they're losing, which of course is not incorrect, but it's, I think that that was a lot more than anything that J.J. McCarthy had ever faced before. Yeah, I think so too. I think it was a totally

different beast. I asked him after that final game against the Packers, I said, how are you mentally? You good? He said, as long as I'm breathing, I'm still in. He's like, I'm always in. So he always says the right things. But I ultimately think that the NFL and it's a pressure cooker. And man, these critics on social media are ruthless. And you just want to play your. best. And sometimes when you're thinking about everything else and trying to be perfect, that just hinders your place. So, you know, I think his problems that he had this year are fixable. Now, granted, like you said, give a lot of credit to that stat. He has not played a lot of football. He has not stay healthy. So one has to assume that if you can't stay healthy, we got to go out

and go find somebody else that can play quarterback for this team. So I think that's a big thing. He said that he thinks the injuries will fade, but that's too we determined. Maybe put some muscle on, but we got to see, but he has to stay on the field. You're right. Yeah, I think we agree that the best possible outcome is that that happens. But the Vikings cannot, as you mentioned, go into this year and just be, you know, hey, okay, well, I guess he'll just figure it out and Sam Howells the backup. Like, I think that that was the thing that in the press conferences,

they seem to maybe regret even more than, or at least the way that it sounded, that they regretted even more was not having another option. But then, you know, Amad, I was looking at who. who else it would have been, if not Sam Howell. And, you know, it's your Tyrod Taylor and it's your Gardner Minshu. And I just have a tough time believing that outside of Daniel Jones, maybe Mack Jones, that anyone else would have really moved the needle in a difference-making way for this year. But I guess they only need one more win to be in the playoffs.

Question number three, what would it say about the Minnesota Vikings if Brian Flores took a lateral move? they do a really good job of keeping things in-house and the turmoil that's going on. I mean, if he's leaving this place to go to D.C., I mean, okay, let me rephrase that. He could be making a family decision by doing that. Maybe his family's not comfortable in Minnesota, although he is in his job, and maybe they see D.C. is a better place to go turn around a defense and a team and then maybe get another opportunity to be a head coach or just enjoy the living scene just a little bit more. But I think if the Vikings lose him, it says a lot about their organization because this is one when the player feedback comes back and it's all A's and stuff like that everywhere.

You think like everything's good. And the way that Kevin O'Connell praises him, you're like, oh, man, he's never going anywhere. And for him to up and leave and take a lateral move, like you said, and go be a D.C. elsewhere, it makes you think like, what are they keeping behind closed doors? What don't we really know about how controversial are things behind closed doors? So I think that's something that would be kind of alarming if he did leave Minnesota to go be a DC elsewhere. It's hard to disagree with you that, you know, we as reporters are there every day all the time and we're talking to people and we're trying to, you know, always get it right and know everything we can. But we can never know everything that goes on. We can never know every single dynamic between the head coach, the DC, the front office, the defensive coordinator.

and it would certainly feel if he left to just go somewhere else, like what was the conflict that we don't know about, or the other potential things there would be the quarterback situation. And does Brian Flores believe so little in the Vikings' ability to solve this quarterback situation that he's saying, I would rather go somewhere else and kind of start anew with Jaden Daniels, then I would kind of hang around for this, where the Vikings, and it is not insane to think this, could finish last in the division next year.

I mean, if they go out and get Marcus Marietta and J.J. McCarthy loses a camp competition to him, and you have Caleb Williams, Jordan Love, and Jared Goff in the division. I mean, are you making the playoffs? I would not, I would not put that over under it any higher than about seven and a half or eight and a half. So I think that that would also have to be a consideration. But one thing that I know about Flores is that he, is not going to go up there to the podium when we ask these things and start sharing all of his true inner deep feelings. Like he is a close to the vest type of person that we don't really know how he feels even when we, you know, gave him five, six different questions at the end of the

year about this contract situation. Yeah, he's very tight lip. He's old school. He's like, you know, my business is my business and it's not out there for the rest of the world. So, you know, you tip your cap to them. And the way that they're, able to let's keep business business and go out there and win every single week or try to win every single week. The fact that his defense didn't allow a passing touchdown the last nine game or one passing touchdown the last nine games of the season. That's pretty remarkable. So hats off to him what he was able to do. And hopefully whatever's going on behind the scenes, they bury the hatchet and fix it because if Brian Flores leaves Minnesota to go be a defensive

coordinator somewhere else, you have to think that this defense is what led the team, what was the strongest unit for the team is going to struggle massively because the pieces that they have here fit Brian Flores scheme, then you're going to have to get new players to fit whoever else comes in. So the Vikings very well could finish last like you just mentioned. Yeah, and something to think about is if Durante Jones gets hired somewhere else for a defense coordinator position. Now, he's the one guy that would make the most sense as having been here for all of Flores. And he's worked with all these players. And as you mentioned, the strengths and weaknesses.

And even though, you know, maybe the cover band, not going to be as good as the original band. I think it would be pretty close with Durante Jones when you consider his background and what a big part of this he's been. But if he ends up going, the timeline here is very tough to figure out, Ahmad, because if let's say Dallas hires him tomorrow and then you're sitting there with no one else really on the staff that you can elevate and do you try to hire Rahim Morris as fast as you can, should they just say, Brian, if you don't want to be here,

we should hire somebody else or just elevate him? elevate Durante Jones. The timing of this is so complicated. The Steelers have interviewed about 47 different people. So of the Ravens. Like, when are these answers coming? I think is something that they have to be considering with this entire situation. Yeah, absolutely. I'm with you. I think they need to figure it out sooner rather than later because the longer that you wait, the worst spot that you put yourself in. And I also agree with you that if he were to walk away, Brian Flores, that is, and Durante Jones gets hired elsewhere, you better be calling Rahim Morris immediately and trying to get him in here because you know what he does defensively. And the Falcons weren't bad defensively.

He just got a bad, you know, bad straw down there with the offensive situation at the quarterback spot, having, you know, unhealthy Kirk Cousins in year one, then basically unhealthy Michael Pennings in year two. So he definitely got the short stick. But Rahim Morris, a special talent, and he can make this defense play really well as well. Okay. give me, and they were a second in blitz percentage, by the way, in the NFL. Number one was the Vikings. Number two was the Falcons, as we saw in week two, how much they went after J.J. McCarthy. I want you to give me a move because maybe you could guess that on the show here,

we've had quite a bit of discussion about the quarterback so far. So I want you to give me a move that has nothing to do with the quarterback position that you would like to see the Vikings make anything on the table. What do you want to see them do outside QB? Breeze Hall or Travis E.T.N. Some free agent running backs. I think they need speed at that position. I think they need some young, fresh legs,

and I think they also need a pass-catching threat, something that Aaron Jones was, but let's be real. Aaron Jones is a great player on and off the field, but he gets hurt every game. You need a guy who's going to be durable. You need a guy who's going to go out there and can get you 100 yards with ease

and also contribute 50 yards in the passing game to kind of help J.J. McCarthy out. So a briefs hall, a Travis E.TN, big home run hitters. I would love to see them make a splash at the running back position to kind of sure up, you know, J.J. McCarthy and all the weapons around him. So here's why I like Travis E.T.N. Is one of the struggles the Vikings have had the last couple of years is they've had to use C.J. Ham as their pass blocking running back because, well, Aaron Jones gives 110 percent,

not exactly the biggest guy back there. And you don't want him taking more brutality than he are. takes and injuries racking up over pass protection. Jordan Mason is incompetent when it comes to pass protection. Cannot do it. Like literally the worst running back this year statistically in the entire NFL in past protection. Travis ETN, top five in PFF grade pass blocking.

And I think it was very helpful for Jacksonville to have that. So he's on my radar. Breece Hall to me is a star player who's just been, what do you even do if you played for the New York Jets? Right. Like, I mean, just, yeah, go be the entire offense. Breece Hall. The other team's not afraid in the slightest of your passing game. I think that for him, there's a, and I don't mean to this level, but a Sequin Barclay Jets or Giants comparison to where Barclay goes to Philly and then breaks out when he has actual

run blocking and a good offense under Callen Moore last year. I could see that for Breece Hall. But I also think that probably 20 other teams could see that and maybe would be. interested in Brees Hall as well. Yeah, absolutely. I mean, look, he's a special talent. So is Trevor E.T.N. Travis E.T.N. But that's the thing, though, like guys like that are going to be coveted, but how important is that? Like you just said, with E.T.M and his past blocking skills and his capability there, you need someone who can do that with a young quarterback. So he can have that confidence in the pocket. And if the Vikings want to take that next step, you've got to be able to compete at that

position because you look around this division. You look at the, you look at the, the Bears. They got Manungai and DJ Swift. Great combination. Then you look at the lions in Montgomery and Jemir Gibbs. Then you look at Josh Jacobs and Wilson in Green Bay. It's like you need that one, two punch, and you need those home run hitters. And the Vikings lack that. So they got to go out and get it. And I will hope that they don't draft Jeremiah Love and the draft because they got so many other holes to fill. Go get you a proven guy who's shown he can pass block like you mentioned. And then you know, your offense is cruising. Yeah. And I think where they draft now, Jeremiah Love is probably taken a little bit higher, just considering his pedigree.

And I don't love the idea, love the idea of drafting a running back in the first round versus somebody who has a sample size and is proven in the NFL. But, you know, both Hall and ETIN, just the examples you're using are guys in their prime. They're not like 32 years old or something. But I think an upgrade there and just one more stat to throw at you, the Vikings had a very high success rate, but did not have a very high. in fact, one of the worst explosive run rate. So if they can continue to build on what they started with,

maybe a little better run scheme this year and the offensive line, if it's healthy, I think can run block, add that explosive breakaway nature and you've got something. Let me switch back to the quarterback. Nine questions here. This one is number five. If McCarthy is not the guy, I didn't put you on the spot last time.

So I need to put you on the spot now. I want you to give me an available quarterback who, you could see guiding the Vikings to the playoffs. So if they got this guy, if McCarthy, if they just, he comes back to minicamp, OTAs, nothing's changed. They're like, all right, we need somebody else. This guy is the one who can at least become the next case Keenum, the next Sam Darnold, the next Jeff George,

the next, you know, whatever other quarterback has done it for the Vikings through their history. Gus Farrat. Oh, what a list right there. that you just named. Look, when I looked at the free agent quarterbacks earlier, when you sent me these questions, it was like, all right, you kind of like just process of elimination for quite a few of them, like Aaron Rogers, older, Daniel Jones coming off the injury.

Malik Willis is one. I feel like that's a low hanging fruit. That's an easy one. But my thing is, he has had a tremendous amount of success being the backup quarterback coming in, you know, filling in and leading that team. But I don't know if his skill set flourishes in a Kevin O'Connell all. offense. You know what I'm saying? And so I just think it's not a flashy name. Don't know if he'll be available like you mentioned earlier, but I think of Mack Jones. I think this guy could be successful

if given the type of playmakers that they have here, a good offensive line, a good running game, and a good defense. You're talking about a guy who won a national championship was a Heisman contender in college, then got drafted to a horrible situation with the New England Patriots and really didn't have a fair shake. And then, you know, went to San Francisco, kind of resurrected his career, like Sam Darnold did. So I think if you can get a quarterback that's like you mentioned, get to that last step, balls out, you know where you're going, you can process a defense. I think a Mac Jones would be completely serviceable.

I think he stays healthy. He's a competitor. And I think he just has that grit, that dog in them, you know, that you can go out there and go get a win with. So Mac Jones would kind of be my sleeper, you know, coming from Alabama and New England and the San Francisco 49ers. I think he would be a plug and play guy here in Minnesota. So the Mac Jones thing has its plus.

and minuses. I mean, number one is, is Mac Jones willing to push the ball down the field into tight windows like Kevin O'Connell wants? He doesn't have the armed talent that we saw from Sam Darnold, but there is a little bit about their journeys that is similar, which is, as you mentioned, Bill Belichick started dating college kids when Mac Jones got drafted. And he named Matt Patricia an offensive coordinator who is not an offensive coordinator. Just, I mean, like losing the, the fastball there. And he still got them to the playoffs. But then they made a lot of bad roster moves. That thing falls apart completely. He goes to the Jaguars who were in complete pair. Got about that. Yep. Yep. And I wouldn't say that he played well, but he certainly didn't like, you know,

I mean, he didn't crash and burn. It wasn't like he, you know, it was horrific with them. It just was not good. kind of like Carolina and Sam Darnold, and then goes to quarterback rehab in San Francisco and wins five out of his eight, uh, it was a five out of his eight starts. Was he five and three? Yeah, something like that.

He won a majority of his starts. Yeah. Right. So they wouldn't be in the position in the playoffs, if not for Mack Jones. The only thing is that Kyle Shanahan had him getting the ball out of his hands very quickly, which is not always a Kevin O'Connell staple.

But this is a guy who threw for 400 yards against the Minnesota Vikings on on Thanksgiving, 2022. So what I like about the Mac Jones idea is I think he could be Kirk Cousins 2.0 for them in this offense. But I also think that if J.J. McCarthy takes the next step, he beats him out. Like if he really truly makes the next step, he's got the physical tools to be the starter. So I like that idea and I do think it's possible if, you know, their defense is still elite that Mac Jones could get them to the playoffs. All right. Next question here on a one to 10 scale. How sold are you on Caleb Williams being the future of the NFC North?

That's a good question, Matt. The future. Talent-wise, man, is a 10. Just progression-wise, getting the ball out like we keep talking about here. I'm not exactly sold there. But I'll say a seven. I'll say a seven and a half because of his offensive coordinator and his head coach, Ben Johnson. Like I think we all saw how important a good creative offensive coach is. And we saw what lingering effects it have for the Detroit Lions. Because I don't think a lot of people get like, you shouldn't just run the ball to run the ball to say you're running. Like you should always have a setup. Like every play that you call has a tag to it.

Like, all right, we're running this in the first quarter. We're going to have this same look in the third quarter and we're going deep on the next one. Like you have to be very strategic in how you call plays and stuff. So I'm confident in the fact that he's. he has been Johnson. And I think as long as he has been Johnson and he has a ton of weapons around him and Colston Loveland and Luther Burden and Romo Dunzee, I don't think he can fail. And so I have to say a seven and a half eight, like this was his first year with Ben Johnson and they're on the cusp of going to the NFC championship. And he still didn't have that grade of a year.

So it's hard to pick up a playbook in year one, especially a Ben Johnson playbook. So I think the sky is the limit for him, especially with his athleticism. Yeah. And the athletic part of it, when you talk about the percentage chance that he can improve on just his throw to throw from the pocket, because if there's one thing that is a reason why they've gotten behind in a lot of these games and had to come back, it's inconsistent accuracy from the pocket. And then it's, oh, when you have to go play hero and do magic stuff, he's been able to go play hero and do magic stuff, especially, you know, teams, if they're not putting a pressure on him late in the game, good luck, right?

We've seen the Vikings who do put pressure on him have to, chase him all over the place like he's Michael Vic back there. But, you know, I think what would make him truly scary is the Josh Allen jump that we're talking about. Everyone's discussing it for J.J. McCarthy. But this is a guy who has athletic prowess that is similar to that. And if he works on mechanics more, he works on consistency, then they have not only weapons, young weapons, on rookie contracts. They can continue to spend around him. Like, yeah, that is a scary proposition. I think I would probably go even a little higher. And, you know, I know that the comment section doesn't like this.

But, I mean, I might go like eight and a half, nine. I mean, because the biggest thing for me, Amad is it's, it's the clear areas where he got better under Ben Johnson. The cadence, the operation of the offense. And the biggest one to me was not taking sacks. That he took that, like, I was very bad in this area and made huge improvements. And when I see a guy make that big of a jump in his worst area, you think, The sky is probably the limit for him. Yeah, yeah, absolutely.

He's uber talented. I mean, like you said, like we talked about with J.J. McCarthy, the mechanics can be fixed, especially with your second year in the system, you having a full offseason and you say, go back, evaluate tape, be like, oh, I miss these easy throws. I miss these easy reads.

If I just point my foot in the right direction, this is a completion. You also got to take into account. You got some young wide receivers maybe don't know the playbook as well as they should, which led to one of his interceptions last week with Luther Burton running the wrong route and whatnot. So I think he can get that.

All his accuracy issues, everything that he struggles with, I think is correctable for him. And I think he could be an MVP type candidate for the next 10 years. Which is great for the Minnesota Vikings to hear. Personally, you know, in our seat, I think we like something like that because it creates a rivalry like they had with Aaron Rogers for so long.

But I, I don't know if there's a different interpretation when it's somebody who was supposed to be this the entire time and then they start to become that and his leadership element. That's something I did not think he was going to become the leader that he's become of that franchise so quickly based on what we saw last year where it seemed like he didn't want anything to do with that. But here we are. The seventh question here on nine questions with Ahmad Hicks. what do you think would be the best story of a team reaching the Super Bowl that is remaining in the playoffs? San Francisco 49ers. You look at what they did this past offseason.

They traded away everybody, released everybody. You just thought, wow, this is a rebuilding year. Can't believe that. Like, after all the money, they sunk in to their roster and a lot of positions and that they just let guys go. I was thinking like, this is going to be a total rebuild year for the San Francisco 49ers. Yet here they are after. Rock Purdy missed a significant chunk of the season. You lose a player like Fred Warner.

And yet here you are knocking on the door to go back to the NFC championship. That speaks volumes about Kyle Shanahan and what he's able to do offensively. You talk about quarterback gurus and quarterback whispers. I know everyone calls KOC that, but I really think Kyle Shanahan is that. I mean, talk about what he's been able to do there since he's been there. And he's done nothing but win. And it's like, you know they're giving the ball to Christian McCaffrey. yet he comes up with so many creative ways to get him to football and be successful.

So I think their story, what they were able to overcome, persevere through even the offseason that they had, not having really any of your top receivers to start the year, like Ricky Pearsall getting shot, then you got Brandon IU, you know, no show and whatnot for the remainder of the year. Like I think if they make it to the Super Bowl, that's nothing short of remarkable for them. You just casually threw in Ricky Pearsall getting shot.

shot, but that did happen, which is crazy. Think about that he's, you know, come back from that, but he was out last week and Joanne Jennings steps up and DeMarcus Robinson, like, Demarcus Robinson? Where is he? That guy been, you know, for a couple years. And he's stepping up. Also, the redemption arc of Robert Sala, who was such a great coach for them defensively before he goes to that tire fire of an organization in New York. And then he gets fired after losing to the And then it just only gets worse, actually, after that. So he was holding them up. And he's done an amazing job there.

Hard to disagree. I would toss out, though. Sam Darnold is a guy whose team gave up on him. And if he goes to the Super Bowl after his own team, let him go with a different franchise, that's a pretty good story outside of here. And unfortunately, again, for Vikings fans, probably the next best story on the list is the Chicago Bears, a team that has struck. struggled for literally ever to find their quarterback and then finally did.

So it is like this, this round is not for Vikings fans. You have Bo Nix who they didn't draft. You have Sam Donald who they let go. You have the Chicago Bears hosting a playoff game. And you have Drake May who the Vikings clearly wanted and did not get their hands on. And, but hey, you got to feel good for DeNeal Hunter who's playing for the Texans.

Question number eight. and Eric Hendricks with San Francisco. I want you to give me the three most interesting NFL teams this offseason that are not the Minnesota Vikings, who's your three most fascinating. You got to start with the New York Chats. I mean, what they have with Woody Johnson as the owner and some of the reports that have came out there, what are they going to do? I mean, I feel like Dante Moore went back to school because he knew he didn't want to be drafted by that organization.

So I think what they do this offseason with Aaron Glenn and, this roster and how they decide to structure who they bring in as a free agent quarterback, I think is going to be really big because I think it really gives them an opportunity to not draft an inexperienced quarterback that's not ready for the NFL. Now you get a chance to really build within, you get a chance to build up front, which is where it starts, because I think we've all seen you draft young quarterbacks, you don't have an offensive line for them, they're not going to be successful. So I think that that's a really good situation to monitor in New York. second team of Cincinnati.

This is a team that has all the talent offensively, but the way that Joe Burrell was speaking in those press conferences towards the end of the year, it kind of just makes you scratch your head, like, all right, are you going to get some guys to protect him, or are you going to need to trade him away and do a complete rebuild?

And then you risk losing T. Higgins and Jamar Chase along that. So I think that's an interesting situation. And I think the last situation is the Washington commanders. I think this was the team, like you said, had a ton of success last year. upset the Detroit Lions in the playoffs and everyone thought this was going to be the year that they keep it rolling, but Jane Daniels had that sophomore slump. He couldn't stay healthy this year. What are they going to do with their defensive coordinator and things like that? You know,

they're building a new stadium in years to come. So now it was the time for them to really make a good footprint and start to build a foundation of what's to come. So I think those are three teams that you kind of have your eye on this offseason to see what are they going to do? What direction are they're going to head in and, you know, something to monitor. Certainly the Bengals were on my list. I would toss out the Baltimore Ravens for this because they really need Lamar Jackson to rework his contract. He has, I think he's got something like a $74 million cap hit for next year.

You can't go into next year with that. Like you have to figure out a way. And the last negotiation with Lamar Jackson got very ugly. And I think that it was never really truly repaired between him and the organization and John Harbaugh that started tumbling toward John Harbaugh not being their coach anymore. So how are they going to manage that? I love the commanders one. That team last year was the all in the offseason team.

We're going to make some big moves, but it did not come to fruition. And they had one of the worst defenses in the NFL. Who's Pittsburgh going to have as their coach? I think is really interesting. And the number one thing might be if there's only one first round quarterback, how do all these teams who need quarterbacks fill their quarterback situations. So you could probably make a list that's 15 teams long for that question. But that might have to be a different podcast because we're moving on to question number

nine, which is who Ahmad is your Super Bowl pick? I'm a little biased in this, Matt. I'm from St. Louis. The Rams were there. They won a Super Bowl while I was there. They were in another Super Bowl, lost to the Patriots. but I've been a fan ever since and I can't turn off my fandom for them. Even though I'm in Minnesota, no one really knows about my love for them because I try to stay neutral.

I try not to be biased. But when it comes to rooting for them in the playoffs, I'm all in, Rams up. I think Matthew Stafford knows he needs a second Super Bowl to get his gold jacket. And I think, you know, he's at the end of his career and, you know, he's done a lot of talented things. They have a great defense right now. The way they were able to replace Aaron Donald and just keep on rolling. and whatnot. I think this is going to be a great story for him. And so I'm rolling with the Rams.

They got a big game this weekend in Chicago, cold weather game. And then I think, you know, the 49ers are going to win. So then they got to go to Santa Clara and beat them. And we all know how hard that's been for Sean McVeigh. I think they only have two victories over the 49ers in the last seven or eight years. Like it's been tough sledding against them. So what a storybook that would be, though, if he can beat the Bears on the road in a cold weather game, where people say he doesn't have a lot of success, then go beat the 49ers in their home stadium, and then have the Super Bowl there two weeks later.

So I'm rolling with the Rams. That's my pick, crossing my fingers, they get the job done. And nine, we trust. Interesting. So right now on Fandul, the Rams are the second highest odds to win the Super Bowl at plus 320. And I have to ask you, though,

about these last few games for them, where it just has not looked like the rest of the season. It almost feels like after that loss to Seattle, that something broke in them. They played so poorly against the Atlanta Falcons and then against Carolina, which is a rising team for sure, but Carolina was nowhere close in the regular season to the Los Angeles Rams. And the Rams threw away a game against them previously and then almost blew it in Carolina.

I mean, are they just not the same level of confidence? Is there something different there? Or is this just, hey, you run into bumps on the way no matter what? I think it's just they run into bumps no matter what. I think towards the end of the season for those some teams like them, you're playing playoff games essentially starting in a week 14 because you're playing for seedings. Other teams are planning to get into playoffs. So teams where maybe in the middle of the season where they give up a halftime,

they're like, whatever, we got nine games left. That's not the case towards the end of the year. So I think if anything, it battle tested them and let them know how to win those close games. It let them know that they can't be one dimensional and win, just throwing a ball to pukkah, like you got to have somebody else. And so, look, I'm not mad with the way they won down the stretch. I think it's good for them. I think close games are good because you're not going to be in many blowouts in the playoffs,

you know, unless the other team just loses a quarterback and their backup quarterback and they're forced to run the ball every play like San Francisco had to do a couple of years ago. So I think, if anything, it's helped them, you know, and help them get ready for the playoffs because we all know it won't be easy, taking on Chicago or San Francisco or Seattle, you know, for a third time. but I got my faith in Matt Stafford. He's a Hall of Famer. He's phenomenal elite quarterback.

And I think he can get the job done and go get Super Bowl number two. Let me tack on one more to this because I didn't know that you had retained the fandom from St. Louis. I can't imagine what that was like with the greatest show on turf there and how much fun that would have been for everybody in St. Louis. I mean, it was fun for me watching it from Buffalo, New York. And then got to do a story with Kurt Warner earlier this year, which was really cool to get to know him just a little. bit there. So, I mean, that's one of the most fun teams of all time. But you stayed with them when they left. See, when I was in Buffalo, it was unclear like what was going to happen with the future of the franchise. When they got Josh, it became much more clear. But for a minute there, it was like,

are they going to move this team to Los Angeles? And I promise you, I would not have rooted for the Los Angeles bills. Like, how did you stay with that? Because I would have, I think I would have bailed. Okay. See, look, this is my thing. Like, where do I bail to? You know what I'm saying? Like it's hard to just pick a new team and then be that diehard fan and just like, ah, yeah, I'm really into it. And for my thing is, like you said, the greatest on turf. That was my first year ever watching the NFL.

Like, so what a first year to watch football. They go on to win the Super Bowl. Then a bad next year. Then the next year they go to the Super Bowl. So I was heavily invested. And then after those three years, I mean, from what, 2002 to whatever, they were horrible. But yet I watched every game. I went to so many home games.

And it was like, I left St. Louis to get a better job. Like, and look, I know how it looked. They did lie to the city. They manipulated us. They stole money. Stan Cronky did what he had to do. But it's a business move. That's business.

It didn't affect me whatsoever. Like, there were games I was turning down to go to and just because I wanted to watch at home. So my thing is, I can't just stop rooting for these guys that I've rooted for for 20 years and go pick a new favorite team. I know a lot of people in St. Louis pivoted towards the Kansas City Chiefs. I couldn't do that. know what I'm saying? I felt like I rooted against them for so long and I had so much invested

in the Rams. I had to stick with them. And look, I'm in Minnesota now. I'm not in St. Louis. So I moved too. So it's like things happen. Life happens. But I'm still a diehard Rams fan. Fair enough. I would have held a grudge for sure. And I don't think I ever would have watched another game. But yeah, I respect you for it. Well, we'll see how that ends up playing out. I mean, the Rams have as good of a chance as anybody. They are my Super Bowl pick to face the bills in Super Bowl. And I usually get them wrong, but, you know, I'm actually feeling fairly good about this one going into the weekend. So Amad Hicks must be Two Sides podcast with you and Michael Pruitt, former Minnesota Viking, and of course, your work there in the sports department of Fox

9. Great to get together with you, man. We will absolutely do it again sometime soon. Looking forward to it. Always a pleasure to join you on this podcast. And, you know, thanks for everybody tuning in. Thanks for all the kind comments that I always see after I join. And looking forward to the next time. All right. Football. Football.