Kyle Sloter Throws a Little Shade at Former Vikings HC
The Minnesota Vikings 2023 preseason began Thursday night, and a handful of players stood off the page, including Ty Chandler (RB), Ivan Pace Jr. (LB), and Luiji Vilain (OLB).
Kyle Sloter Throws a Little Shade at Former Vikings HC
And from preseason lore of yesteryear, a different former Viking showed up on social media with some heat: free-agent quarterback Kyle Sloter.
Last week, the NFL on ESPN Twitter account asked commenters to name the greatest rivalry in NFL history, a tool to generate some engagement. A ‘Kyle Sloter fan page’ sarcastically retweeted Kyle Sloter vs. Mike Zimmer as the answer. Here’s the tweet.
Ordinarily, that tweet from @TeamSloter would fly under the radar, perhaps grab a few eyeballs, and life would continue.
Instead, Sloter retweeted the fan-page tweet and said it was “Trueeeee.”
So, Sloter essentially agreed with the tweeter, adding legitimacy to the former beef between Sloter and Zimmer.
Undrafted from the University of Northern Colorado, Sloter found his way to the neighboring Denver Broncos in 2017. With the Broncos, Sloter was tremendous in the preseason but was ultimately cut before the 2017 regular season started.
After that, Sloter joined the Vikings, remaining on the roster for two years. To date, Sloter has never thrown a regular season pass – in six NFL seasons – but fans absolutely insist he is the real deal. As a preseason participant, Sloter owns a 12-touchdown to 1-interception split, totally dazzling the Broncos and Vikings fanbases.
The former Viking was a backup quarterback for Minnesota in three seasons (2017, 2018, 2021). Sloter routinely played like a celestial being in preseason games, leading an unusual amount of fans to call for his promotion on the depth chart. But that never happened.
Sloter is still talked about today, though, by Vikings fans — always in a positive manner. He tends to pop up in folks’ newsfeeds around this time on the calendar, nibbling at NFL auditions or thriving in non-NFL leagues.
During the XFL’s 2022 season, Sloter found a little glory and vindication with the New Orleans Breakers. He led the club to the semifinal round of the playoffs. Named an ‘All-USFL’ quarterback, Sloter was also an MVP candidate for much of the USFL’s regular season. His Breakers lost to the Birmingham Stallions in June of 2022, one game shy of the league championship. Sloter ranked second leaguewide in 2022 via passing yards with the Breakers.
Sloter, 29, is currently a member of the XFL’s Birmingham Stallions. He played four games for the Arlington Renegades in 2023 but struggled with 1 touchdown pass and 4 interceptions.
In January, Hall of Famer cornerback Deion Sanders, who is the head coach for the NCAA’s Colorado Buffaloes, claimed Zimmer will serve as a defensive analyst on his staff this season.
Dustin Baker is a political scientist who graduated from the University of Minnesota in 2007. Subscribe to his daily YouTube Channel, VikesNow. He hosts a podcast with Bryant McKinnie, which airs every Wednesday with Raun Sawh and Sal Spice. His Vikings obsession dates back to 1996. Listed guilty pleasures: Peanut Butter Ice Cream, ‘The Sopranos,’ Basset Hounds, and The Doors (the band).
All statistics provided by Pro Football Reference / Stathead; all contractual information provided by OverTheCap.com.
You must be logged in to post a comment.