Vikings Boast of Adding a New “Maestro” as Buzz Builds for Recent Pickup
Any chance you associate linebacker Kobe King with classical music? If so, then you’re following along with Kwesi Adofo-Mensah and the recent Vikings boast about the defender.
Speaking with Paul Allen in late April, Adofo-Mensah had the conversation come around to the Penn State player who was chosen in the 6th. The GM is impressed with King for a variety of reasons; some of those reasons are the player’s leadership and intelligence. Talking about him as a “maestro” proves as much.
Vikings Boast of Kobe King as a “Maestro”
Upon first glance, putting King — or any linebacker — beside Luciano Pavarotti seems like an odd fit.
After all, it’s Mr. King who invokes a popular rock and roll song to describe his game. Speaking with the Minnesota media, King describes playing with “anger” and being “vicious.” There’s a mention of having the “eye of the tiger,” a famous lyric from the band Survivor that has morphed into becoming a sports cliché that’s commonly heard at hockey games.
The GM sees classical while the player sees rock. Any sense that the two music genres can become coherent in the same player? Can the symphony and hockey arena both find expression in King’s play?
I think so.
Consider the broader quote from Adofo-Mensah: “[King] kept coming up on a couple of our simulations. So I’m like, ‘Alright, let me make sure I do a deep enough dive to make sure that if he’s there, I’m comfortable with the risk.’ And so that’s not just a film evaluation. That’s reading the background reports from our great college scouts where they talk about the infectious energy he has at practice. The ability to communicate to the defense. And you can see it on film, he’s a maestro out there, he’s a point guard telling people where to go.”
Drill down a bit to get into what the GM is trying to say.
Football intelligence shows up in different ways. Some players have no problem at all comprehending the game in a classroom setting. The Xs and Os that get tossed onto a chalkboard are no issue, getting digested mentally with little hindrance. Being able to draw on that knowledge, though, and then apply it in real time is a different scenario.
A lot of pressure gets heaped onto a person’s shoulders when there are tens of thousands of fans watching. Sprinkle in a bit of physical exhaustion and maybe some soreness. Sometimes, these things add up to function as a mental block. King doesn’t appear to have that issue.
Like a classical composer who tells the musicians where to go with the piece of music, so, too, can Kobe King direct his teammates. Doing so in real time is the key for the composer and linebacker alike.
Linebackers are sometimes thought of as just being physical thumpers — undoubtedly, a coveted ability for the position — but it’s a profession that requires strong cognitive bandwidth. King’s task involves decoding the offense in just a few moments, reading the clues as they present themselves before then communicating in an accessible manner to his teammates for how to counter what the offense appears likely to do.
Easier said than done, folks.
Brian Flores is a sophisticated mind, one of the game’s foremost tacticians who demands much from his players on an intellectual level. That’s why having smart, hard-working veterans like Harrison Smith, Byron Murphy Jr., Blake Cashman, Josh Metellus, and Andrew Van Ginkel is important. These players are perfect representatives of the Flores defensive ethos insofar as they’re smart enough to adjust to what’s occurring on the field while having the versatility to do multiple things well.
For good reason, Donovan Jackson has been generating a lot of enthusiasm. After all, Kevin O’Connell has publicly acknowledged the desire to see the rookie step into the starting lineup early on, completing the offensive line in the process.
Kobe King has also been generating some buzz for his work on the practice field. Per the GM, King should be generating some buzz for his energy, leadership, and intelligence. These abilities will allow his athleticism and physicality to shine more brightly, giving him a chance to exceed the expectations that accompany his humble draft slot by developing into an impact player.
King, for his part, isn’t shy about his ambitions. The linebacker’s desire is to “eventually show that I can be one of the best linebackers in this league.” Living up to the “Maestro” descriptor will be a key part of the mix for the rookie.
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K. Joudry is the Senior Editor for Vikings Territory and PurplePTSD. He has been covering the Vikings full time since the summer of 2021. He can be found on Twitter and Bluesky (@VikingsGazette). If you feel so inclined, subscribe to his Substack, The Vikings Gazette, for more great Vikings content.
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