Vikings Nopedy Nopes: Asante Samuel Jr., Packers WR1, Disenfranchised Fans
We’re in the business on weekends of tracking Minnesota Vikings-themed “nopedy nopes” — content out in plain view that is wrong, wacky, or disadvantageous to some party.
Here are the week’s nopedy nopes regarding the Vikings, items we’re not buying, are outlandish, or are raw deals.
All past nopey nopes can be found here.
Here’s the batch from May 12th to May 18th.
The Nopedy Nope: The Vikings were waiting until after the NFL draft to sign cornerback Asante Samuel Jr.
Some chirped about wild rumors that the Vikings would sign Asante Samuel Jr. from free agency after the draft. We’re now three and a half weeks removed from the event.
As it turns out, Samuel Jr. needed surgery in April and won’t sign anywhere until July, when teams know his prognosis.
ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler tweeted this week, “Asante Samuel Jr., one of the top free agent corners in this year’s class, is waiting to sign with a new team after undergoing neck surgery in April, per sources. Samuel, who visited the Saints today, has a check-up in early July, after which he will reconvene with several interested teams. Samuel plans to return to the field for the 2025 season.”
More on Samuel Jr. from ESPN: “Samuel, who visited the New Orleans Saints on Monday, has a check-up in early July, after which he will convene with several interested teams. He plans to return to the field for the 2025 season.”
“At the end of the season, Samuel described the injury as a stinger in both shoulders but also a condition he has been dealing with since he was born. He declined to go into specifics but said he wasn’t concerned that it would affect his career moving forward.”
There’s still a chance that Samuel Jr. will turn purple for the 2025 campaign, but the after-the-draft rumor wasn’t immediately true.
Verdict: Nopey Nope.
The Nopedy Nope: Jayden Reed needed assurances from the Packers that he was still the WR1.
ESPN’s Adam Schefter tweeted Monday, “Packers GM Brian Guteksunst met last week with Jayden Reed’s agent Drew Rosenahus to clarify the wide receiver’s status in Green Bay after the team drafted Matthew Golden and Savion Williams. The team said it will not affect Reed’s status as its top receiver, per source.”
The Packers targeted Reed 75 times in 2024. Primary wide receivers receive target loads between 130 and 180. If Reed is a true WR1 in the NFL, it’s news to most.
Needing to clarify with Green Bay that the draft picks of Golden and Williams won’t affect his top WR status is bizarre because he’s yet to even remotely approach WR1 status.
Verdict: Nopey Nope.
The Nopedy Nope: Vikings fans based in or near Cleveland and Pittsburgh were screwed by the team’s decision to play in Dublin and London this season.
Pro Football Talk‘s Mike Florio believes the Vikings will gain an advantage by playing back-to-back games overseas.
He explained, “The Vikings’ short-straw road trip to Europe for back-to-back games against the Steelers in Ireland and the Browns in London comes with a competitive advantage. Minnesota will have two fewer traditional road games than they would have had in 2025. Although the Vikings’ schedule will be disrupted by playing two games on consecutive Sundays on foreign soil, they will enter truly hostile territory two fewer times than the rest of the division, and most of the conference.”
“And while it won’t matter if the Vikings lose both games, they’re getting an enhanced opportunity to win by not having the play in Pittsburgh or Cleveland. Especially if either or both of those games otherwise would have been scheduled for later in the season, when weather could be a factor.”
Minnesota actually welcomed the arrangement, coordinating it with the league’s schedule makers.
Florio concluded, “When it’s time to convert the final standings into a seven-team playoff tree, the Vikings could have an edge. It won’t matter if they aren’t generally ‘good’ in 2025.”
“If they’re good enough to compete for a postseason berth, the two games on the other side of the Atlantic Ocean could be the difference between winning the division or finishing second — or between making the playoffs or missing out.”
It’s true that Minnesota will subtract hostile crowds from Steelers and Browns fans in Pittsburgh and Cleveland. That part is sweet.
However, fans living in the Rust Belt won’t be able to affordably see the Vikings in their neck of the woods until 2033. And the last time Minnesota played in Cleveland, for example, was 2009 — a soon-to-be 24-year gap.
If folks in Cleveland and Pittsburgh had planned to see the Vikings in person this year, indeed, they got a little screwed. It costs about 12 times as much for a Clevelander to see the Vikings in London instead of Cleveland.
Verdict: Nopey Nope for their seamless attendance.
Vikings Named a Loser of the Week
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