Wednesday Open Thread: June 21, 2017

Merry Hump Day, DN faithful!

We’re at the peak of the week, and ready for the easy downhill coast to the first official weekend of summer. I don’t pay much attention to the official start of summer, we in ND just consider it to be summer once the snow is mostly gone and you don’t have to cover plants at night anymore. By the way, our radishes and peppers are growing like crazy, many thanks to polotown and the others who have offered the excellent gardening advice this spring. This place is better than google.

Around the DN since our last open thread:

Chris recapped the 80s in the Minnesota Vikings by the Numbers series, he also looked at number 79.

Luft Krigare looks at heritage, family, and football.

Chris looks at where Linval Joseph is the little guy. I assumed it was at a gravy bar in Green Bay, surprisingly, that assumption was incorrect.

Vikings news from other sources:

From CBS Minnesota, the Vikings’ latest player to don the number 84 is embracing his opportunity. I have high hopes for this kid, he could wind up filling a role similar to the role Jim Kleinsasser filled, although NO ONE could ever fill those shoes.

ESPN looks at the Vikings’ investment to repair and restore the once-dominant running game.

From Vikings.com:

Here is a video where Randy Moss gives a breakdown of his most excellent act (FYI, Joe Buck hates fun.......and old people......and dogs) at the playoff game at Lambeau Field in 2005.

From Lindsey Young, Kevin McDermott helped bring awareness to a cause close to his heart, and David Morgan is ready to step up in year two.

Eric Smith talks about the playmakers the Vikings will be facing in 2017. I think the defense has done a magnificent job of neutralizing the heavy hitters they’ve faced, I don’t expect that to change.

Around the rest of the league:

PFT looks at which NFL team has the best 1-2 punch at WR.

Carrying on the tradition of first-round Browns’ busts, Justin Gilbert’s suspension has been lengthened by the NFL, per NFL.com.

From NFL.com, the Lions’ early off-season got even worse, as DT Khyri Thornton was slapped with a 6-game suspension by the NFL. This came shortly after the injury to the Lions’ young LT Taylor Decker, which put him out of the lineup for 4-6 months.

We come to our media selection:

Hey, I love me some Jimmy Buffet, so here’s one of my faves of his. Enjoy!

We all know the rules, but in case someone is new:

-No discussion of politics or religion
-No feeding of the trolls
-This isn't a male version of The View, so leave the gender hatred at the door
-Keep vulgar language to a minimum, using spoiler tags if you must
-No pictures that could get someone fired or in serious trouble with their employer
-If you can't disagree in a civil manner, feel free to go away
-While navigating the open thread, just assume it's sarcasm

With that, the beer light is on and the bar is open. Belly up & tie one on. Don't forget to tip your waitress, & try the hog maws