Minnesota’s new offensive guard Alex Boone gave his first interview as a Vikings to local reporters and Vikings.com today. The two-time pro-bowler talked about meeting Teddy Bridgewater, his excitement to play for head coach Mike Zimmer, and more.
Here are four of the best quotes from the day.
1) Boone wants to play old-school football
Boone, who grew up in the Cleveland suburb of Lakewood and played for Ohio State, has ties to the Midwest and a nostalgia for the knock-down, drag-out NFC North of old.
“There were a lot of things that brought me here. No. 1 was the division. Growing up, I watched this division a lot, being from Cleveland. This was the division where they really pounded each other, and they had a lot of fun doing it. To me, this is the ultimate football.”
2) He’s a big fan of the coaching staff
Boone played for the Vikings’ new offensive line coach Tony Sparano in San Francisco, and was complimentary of his new team’s entire coaching staff.
“Great, great staff. When you’re looking at it, do you want to go (someplace else) or do you want to go be with these guys? … Tony is a great guy, I love him to death, and we go back and forth all the time making fun of each other. Norv Turner, his track record speaks for itself. What else do you have to say? The guy can coach, and he does a great job with it.”
3) Boone and Bridgewater already hit it off
The lineman told reporters on a conference call this morning that playing with Teddy Bridgewater was one of the factors that brought him to Minnesota. According to the Pioneer Press, Bridgewater was one of the first players that Boone met in Minnesota, and they’ve already hugged.
“I can say that after five minutes of meeting him, I already love him and will do everything I can to protect him,” Boone was quoted as saying by the Pioneer Press, “He’s a normal guy. You’ve seen so many guys in this league that, they’re kind of prima donnas, and he doesn’t seem like that. He seems like a good guy.”
4) He buried the hatchet with Clay Matthews
While they’ve had their differences in the past, Boone told he Star Tribune that the rift between himself and the Green Bay Packers linebacker was purely an on-field rivalry.
“How did I know that question was going to come up?” Boone said with a laugh. “You know, Clay is a good guy. I talked to him after the game the last time and, you know, what happens between the lines is strictly violent. I’m a firm, full believer in that. When we’re out there between the lines, it’s full-go. To the whistle, maybe to the echo of the whistle. However it happens.”
