Meet the 2020 Vikings: Fun facts about your favorite players

Believe it or not, football – well, the NFL in these parts – is back.

We had no preseason in 2020 but the Minnesota Vikings’ first regular-season game – to be played Sept. 13 — is creeping up.

With that comes inundation of statistics, and maybe this year a little more getting familiar with a roster.

We scoured through the Vikings’ media guide and came up with some different and interesting facts about a number of players. While your friends are dishing out Mike Zimmer’s win totals, you can enlighten them on which player has a pilot’s license, who was nicknamed “Needle” and why one player’s middle name is Husker.

(And if you’re saying, hey, you’ve done this before. Well, yeah, we did them in 2016, 2017, 2018 and 2019. But not one fact from those editions appear in this year’s.)

Read on, enjoy and be prepared to dazzle your buddies with your inside knowledge of Vikings players.

Ameer Abdullah: Is the youngest of nine siblings (two brothers six sisters), all of whom have earned college degrees.

Dan Bailey: Obtained his pilot’s license during the 2018 offseason and now owns his own small plane. His grandfather served in the Navy and his father also had a private pilot’s license.

Chad Beebe: Father, Don, is the head coach at Aurora University and played nine seasons in the NFL with Buffalo, Carolina and Green Bay.

Kris Boyd: Family includes younger brother Demarco, a linebacker at Texas, and cousins Bobby Taylor and Curtis Brown, who played in the NFL.

Aviante Collins: Father, Bill, was inducted into the TCU Letterman’s Hall of Fame as a three-time Southwest Conference championship sprinter.

Britton Colquitt: In 2019 became the fourth NFL punter since 1991 to not record a single touchback in an entire season (min. 40 punts) and first to do it in that span with a net average of 42 yards or higher.

Austin Cutting: The first player to be drafted out of the Air Force since DE Bryan Fisher (by Buffalo) in 1999.

Cameron Dantzler: Nicknamed “Needle” as a kid, sold custom t-shirts with a needle logo following the draft to benefit NoKid Hungry, a program that provides meals and nutrition education for families in need.

Dakota Dozier: Married his Furman University crush, Haley.

Troy Dye: The only player in Oregon history to lead the team in tackles four straight seasons.

C.J. Ham: Grandfather was a Golden Gloves boxer and a Navy veteran.

Justin Jefferson: Qualified for the Punt, Pass and Kick national championship at 9 years old, placing third.

Bisi Johnson: Full name is Olabisi, a name given to him by an elder in Denver’s Nigerian community that means “to bring prosperity to your family.”

Eric Kendricks: Auctioned his original paintings and matched the purchase price for donations to food shelves during COVID-19 shutdown.

James Lynch: Middle name is Husker, in honor of dad’s football career at Nebraska.

Hercules Mata’afa: Sister Gina-Bella is a water polo player at Durham University in the UK and younger sister Lalelei is an NFL Punt, Pass and Kick national champion.

Brian O’Neill: Highest-drafted Pitt player by the Vikings since Hall of Famer Chris Doleman at No. 4 overall in 1985.

K.J. Osborn: Interested in a career as an FBI or Secret Service agent.

Riley Reiff: An outdoorsman, enjoys hunting and fishing in all four seasons.

Kyle Rudolph: Named the Vikings Community Man of the Year in 2017, 2018 and 2019.

Dru Samia: Aspires to own a gym and athlete training facility following his football career.

Tajae Sharpe: Sharpe started rapping during his freshman year at college. As a self-proclaimed music lover, he is part of the hip-hop/rap group “GMR,” short for Get Money Regardless. Sharpe and his group produce and record their own music at a studio in New Jersey, and the group released a mixtape during the 2019 offseason.

Cameron Smith: Interested in outdoors guiding as a career after football.

Irv Smith Jr.: Father played in the NFL for seven seasons with New Orleans, San Francisco and Cleveland and his unless, Ed, played from 1997-99 with Washington, Atlanta, Philadelphia and Detroit.

Adam Thielen: Avid golfer. Has taken part in Pro Am events regularly, including the American Century Championship in Lake Tahoe.

Armon Watts: Enjoys fishing in his free time.

Kenny Willekes: Attended Kirk Cousins’ football camp as a youngster.

D.J. Wonnum: Named a permanent team captain, just 1 of 3 sophomores in South Carolina football history.