Vikings Territory Breakdown Archives
In 2018, Joe Johnson, the creator, founder, and former owner of purplePTSD.com and eventually Vikingsterritory.com, put together the sites’ first podcast (with Joe Oberle and Skolt Scott) called the Three Deep podcast. Relatively short-lived, that podcast morphed into the Purple Journal podcast with Joe J., Joe O and Luke Braun, and then became the Morning Joes podcast with Johnson and Oberle on 9-11-18—before later being renamed the Vikings Territory Breakdown Podcast.
In the summer of 2021, we sadly and unexpectedly lost Joe, and the local Vikings media world lost a great voice. After a short time, the Star Tribune’s Mark Craig joined the podcast, and I (Joe O.) jumped into Joe J’s chair to interview him. Now, try as I might to replicate Joe’s spirit and love for the Purple (I can never come close to how he signed off each pod with his signature and unique “Skol?!”—though I do try), he was one of a kind and irreplaceable, and matching his first name is about the best I will ever do.
So, that’s why, five years after we lost the original Purple J.J.—the dreamer, creator and hardest-working podcaster I ever knew—we wanted to bring back that voice from the archives. We are in the doldrums of the NFL offseason, and scheduling conflicts occasionally conspire against our “big shot” talking heads, so we decided to fill in with an inspiring blast from the past.
All the old pods can still be found online, so why not unearth something to remind us how we got here? Bringing back Joe’s purple-tinged voice is a labor of love for us here, but it also is a fun way to highlight the archives for our listeners, who need a bridge to the next season (and may not want to hear yet another analysis of who is in line for the starting quarterback for the Vikings this season).
Joe Johnson’s sister, Stephanie, and her husband Mike Woldum (the producer of the VT Breakdown podcast) are the site archeologists for the project and have dug deep into the archives. This week, an episode excerpt from the Vikings Territory Breakdown archives that features Joe J. and Joe O. talking with Mike Tice about winning “ugly”, comparing Justin Jefferson to Randy Moss and Tice’s thoughts on PFF. Joe also talks of one of his most often read pieces, The great Moss v. Rice debate.
The names of the Vikings and the dates being spoken about are certainly different from today, but the spirit and love for the Purple remain. So, tune in and check it out if for no other reason than to hear Joe sign off with his patented questioning Skol. Thanks for listening, and we will be back with the regular VT Breakdown pod very soon.
