WARE, England — It hit me on Wednesday afternoon here in the English countryside. What better way to bring levity to a Minnesota Vikings team spending 10 days in Europe and recovering from a disastrous loss in Dublin than to bounce around the locker room with some questions about travel?
The team had just finished practice at the Hanbury Manor Hotel and Country Club. The players were in recovery mode. Thankfully, they, too, were up for the idea.
Nine players riffed on three separate topics, including their thoughts about baby wipes, video games and phone chargers. Here’s what they had to say:
📍 London 🇬🇧
📷: https://t.co/JACDFcFAkm pic.twitter.com/GZFxlLaLKC
— Minnesota Vikings (@Vikings) September 29, 2025
Lewis: OK, I’ve got something silly for you. Not football related.
Theo Jackson: Oh boy.
Lewis: Who is the person in this locker room you would trust the most to take you on a tour through London?
Jackson: The person I would trust the most …
Lewis: Like, you need someone with a sense of direction.
Jackson: Hmm …
Lewis: Hard question, my bad.
Jackson: Nah, but I want to get it right.
Lewis: (Pauses.)
Jackson: I would probably say C.J. Yes, that’s my pick. C.J. Ham.
Lewis: Why?
Jackson: If you talk to C.J. about travel or really anything, he’s just very organized. Everything he does, he has a plan for.
We’re moving around the locker room now. Same question, and a lot of responses. It’s frenzied. Players are drifting in and out.
Levi Drake Rodriguez: Taki Taimani is my choice.
Lewis: Really?
Rodriguez: Oh yeah. He’s good about that. He’s just situationally aware.
Lewis: That’s critical.
Rodriguez: It is. No doubt. He knows his landmarks. He knows how to read a map.
Lewis: That’s good.
Rodriguez: That is good.
Gabriel Murphy: For me, it’d have to be Bo Richter.
Lewis: That feels kind of random.
Murphy: Military guy. He probably knows maps.
Lewis: (Laughs.)
Tai Felton: Adam Thielen, for sure. He’s been around. He’s an older guy.
Byron Murphy Jr.: Definitely going 44. Josh Metellus. He’s been here before. He’s been at this hotel. I need him to show me around.
Dwight “Nudie” McGlothern: Fabian Moreau. Or, if Theo’s been out here, I’d say Theo. Josh Metellus, actually. Who else knows their way out here?
Safety Jay Ward glances over and shrugs.
Bo Richter: So, they’re just taking me around London?
Lewis: That’s correct.
Richter: Who is old? It’s got to be somebody who is old.
Lewis: (Looks around the locker room.)
Richter: I’d say Harrison Smith.
Lewis: Why’d you choose him?
Richter: Because he’s old.
10/10 trip to the London Eye!@maxtbro pic.twitter.com/WGVi1MvBSp
— Minnesota Vikings (@Vikings) October 1, 2025
Lewis: Non-football question for you.
Dallas Turner: What’s up?
Lewis: You guys go on a lot of trips.
Turner: (Nods.)
Lewis: What is one thing you brought on this trip that you wouldn’t normally bring?
Turner: PS5.
Lewis: PlayStation. I get that.
Turner: Yeah.
Lewis: What do you play?
Turner: NCAA. Madden. 2K. Whatever feels right.
Lewis: Are you good?
Turner: Definitely.
Lewis: Are you the best in here?
Turner: (Looks around.)
Lewis: You look confident.
Turner: In my opinion, I am.
Lewis: Who can compete?
Turner: Who are the people I’ve been whooping up on …
Lewis: Similar question, sure.
Turner: Jonathan Greenard gets a little bit of it. Tyrion Ingram-Dawkins gets it all the time.
Lewis: Nobody gives it to you?
Turner: Every once in a while. But that’s rare.
Lewis: Right.
Turner: Yeah.
Lewis: Do you play with Bama?
Turner: Yeah.
Lewis: Nice.
Turner: There are a lot of people who can’t beat me, for real.
We’re moving around the locker room now. Same question, loads of responses. Still frenzied.
McGlothern: I brought the game system. But I haven’t even played the game yet.
Lewis: You brought it, but haven’t played it? It’s just sitting there?
McGlothern: I’ve been trying to get out in the city. Been focused. Trying to enjoy the United Kingdom.
Lewis: What have you enjoyed?
McGlothern: In Ireland, I went to eat. I walked around. Saw everything. In London, we went downtown and to the malls.
Lewis: Was it nice?
McGlothern: I’ve never been to New York, but I can see the vibes.
Isaiah Rodgers: I brought a portable generator.
Lewis: A generator?
Rodgers: Like, the outlets you need out here. They gave us one adapter. I needed more outlets.
Lewis: You have a bunch of things that need outlets.
Rodgers: I got my game system. I got my iPhone chargers. My iPad. A lot of stuff has to charge up.
Lewis: Have you done anything cool over here?
Rodgers: I haven’t really done anything. I literally haven’t. I’m probably going to go to the golf simulator. I’m going to try golfing for the second time.
Lewis: So, I shouldn’t ask if you’re good.
Rodgers: I know nothing about it.
Murphy: I brought a charger adapter, too.
Jackson: Last year, I left the charger to the iPad I watch film on.
Lewis: So, you couldn’t watch film?
Jackson: I had to go where the coaches watch.
Rodriguez: I brought wipes and baby powder.
Lewis: Excuse me?
Rodriguez: This toilet paper, bro. I’ve got to sleep in comfort.
Lewis: Did you know that from last year?
Rodriguez: No, bro. I bring my wipes everywhere, boss.
Lewis: That’s something you do.
Rodriguez: Uh-huh.
Lewis: And do these guys in here know that?
Rodriguez: I’m not sure. But I use them.
Lewis: And you don’t care.
Rodriguez: Not at all.
Lewis: You just want to guard against …
Rodriguez: Must guard against, boss.
Second-year cornerback Dwight “Nudie” McGlothern (6) may be playing well, but he’s not the person most Vikings would choose to guide them around London. (Jeffrey Becker / Imagn Images)
Lewis: All right, one more for you.
Jackson: All ears.
Lewis: We talked about who you’d trust the most traveling around London. What would you say if I asked you who you trusted the least?
Jackson: (Points at McGlothern.)
Lewis: Nudie.
Jackson: (Laughs.)
Lewis: It’s that obvious?
Jackson: Easy.
Lewis: You didn’t hesitate.
Jackson: By far. Ask anyone.
Lewis: You think they’re all going to say Nudie.
Jackson: Look … look … I love my guy Nudie. But I can’t. I can’t have anything that has anything to do with me in his hands. I can’t do it.
More responses are necessary.
Turner: I’m gonna probably say Jonathan Greenard. You never know with him.
Lewis: That’s an upset pick.
Turner: It’s a little bit of this, a little bit of that. He wants to do a little bit of everything.
Felton: It could be Myles Price, actually.
Lewis: Under-the-radar selection.
Felton: He kinda has similarities to Nudie, but it’s not as bad.
Rodgers: Everybody’s going to say Nudie. He doesn’t have kids. He’s young. He’s just living. I don’t worry about him. I just can’t let him lead me. I have to lead him.
Murphy: Nudie. He just … I don’t know. He’s just Nudie. It speaks for itself.
Richter: It’s Nudie. I just wouldn’t trust him to take care of himself, so there’s no way I’d let him take care of me.
Rodriguez: Nudie. No doubt. He’s like that guy from “Surf’s Up.”
Murphy: Nudie. We gotta go Nudie. I just feel like when we’re in the mall or we’re anywhere, he’s the type of guy who goes off by himself and doesn’t say anything.
Lewis: Not ideal.
Murphy: Then we’re looking for him for 30 minutes. And then, when you call Nudie to come downstairs to be ready, he’ll say he’s coming. It’ll be another 30 minutes.
Lewis: He’s one of those.
Murphy: The worst.
McGlothern: I’m going to go with Byron Murphy.
Lewis: Why?
McGlothern: His phone would be dead on the trip.
Lewis: (Watching as McGlothern peers over at Jay Ward.)
McGlothern: Or I’d say Jay.
Ward: (Looks over with a confused face.)
Lewis: Most of them said it’d be you.
McGlothern: (Looks over at Jackson.)
Jackson: Hey, hey, hey …
McGlothern: Honestly, I can say me, too. My phone would be dead, too.
Lewis: (Shakes head.)
Jackson: You’re going to have fun with Nudie. You’re just not going to know what you’re doing. And that’s pretty important.
(Top photo: Kirby Lee / Imagn Images)
