Meet Jonathan Kinsley of BrickWallBlitz.com, the Newest Contributor to purplePTSD.com!
Joe Johnson
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If you’ve listened to the purpleJOURNAL Podcast lately, you will have heard Jonathan Kinsley, who is the owner of BrickWallBlitz.com. He joined the show because he is from Ohio and is (for some reason) a hardcore Browns fan. He also follows the Vikings from afar (Masochist?) and is one of the best NFL analysts out there. So, we luckily were able to snag him as a regular contributor to our site and so we wanted to introduce him to you guys as he’s a really great writer and football mind and will help bring purplePTSD.com to the next level!
So, let’s chat with him to learn a bit more about what someone who is outside of the bubble that exists in Vikings fandom(/writers’ world) to see why he follows the Purple and Gold and also what he thinks about the 2017 Vikings and their chances to make it to the promised land this season!
1) You’re the owner of BrickWallBlitz.com, when did that start and tell us about the site in general (the stuff you cover, the teams you like, etc.)
I started brickwallblitz.com as a typical WordPress blog in 2014. It wasn’t until this year that I came up with the money to make it an actual site, but here we are! Since I own it, the site pretty much covers what I want to cover, as I am the only writer. I grew up a Browns fan but cover anything interesting on brickwallblitz.com. I don’t like writing the same stuff about how Tom Brady is the greatest quarterback of all time, how a guy plays like a winner because he has some “it factor,” “clutches,” or great raw stats. That’s not what I write about. Generally, I write about the events leading to the results of each play, such as how a receiver makes an unbelievable catch or how a quarterback makes an insane throw that’s dropped. You know, things the status quo doesn’t do.
2) You’ve said that the Vikings are your “band-wagon” team right now, why did you start following them?
I’ve been fascinated by the Vikings since they drafted Teddy Bridgewater. To put it better, since they hired Mike Zimmer. He’s done an amazing job turning that defense from one of the worst units in the league to arguably the best in all of football. Everyone Griffen was a guy on the defense I paid attention to a lot from that time period, as he got a lot more reps and opportunities since the first contract extension. He’s out of this world.
The Vikings front office has also done a great job building a roster that can compete for a Super Bowl healthy. Losing Sam Bradford and Dalvin Cook really hurts, but they’ve been able to get by thanks to an insane defense, a revamped and improved offensive line, and a dominant receiving duo featuring Stefon Diggs and Adam Thielen. So this team has a lot of intriguing pieces on both sides of the ball, which makes them fun to cover and root for.
3) Of all of our writers, you’re the first we’ve worked with that is a fan of another team (more so than the Vikes)… Tell us about your life as a Browns fan, some of your favorite Browns memories (if any, ha), etc.
Actually, it might be the week 17 matchup against the Falcons back in 2002! I was at that game, and the Browns were 8-7 at the time. I think they were trailing in the 4th quarter, but made a comeback, won the game, and snuck into the playoffs as a wild-card team. It was a great moment for me. Another one is the famous 2007 snow game against the Bills, of which I also attended. That was extremely sloppy and freezing, but also a lot of fun because of how ridiculous the conditions were. And winning that game made even better.
4) Let our readers know the type of content they should expect to read from you!
Not to sound cliched because a lot of writers go with this approach once they’re introduced to a new environment, but I like to write about things that try to get clicks because they’re well written, not to get clicks just to produce hot takes. We’re seeing now that audiences are gradually becoming less interested in following raw stats and more on analytics or film breakdowns thanks to the rise of social media and GIFs. As a part of that wave, I attend to bring that to Purple PTSD.
5) Who is your favorite Vikings player, why?
Everson Griffen. The man is a menace and can create pressure regardless of who you bring at him. The way he’s able to combine speed on the edge, strength, elusiveness, aggressiveness, perfect timing and hesitance has made him really fun to watch. As of this writing, he’s my Defensive Player of the Year. No defender is playing better than him.
6) As an outsider looking in… What are your genuine expectations for this team this season? Next season?
In spite of the injuries to the offense, I still expect the Vikings to win the NFC North this season. Aaron Rodgers likely won’t be back until the end of the season, and the team around him isn’t good enough to win on its own. The Bears are building a promising offense and defense but they’re not ready to compete yet. The Lions have some good pieces but they’re always in close games because of how inconsistent Matthew Stafford is, so I don’t have high hopes for them.
Next season, with Cook returning and a chance to add more weapons to the offense, the Vikings could be a Super Bowl favorite. Knowing the fan base, you guys have to be pessimistic in order to contradict any superstition you see, but this is a team that has an excellent WR1-WR2 combination, will have a great backfield, and of course that defense isn’t going anywhere next year.
7) What are your thoughts on the Keenum/Bridgewater/Bradford situation?
I like Case Keenum as a backup. He’s not a good starter, but he knows this, and always tries to give his weapons chances. That’s made him fun to watch this season, but he does limit the offense because of his accuracy and little arm strength.
If the Vikings can get Teddy healthy, great, but will his mobility be there? He’s a decent downfield passer, but not a great fit in the offense the team wants to run. That’s not to say he wasn’t a really good QB, he was, he was just helping carry an offense that was suffocating him with a terrible offensive line and a game plan that didn’t set him up for success. If he comes back, you’re going to see the rust, and who knows how long it’ll take until he’s comfortable again. If he’s healthy, you have a guy that’s excellent against pressure, and shows great accuracy into tight windows, especially in the short/intermediate areas.
Bradford lacks the mobility of Keenum/Teddy, but he’s the best fit in this offense because of how near perfect his accuracy is. He wasn’t healthy against the Bears, but was against the Saints, where his accuracy was the star of that game. He does a great job sensing pressure and can stand tall and take a hit in order to fit the ball into impossible windows. I don’t know if he’ll ever play again because of his knee injuries, but if he comes back he’ll elevate this unit.
If all 3 quarterbacks are healthy, I’d take Bradford because of how he fits the offense, but I love both Teddy and Bradford, and love Keenum as a backup.
8) How long has purplePTSD.com been your favorite site? Why? haha…
If the bribe money I’ve just received is of any indication, it’s been my favorite site since the foundation!
So we wanted to thank Jonathan for aligning with our site and wanted to remind everyone to check out his site and Twitter feed! It’s one of the more knowledgeable and entertaining feeds so if you like football (Durr) then you should definitely add him on Twitter, too, but keep checking out purplePTSD.com for more articles from Jonathan and BrickWallBlitz.com!