Three NFL quarterbacks are the star of a new show detailing their lives during the 2023 season and one of those is the Vikings' Kirk Cousins.
Tim Rumpff is the director of the segments starring Cousins on the Netflix docuseries "Quarterback". Speaking to the WCCO Morning News with Vineeta Sawkar, he says fans get unprecedented access to these players.
"What was really refreshing working with Kirk was, from day one meeting him, he made it clear that he was an open book," says Rumpff. "That this project was important to him to be able to show the public what it really took to play the position of quarterback. Everything that he put into it. And he really opened his home to us, opened the facility to us, and we were really able to capture some amazing things."
The show also features the Chiefs' Patrick Mahomes, and the Falcons' Marcus Mariota who signed with Philadelphia in the offseason. Rumpff says it worked out really well to have three quarterbacks at different stages of their careers, with Mahomes being one of the biggest stars in all of sports, Cousins having success but never reaching the level of the game's top QBs, and Mariota who has bounced around the league and is still trying to hang on.
The show features plenty of game footage from 2023, but also takes fans into the locker rooms and training rooms as players try to deal with the physical punishment of being an NFL player.
But some of the more interesting aspects deal with life at home for some of these players, trying to balance family life while leading an NFL team at the "toughest position in all of sports". That quote is according to former QB Peyton Manning who's company Omaha Productions was behind the series.
"I spoke with Kirk's brother and his wife, and they just thanked me, NFL Films, Omaha Productions and Netflix for the way we told their story," explains Rumpff. "They thought it was fair, it captured who he is, not just as a player but as a husband and a father. And I was really happy to hear that because that was really one of my goals. That people could kind of understand him, the full human being, not just the NFL quarterback."
Rumpff also adds the entire Viking organization was great to work with on this project, with Head Coach Kevin O'Connell, team Vice President Jeff Anderson and the entire PR staff being instrumental in getting them access to games and facilities fans don't normally see.
"They heard from Kirk how important this project was for him, and they great relationship they have with him, they wanted to open their doors as well," says Rumpff.
The eight-episode docuseries "Quarterback" is currently streaming on Netflix.
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