Bernie Beaudry never saw them coming.
The “them” here is the Minnesota Vikings, who stampeded onto U.S. Bank Field on Sunday just as Beaudry, an audio technician for FOX Sports, ran across the entrance tunnel. The result was a massive collision that sent Beaudry flying and quickly went viral.
After the game, The Pioneer Press’ Brian Murphy caught up with Beaudry, who broke his glasses and suffered a bloodied nose but otherwise was unharmed.
“It was the stupidest thing (I’ve done) in 20 years doing this job,” Beaudry told The Pioneer Press. “I only saw the smoke. I didn’t see anybody coming, and then, boom!”
The 62-year-old Minnesota native said he realized he was out of position and scrambled to the Arizona Cardinals’ sideline, unaware that the Vikings players were exiting the tunnel. Beaudry apparently caught the Vikes off guard, too.
“I was really surprised somebody was there,” defensive tackle Linval Joseph, who laid the biggest hit on Beaudry, told The Pioneer Press. “I run out of the tunnel plenty of times and I’ve never seen anybody run across before. I’m glad he’s OK. Tell him I’m sorry.”
Things are looking up for Beaudry, though. Minnesota plans to present him with an autographed picture of the incident before its next home game against the Dallas Cowboys on Dec. 1, and it appears he’s also in line for a new pair of glasses.
The Vikings beat the Cardinals 30-24 to snap a four-game losing streak, so Sunday had a happy ending for both Beaudry and the team he was covering.
