adam-thielen-minnesota-vikings-tribute-norm-macdonald-turd-ferguson-cleats

Adam Thielen Pays Tribute To Norm Macdonald with ‘Turd Ferguson’ Cleats on Sunday

Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Adam Thielen knows a thing or two about cleats. Even though the Vikings lost a close one to Baker Mayfield and the Cleveland Browns on Sunday, Thielen’s cleats were something to remember. He honored the late Norm Macdonald by putting the likeness of one of the SNL star’s characters on his feet.

Who can forget the iconic Celebrity Jeopardy sketch from “Saturday Night Live” that found Will Ferrell standing in for the late Alex Trebek? Norm Macdonald played a hilarious version of actor Burt Reynolds as a contestant.

Famously, Norm’s character got a huge kick out of writing “Turd Ferguson” down as his official Celebrity Jeopardy name. On Sunday, Turd Ferguson appeared once again. This time, the name was written on Adam Thielen’s gameday cleats.

Not only that, but the name appears to be in roughly the same handwriting as Norm Macdonald’s “SNL” character. And if writing “Turd Ferguson” wasn’t enough, then the artwork really sealed the deal.

According to TMZ Sports, the work was done by a celebrity shoe artist named Mache. He describes himself as “that guy who does the artwork on the shoes.” In addition to the illustrations, Mache included a few inscriptions. One read “Norm Macdonald 1959-2021.” The other featured an iconic quote from the sketch, “Yeah, that’s right. It’s a funny name.”

Jokes aside, Mache told TMZ Sports that Thielen wants to raise cancer awareness and encourage testing. Norm Macdonald died after a long fight with cancer.

Adam Thielen’s Norm Macdonald Cleats Have More In Common With ‘Jeopardy!’ Than You May Think

NFL fans likely remember the similar gesture Adam Thielen made last season. Shortly after longtime “Jeopardy!” host Alex Trebek died of pancreatic cancer, the Vikings receiver had Mache cook up a pair of cleats to honor him.

It would appear that Adam Thielen is simply a giant “Jeopardy!” fan. Maybe it’s a coincidence, but Norm Macdonald had plenty of memorable characters. Did Thielen choose “SNL” Burt Reynolds/Turd Ferguson because of his love for the iconic game show? It’s hard to know.

What we do know is the Vikings receiver donated the Trebek cleats to be auctioned off in January 2021. He did so intending to give all of the proceeds from the sale to the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network.

It only makes sense that he would do the same thing by auctioning off the Norm Macdonald cleats for charity, as well.