Bernard Berrian gets in Twitter fight with Rep. John Kriessel

Bernard Berrian, John Kriesel: Vikings player, Vikings fan, twitter fighters.

​Bernard Berrian had only one catch yesterday for the Vikings, which means he had as many catches as he did Twitter fights with Minnesota legislators.

Berrian got into it yesterday with Republican Rep. John Kriesel. Kriesel started the fight, lobbing a pretty snappy insult Berrian's way. Berrian, already in a foul mood after the Vikings lost to the Kansas City Chiefs to drop to 0-4 on the year, responded in kind.

As other commentators are pointing out, these two should actually be friends. Kriesel is one of the most vocal supporters of the Vikings getting a new stadium somewhere in the state of Minnesota.

Apparently, Kriesel's feelings for the team are sometimes more like those of a beer-swilling fan than a be-suited lawmaker.

First, consider Kriesel's rabid Vikings fandom. The Vikings team website has a page devoted to the legislator, a Republican from Cottage Grove, in which the representative expresses his support for a new stadium and the Purple and Gold in general. "Of course, being a Vikings fan, I understand how important the team is to Minnesota," Kriesel said. "They're a huge cultural asset and we need to make sure that we keep them here for years to come."

Or, for a more visceral, typical Vikings' fan response, consider Kriesel's critique of Donovan McNabb, as he tweeted yesterday:

Ponder! Ponder! Ponder! Ponder! Ponder! Ponder! Ponder! Ponder! Ponder! Ponder! Ponder! Ponder! Ponder! Ponder! Ponder! Ponder! #Vikings

Bernard Berrian is open... but not to criticism.

​Kriesel's criticism of Berrian -- who has two catches so far all season -- was a bit more pointed, and, helpfully for Bernard, included Berrian's Twitter handle to it would come to his attention.

If you want to follow a hilarious twitter account," Kriesel wrote, "try @B_Twice (Bernard Berrian) who says that he's open a lot and should get the ball more."

Berrian was not really up for criticism yesterday. When one Vikes fan tweeted that McNabb and Berrian, who was referred to as a "bum," should both be sent to the bench, Berrian escalated things just a bit with his response:

@DreDaydaBoSS u a bitch. Talkin over the Internet. U wouldn't say a damn thing if u ever saw me.

Right. So, as you'd imagine, Kriesel's criticism just didn't sit right with the thin-skinned Berrian, who shot back pretty quickly. First, Berrian said he could prove to Kriesel that he was getting open, and should get the ball:

@johnkriesel anytime u wanna watch the film with me. Not just one game but all of them

And, if that wasn't going to work, Berrian offered another alternative:

@johnkriesel and if not sit down n shut up!!

As might be expected, a Twitter blow-up between a football -loving state legislator and an NFL wide receiver -- especially one who is always totally wide open! -- blew-up a bit among the tweeple. Eventually, an exasperated Berrian approvingly quoted another tweeter, who commented that if the Berrian-Kriesel snap-fest was making waves, it was a slow news day.

This drew the attention of Denise White, CEO of EAG Management, which handles Berrian's image. Rather than, say, call Berrian, White tweeted him with a query: "@B_Twice ummm, what kind of news?? Lol.."

Answer? The very best kind of news, Denise: Twitter fight news.

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