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Spielman recalls when he hired Mike Zimmer as his coach, in 2014, and the two men sat down to discuss what they would try to build. They talked about the type of players they wanted on the field, and the type of men they wanted off of it. “And as we came up with our ideal,” Spielman says, “we found we were describing Harrison Smith.”

Back in his office the GM picks up a silver Vikings pen, the same kind he gives to every rookie who signs a contract with Minnesota. This off-season, after Smith agreed to a new five-year, $51.3 million deal (which made him the NFL’s highest paid safety), Spielman proffered a new pen—but Smith declined. Then Smith took out the same pen he’d been given four years earlier and used that. “He’s the only player ever to do that,” Spielman says. A month later, as the Vikings’ veterans drove to training camp in Mankato, Smith instead rode the bus with the rookies. That was another first for Spielman.

Two seasons ago the Vikings miked up Harrison for one game, hoping to get the kind of raw, honest audio that NFL Films often delivers. The result: “Just a lot of grunting,” says Spielman.