Vikes’ Turner: Late Jackson ‘watching over me’

Kevin Seifert, ESPN Staff WriterJul 25, 2024, 06:54 PM ET
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EAGAN, Minn. — Dallas Turner suddenly stopped Thursday as he walked onto the Minnesota Vikings‘ practice field. The rookie linebacker then turned and kneeled at one of the memorials the team has set up for Khyree Jackson, a fourth-round pick who was killed in a car accident earlier this month.

Turner, who played two seasons with Jackson at Alabama before the pair were reunited in the Vikings’ 2024 draft class, spent more than a minute in solitude before rising and joining his teammates.

Speaking to reporters for the first time since Jackson’s death, Turner said: “I talk to him all the time … and get the chills every single time I talk to him. So, I know he’s watching over me.”

Before practice today, Vikings rookie LB Dallas Turner kneeled at one of the memorials the team has for Khyree Jackson. Stayed there for about a minute. He’ll attend Jackson’s funeral tomorrow, he said. pic.twitter.com/ZdB0eCSmt3

— Kevin Seifert (@SeifertESPN) July 25, 2024

Turner had the most personal history with Jackson among Vikings players, coaches and staff. He has placed Jackson’s nameplate above his own in the Vikings locker room — “As long as I’m alive,” he said, “I’ll rep his name.” — and will attend Jackson’s funeral on Friday along with a contingent of team executives and coaches.

Jackson transferred to Alabama in 2021, coinciding with Turner’s freshman year there, and their lockers were a few feet apart. They played together in 2022 as well before Jackson transferred to Oregon for the 2023 season.

“So that was really a dude that I saw every single day,” Turner said, “and really [I’ve seen] him grow from Alabama to when he went to Oregon. He went through his trials and tribulations over there. We ended up at the same place once again. So, I kind of felt like that meant something, and that was my dude every single day after practice [this spring]. He was around with me at the hotel, hanging out with each other in the hotel every day and just talking crap and stuff like that with each other, just having fun.

“That was a dude that really helped me grow as a person. He helped me realize who I was, and he helped me build my confidence off the field and on the field in a way. But he [was] definitely a very impactful person.”

Others who are scheduled to attend Friday’s memorial include general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah, coach Kevin O’Connell, defensive coordinator Brian Flores, special teams coordinator Matt Daniels and pass game specialist/defensive backs coach Daronte Jones. The Vikings will host a private memorial for Jackson later this summer in Minnesota.