Now about to turn 45 on the Fourth of July, McCown is in his first season as the Vikings quarterbacks coach. He's gone from ending one campaign to trying to set up Minnesota's short- and long-term future for success with quarterbacks who were 6 (Sam Darnold), 8 (Nick Mullens), 5 (Jaren Hall) and 11 months old (J.J. McCarthy) at the time of that splashy pass to Poole.
McCown spoke to Twin Cities media members Wednesday after a voluntary Organized Team Activity practice and was asked what the reaction has been nearly 21 years later.
"It's funny, like, somebody will grab me in the airport, and they'll say, 'Welcome to Minnesota,' and they'll say, 'Hey, wait a minute.' The longer we talk, the more they think about it, and then it's not so pleasant," McCown said. "They're like, 'Wait a minute. Hold on, man.' I'm like, 'All right, yeah, you know, it happened, but for the course of my career, there's only like five good plays, and that's one of them. So, you know, let me have it.'
"It was a crazy moment back then," McCown said. "But it's cool to be here now and be part of this organization."