And The Award For Most Awkward Twitter Beef Goes To…

Bernard Berrian seems to have really endeared himself to Minnesota Vikings fans recently. And by “fans,” I mean the whole Vikings organization and the entire greater Minneapolis-St. Paul metropolitan area, too. In case you aren’t in tune with all things Bernard Berrian, the man has made quite a name for himself lately. Unfortunately for poor Bernard, it hasn’t been for anything he has accomplished on the field.

An already bizarre start to his 2011 campaign was capped off by Berrian missing two team meetings on Saturday, which led to him being a healthy inactive for Sunday’s game against the Arizona Cardinals. The good news you ask? At least the one-game deactivation wasn’t for telling a local politician and disabled veteran who lost both of his legs in a roadside IED explosion while serving in Iraq to “sit down and shut up” via Twitter. Oh, Bernard…

Apparently social media in the hands of Berrian is like an armed nuclear warhead in the hands of Kim Jong-il, or a new cornball “Rom-Com” script in the hands of Ryan Reynolds. It’s just not a good idea. After mustering up a mere two catches for 37 yards through the first four games of the season, Berrian’s frustration boiled over after receiving many negative tweets criticizing his play.

After a nasty back and forth exchange with a few fans on Twitter, things got even uglier when Rep. John Kriesel decided to chime in with his thoughts on @B_Twice (Berrian’s Twitter handle):

If you want to follow a hilarious twitter account, try @B_Twice who says that he’s open a lot and should get the ball more

Berrian then nominated himself for the Most Awkward Twitter Beef of All-Time Award when he replied:

@johnkriesel Anytime u wanna watch the film with me. Not just one game but all of them. And if not sit down n shut up!!

Now, in Berrian’s defense, he probably had no idea who Kriesel was at the time, let alone the fact that Kriesel is a disabled war hero with prosthetic legs. But still, if you’re a relatively famous football player living in a city that’s on the verge of building a new football stadium, you might want to know the name of the local politician who has been the most outspoken proponent of said stadium.

On Monday, Vikings head coach Leslie Frazier gave Berrian a slight vote of confidence, stating that he doesn’t think Berrian will be a problem going forward and hopes the receiver can play at a high level. Riiight.

And Mr. Kriesel, as for taking sides in this epic Twitter beef, I guess you could say this is the first time I’ve ever sided with a Republican. Awkward.