MINNEAPOLIS –Eric Olsen may star in last week's number one show in the country, but that didn't stop him from being starstruck himself when watching his favorite Vikings in pregame warmups.
Olsen, who plays Marty Deeks in NCIS: Los Angeles, is also an avid fan of the purple and gold.
"We were out here seeing Kyle Rudolph warm up, and I was like, 'Hey! That's Kyle Rudolph!' " Olsen told Vikings.com Sunday before the Cardinals game. "And then half the time [the players] are like, 'Hey man, I watch your show.' Which is always so surreal.
"Anyone that excels to the point where they're doing what they love better than anyone else, you have to respect that," Olsen continued. "These guys put the hours in, they put their hearts out there, they've been doing it since they were 6, and they leave it on the field. I have to respect that. So yeah, I get starstruck."
Olsen grew up spending summers in Minnesota with his grandparents, who had a home on Lake Mille Lacs, and said he's been a Vikings fan since he was 6.
The Olsen family called the Quad Cities on the Iowa/Illinois border home during non-summer months.
"That means that we hated the Bears," Olsen said with a laugh. "There were a lot of Bears fans that went to our high school, but we grew up hating the Bears and loving Minnesota."
When asked who his favorite childhood Viking was, Olsen didn't hesitate: Cris Carter.
"Cris Carter was the man," he said. "That was the era for me."
Added Olsen: "That was back when you didn't get to watch every game, so when the Vikings were on national television, it was a huge deal."
Olsen's flourishing acting career keeps him busy, but he annually carves out time to attend a Vikings game.
Oftentimes the chosen destination is Chicago, and he's also attended division matchups in Detroit in addition to occasional trips back to Minnesota.
"When the new stadium was built, I was like, 'We have to go see it.' So we all made the voyage up here, and it's unbelievable," Olsen said. "I've seen Dallas' new stadium, and this is the best stadium in the NFL.
"It's so exciting for the Vikings to have a stadium that does justice to what this team is going to be," he added.
Olsen said he's been riding the 2016 season roller-coaster along with Vikings fans everywhere. He was confident prior to the game, however, that Minnesota would defeat Arizona and snap a four-game losing streak.
"We'll turn it all around," Olsen said. "Our division, we're tied at the top still. There's plenty of time to figure it out, get into the playoffs and make it happen."
Olsen has been especially impressed with Sam Bradford's play after joining the team in early September, and he's also enamored with Stefon Diggs' performance and potential. He said Diggs is his favorite current Viking to watch.
"It's going to start clicking, and we're going to get back in there," Olsen said.
One of the actor's life philosophies comes from Winston Churchill: "The definition of success is being able to go from failure to failure without the loss of enthusiasm."
Olsen said he believes the viewpoint applies not only to life but to sports and is a relevant mindset to maintain when looking at the adversity Minnesota has faced so far this season.
Just hours before the Vikings defeated the Cardinals, Olsen said that it was important the Vikings don't lose steam.
"These are the moments in which we power through – we don't have to apologize for them," Olsen said. "We get our stuff together, we figure out what's not working, we adapt, but we don't lose enthusiasm."
