Patrick Robinson has done an impressive job holding down the nickel cornerback job for the Eagles through three games. But how much does he really know about nickel? And, for that matter, how does he compare with other nickel options, Dexter McDougle and Malcolm Jenkins? Let’s find out …

Patrick Robinson

Wulf: This is a quiz about nickel.

Robinson: A quiz about nickel, alright.

Wulf: OK, question number one. Do you know the atomic symbol for nickel? Is it:

A) N

B) Ni

C) Nc

D) Nk

Robinson: Ni?

Wulf: Correct! Off to a good start. There’s 10, so bear with me. What is the number for nickel? Is it:

A) 3

B) 13

C) 22

D) 28

Robinson: That’s a hard one.

Wulf: That’s a tough one.

Robinson: Nickel, nickel, nickel. Twenty-eight?

Wulf: Correct! Alright, two for two. OK, question number three. Nickel was first isolated and classified by a guy named Axel Fredrik Cronstedt. What year did that happen?

A) 3500 BCE

B) 1492

C) 1751

D) 1906

Robinson: 3500? What did you say?

Wulf: 3500 before Christ, that’s super early.

Robinson: I’m assuming that they knew about metals back then.

Wulf: Yeah.

Robinson: But I’m not right?

Wulf: Well, that is as far as it dates back, but I don’t think they would have named them (The correct answer is 1751). That’s OK, two for three.

Robinson: Oh, man.

Wulf: What country produces the most nickel?

A) Philippines

B) Russia

C) Canada

D) Australia

Robinson: Oh, man. (thinking) Uhhhhhhh, Canada.

Wulf: Good guess, they’re up there. It’s Philippines.

Robinson: Aw.

Wulf: OK, now we’re going to talk more specifically about the coin. What percent of a U.S. nickel is composed of the element nickel?

A) 100%

B) 98%

C) 25%

D) .01%

Robinson: I want to say 25 percent, but I’m going to just guess .01 percent.

Wulf: Oooo, you should have stuck with your initial guess. It’s 25 percent.

Robinson: Ahhhh.

Wulf: Copper is the other thing it’s made out of.

Robinson: I figured it was something low.

Wulf: OK, here’s a tough one. Whose face is on the nickel?

A) Alexander Hamilton

B) Thomas Jefferson

C) Marquis de Lafayette

D) George Washington

Robinson: Sh-t, that’s a good question. Say it again, who are the options?

Wulf: Hamilton, Jefferson, Lafayette or Washington.

Robinson: Washington.

Wulf: Ooo, Jefferson.

Robinson: (Chuckles) I had no idea.

Wulf: OK, when was the nickel first issued?

A) 1776

B) 1818

C) 1846

D) 1866

Robinson: Uhhhhhhhhhhhhhh. I don’t have a clue.

Wulf: This one I would have no idea.

Robinson: 18—-. You know what? Say it again, what are the 18s?

Wulf: Eighteen eighteen, 1846 or 1866.

Robinson: Eighteen eighteen.

Wulf: Eighteen sixty-six.

Robinson: I should’ve stayed with ‘66.

Wulf: Stick with the gut. Alright, so before there was the current nickel, there was a different five-cent piece. It was called which of the following?

A) Buffalo nickel

B) Silver surfer

C) Half-dime

D) Coin-cidence

Robinson: The only one that sounds familiar is the Buffalo nickel. That’s the only one that sounds right.

Wulf: Buffalo nickel was a different kind of nickel, so don’t go with that one.

Robinson: Uh, half-dime?

Wulf: Half-dime.

Robinson: Half-dime?

Wulf: Isn’t that a weird name?

Robinson: I need to read up on my history.

Wulf: I’m going to give you that one. Alright, this is another very silly one. So before they had the nickel, there was a piece of paper that was worth five cents, but Congress discontinued it for which of the following reasons?

A) The guy who was in charge of the Currency Bureau put his own face on it

B) Phallic imagery

C) The bill contained a curse word

D) The ink washed off

Robinson: The ink washed off.

Wulf: That’s a good guess. The answer is the guy put his own face on it. Alright, last one. You can get this one. Your contract for this year is worth how many nickels?

A) 7,550,000

B) 10,000,000

C) 12,650,000

D) 15,500,000

Robinson: I can’t do the math right now, so hold on. I can’t do the math in my head right now, so I’m gonna go with 12 million.

Wulf: Ooo, 15 million. But now you feel better about yourself, you have more nickels.

Robinson: I guess.

Wulf: OK, last one. If you were creating a coin, whose face would you put on it?

Robinson: If I was creating a coin?

Wulf: Yes. This is the essay question I guess.

Robinson: Uhh, if I was creating a coin, whose face would I put on it? Umm. I wouldn’t put Obama because I would rather he be on an actual paper bill, so I’m gonna go with um —

Wulf: So someone who’s worth a coin, but not too good?

Robinson: Yeah, not too good. And I wouldn’t put anyone from another country.

Wulf: Right, right.

Robinson: That doesn’t make any sense. Uh, hmm. (laughs)

Wulf: It’s a tough one.

Robinson: (Thinking) That’s a tough question. Malcolm X.

Wulf: Malcolm X, I like that. That’s good. I’m going to give you bonus points for the coin answer, so you did well.

Dexter McDougle

Wulf: I’ve got questions about nickel, since you play a little bit of nickel. The atomic symbol for nickel is which of the following?

A) N

B) Ni

C) Nc

D) Nk

McDougle: Man. Nk?

Wulf: Ni.

McDougle: What?

Wulf: What number is nickel on the periodic table?

A) 3

B) 13

C) 22

D) 28

McDougle: Thirteen.

Wulf: Twenty-eight.

McDougle: Oh my gosh.

Wulf: Nickel was first named nickel in what year?

A) 3500 BCE

B) 1492

C) 1751

D) 1906

McDougle: Man, 1906?

Wulf: Seventeen fifty-one.

McDougle: Are you serious?

Wulf: What country produces the most nickel?

A) Philippines

B) Russia

C) Canada

D) Australia

McDougle: Philippines.

Wulf: You got it.

McDougle: I’m half-Filipino, that’s the only reason I said that.

Wulf: I like that. OK, now we’re going to talk about the coin. What percent of the U.S. nickel is composed of actual nickel?

A) 100%

B) 98%

C) 25%

D) 0.01%

McDougle: (Laughs) Twenty-five.

Wulf: You got it. You’re closing in on Patrick Robinson now.

McDougle: There we go.

Wulf: Whose face is on the nickel?

A) Alexander Hamilton

B) Thomas Jefferson

C) Marquis de Lafayette

D) George Washington

McDougle: Who was the first guy?

Wulf: Hamilton, then Jefferson, Lafayette and Washington.

McDougle: Hamilton?

Wulf: No, it’s Jefferson.

McDougle: That’s Jefferson? Oh my gosh.

Wulf: A few more.

McDougle: Keep going.

Wulf: When was it first issued, the U.S. nickel?

A) 1776

B) 1818

C) 1846

D) 1866

McDougle: I’m gonna go with 1776?

Wulf: Mmm, 1866.

McDougle: Jeez.

Wulf: OK, before there was a nickel, there was a different coin that was also worth five cents. What was it called?

A) Buffalo nickel

B) Silver surfer

C) Half-dime

D) Coin-cidence

McDougle: The Buffalo nickel.

Wulf: Oo, half-dime. That was a trick question sort of, there is also a Buffalo nickel.

McDougle: F*ck. How many did P-Rob get right?

Wulf: I think he got four or five, so you’ve still got a shot.

McDougle: How many more I got left?

Wulf: Two-and-a-half sort of.

McDougle: Alright.

Wulf: There was a time there was a piece of paper worth five cents and Congress outlawed it for which of the following reasons?

A) The guy that was in charge of the Currency Bureau put his own face on it

B) Phallic imagery

C) Curse word on the paper

D) Ink washed off.

McDougle: Ask the question one more time?

Wulf: Congress outlawed this piece of paper that was worth five cents. Why?

McDougle: The ink?

Wulf: Oo, the guy put his own face on it.

McDougle: (Laughs) They were hating on him?

Wulf: OK, last multiple choice. Your contract for this year is worth how many nickels?

A) 12,500

B) 9,650,000

C) 10,050,000

D) 12,300,00

McDougle: (Laughs) 12 million.

Wulf: Nice work. OK, last one, whose face would you put on a coin if you could choose?

McDougle: On a coin?

Wulf: Yes, you get to pick.

McDougle: Whose face would I put on a coin? That’s not a question.

Wulf: Well it’s an essay question. You get to pick whoever you want.

McDougle: OK, whose face would I like to put on a coin? It could be anybody?

Wulf: Yeah.

McDougle: Obama.

Wulf: Nice work.

Malcolm Jenkins

Wulf: Very silly, these are multiple choice questions. So I gave these to Patrick and Dexter. It’s the Nickel Challenge™.

Jenkins: Mmmhmm.

Wulf: Do you know what the atomic symbol for nickel is?

A) N

B) Ni

C) Nc

D) Nk

Jenkins: What were the choices?

Wulf: N, Ni, Nc, and Nk.

Jenkins: Is it Nk?

Wulf: It’s Ni.

Jenkins: Ni? Oh wow.

Wulf: How about the number? Is it:

A) 3

B) 13

C) 22

D) 28

Jenkins: Hold up, go back.

Wulf: Three, 13, 22, or 28.

Jenkins: Three?

Wulf: Twenty-eight.

Jenkins: Twenty-eight for nickel? Is this the element?

Wulf: Yeah, the element.

Jenkins: Ohhh, I’m like what are you talking about?

Wulf: Bad job by me.

Jenkins: Yeah, oh yeah.

Wulf: Well maybe we’ll give you that one then. OK, when was the element first isolated and named nickel?

A) 3500 BCE

B) 1492

C) 1751

D) 1906

Jenkins: Seventeen fifty-one?

Wulf: Correct. What country produces the most Nickel?

A) Philippines

B) Russia

C) Canada

D) Australia

Jenkins: Russia.

Wulf: Philippines.

Jenkins: Oh.

Wulf: OK, now the coin. What percent of the U.S. nickel is composed of the element Nickel?

A) 100%

B) 98%

C) 25%

D) .01%

Jenkins: Point zero-one.

Wulf: Twenty-five.

Jenkins: Ah.

Wulf: Whose face is on the nickel?

A) Alexander Hamilton

B) Thomas Jefferson

C) Marquis de Lafayette

D) George Washington

Jenkins: The nickel? Jefferson.

Wulf: That’s correct. When was it first issued?

A) 1776

B) 1818

C) 1846

D) 1866

Jenkins: Seventeen?

Wulf: Eighteen sixty-six. OK, there used to be a different five-cent piece that was called what?

A) Buffalo nickel

B) Silver surfer

C) Half-dime

D) Coin-cidence

Jenkins: Half-dime.

Wulf: Correct. There was also a piece of paper that was five cents that Congress outlawed for which of the following reasons?

A) The guy who was in charge of the Currency Bureau put his own face on it

B) Phallic imagery

C) Curse word in the copy

D) Ink washed off

Jenkins: The ink washed off?

Wulf: Ah, the guy —

Jenkins: Put his own face on it? That was my second one. (Laughs)

Wulf: OK, almost done. Your contract this year is worth how many nickels?

Jenkins: (Laughs) I have no idea.

Wulf: Is it:

A) 100,000,000

B) 300,000,000

C) 600,000,000

D) 720,000,000

Jenkins: Uh, give me the options again.

Wulf: One-hundred million, 300 million, 600 million or 720 million.

Jenkins: Seven-hundred twenty.

Wulf: Correct. (ed. note: As pointed out by commenter David, this is, somehow, wholly inaccurate. Jenkins makes 120,000,000 nickels in 2017.) OK, last one. If you got to choose to put someone’s face on a coin, who would it be?

Jenkins: On a coin?

Wulf: Yes.

Jenkins: My daughter.

Wulf: That’s very sweet. Good answer.

There you have it. Robinson, McDougle and Jenkins all get high marks for their essay questions, but Jenkins takes home the inaugural Nickel Challenge™. Presumably this is how the Eagles’ coaching staff will determine who covers Larry Fitzgerald on Sunday afternoon.

Top photo: James Lang, USA Today Sports