Vikings Fans Begin to Shed Longstanding Demons

Minnesota Vikings fan Lady Lagertha of the vWo in London, October 2024, watching Minnesota defeated the New York Jets in a Week 5 matchup. Just because they let you down countless times in the past — doesn’t mean it’s guaranteed to happen in the future. Vikings Fans Begin to Shed Longstanding Demons The Minnesota Vikings own a 14-2 record entering Week 18, and the club will play for homefield advantage throughout the postseason this Sunday at the Detroit Lions. Generally, in a pressure-cooked Vikings season, fans have grown accustomed to assuming the worst will happen, whether a botched field goal, mind-boggling play that ruins a game, or unthinkable collapse only present in a nightmare. But Vikings fans have begun to shed longstanding demons. Here’s why, with some examples. The Bottom Doesn’t Feel Like It Will Fall Out Morgan Tencza-Imagn Images. Speaking of Vikings-Packers, Minnesota received the ball on the game’s final drive, and coaches of yesteryear probably would’ve run the ball three times, punted, and relied on defense. Not Kevin O’Connell, the architect of the demon-shedding. O’Connell ran the football once with Cam Akers and fired up three passes to end the game — one to a fullback, the other to Jefferson, and the final to Akers for a scoop 1st Down. Minnesota relied on offensive aggression. Other Vikings coaches from regime’s past might’ve played the clock and punted. The Expectation Is to Win Brad Rempel-Imagn Images. For the most part, Vikings fans no longer expect to lose pivotal, contentious games. They flatly did precisely that routinely in the last several decades. “They will find a way to mess it up,” served as a horrid mantra that followed everything about the enterprise. Ask yourself now — do you expect Minnesota to bungle big moments? This season, they have not, outside of an unholy missed facemask penalty at the Los Angeles Rams in October. The Chicago Cubs Example Jerry Lai-USA TODAY Sports. The Cubs didn’t win a World Sears for 108 years — until they did. Of the NFL’s Top 16 teams per win percentage since 1966 (the Super Bowl era), the Vikings — ranked fourth per win percentage — are the only franchise without a Lombardi Trophy. Folks always rest on their laurels, thinking, “The Vikings won’t win a Super Bowl because they never do.” Well, eventually, they will. Why not now? Ask the Cubs about it. Maybe even ask the 2017 Philadelphia Eagles. Dustin Baker is a political scientist who graduated from the University of Minnesota in 2007. Subscribe to his daily YouTube Channel, VikesNow. The show features guests, analysis, and opinion on all things related to the purple team, with 4-7 episodes per week. His Vikings obsession dates back to 1996. Listed guilty pleasures: Peanut Butter Ice Cream, ‘The Sopranos,’ Basset Hounds, and The Doors (the band). He follows the NBA as closely as the NFL. All statistics provided by Pro Football Reference / Stathead; all contractual information provided by OverTheCap.com.