EDEN PRAIRIE
Cheap Vincent Valentine Jersey , Minn. (AP) The Minnesota Vikings have begun another postseason adventure, backed by an often-burned fan base carrying
several scars from flameouts of playoffs past.
There’s already a dose of modesty embedded in state culture that contributes to regulated expectations, and the memories of Darrin Nelson’s drop, Gary
Anderson’s miss and Brett Favre’s misfire naturally make the purple-clad people
more hesitant to get their hopes up this time.
Well, these Vikings will calmly tell them to forget about all those infamous flops on some of football’s biggest stages over the 57-year history of the
franchise. This team didn’t play in those games.
Article continues below ... ”I’ve got a crystal ball, and I’ve got a wood spirit hanging in my office,” head coach Mike Zimmer said. ”So there’s no damn curse.”
After finishing 13-3
Cheap Trey Flowers Jersey , their second-best record in 40 seasons since the NFL implemented a 16-game schedule in 1978, the Vikings were rewarded with a
first-round bye and a home game on Jan. 14 in the divisional round.
If Los Angeles beats Atlanta at home, the Vikings will host the Rams. If the Falcons are victorious on Saturday, the Vikings will face the Carolina-New
Orleans winner. The Saints host the Panthers on Sunday.
Nine of the past 10 teams to reach the Super Bowl did so with the first-round bye. The only outlier was the Baltimore Ravens, the AFC’s No. 4 seed in
2012.
That’s a fact that Zimmer made sure to share with his players last week, prior to completing their pursuit of the bonus rest time and automatic
advancement to the quarterfinals of the tournament that conveniently concludes
this time on their home turf.
As for whether the first matchup comes against the Rams, Saints or Panthers?
”Don’t care at all
Cheap Tom Brady Jersey ,” defensive end Brian Robison said. ”They’ve got to come to U.S. Bank Stadium, and we’re going to be ready for them.”
Robison is the only player remaining on the roster from 2009, when Favre joined his
former rival. He steered the Vikings at age 40 to the NFC
championship game, only to throw the off-balance interception late in the fourth
quarter following the 12-men-in-the-huddle penalty that lowlighted the overtime
loss at New Orleans.
Anderson’s wide-left field goal attempt late in the fourth quarter of the NFC championship against Atlanta following the 15-1 finish in 1998 was the even more
stunning miscue in modern Vikings history, leading to the overtime loss at the
Metrodome.
Then there was the 1987 team that sneaked into the playoffs after the strike and notched two upsets on the road, before falling by seven points at Washington
when Nelson didn’t hang on to the potential tying touchdown catch at the goal
line in the NFC championship game.
The Vikings played for the 2000 NFC title, too
Cheap Tedy Bruschi Jersey , falling 41-0 to the New York Giants in embarrassing fashion. Then there are those four Super Bowl defeats between the
1969 and 1976 seasons that laid the foundation for a half-century of January
failure.
The way the Vikings have progressed through 2017, though, has produced a different feel.
The teams that head coaches Brad Childress, Dennis Green and Jerry Burns took to the NFC championships were more reliant on high-octane offenses and
high-profile stars at the skill positions.
Zimmer’s group, albeit with multiple Pro Bowl players, is a defense-first creation that has exhibited more discipline, humility and harmony than the other
elite teams the franchise has fielded.
”We not only respect each other
Cheap Steve Grogan Jersey , but we like each other too,” quarterback Case Keenum said.
”And I think that goes a long way. Outside of the X’s and O’s, we fight for each other, and I think you go up and down the row in there and everybody feels
the same. I think that’s pretty rare.”
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