Get Ready for One of the Coldest Games in Vikings History
The Minnesota Vikings were dealt a mini-death blow on Friday, learning quarterback Kirk Cousins will not participate in Week 17 festivities. He’s on COVID reserve, so veteran signal-caller Sean Mannion will start at the Green Bay Packers on Sunday Night Football.
Before the Cousins COVID news, Minnesota was 6.5-point underdogs. When the news hit Mannion would start, the point spread ballooned to 13 points in favor of Green Bay.
The Vikings have toppled the Packers in consecutive games, seeking to beat Green Bay thrice in a row for the first time since 2008-2009.
All in all, Minnesota will attempt this feat without Kirk Cousins, Adam Thielen, Danielle Hunter, Everson Griffen, Irv Smith Jr, and probably Cameron Dantzler. It’s an uphill assignment.
Plus, the game will be frigid. As of Saturday morning, the temperature forecast for Lambeau Field at the time of kickoff is eight degrees Fahrenheit. If that temperature holds, Week 17 at the Packers would be the eighth-coldest game in Vikings history.
These are the games in Minnesota history — both home and on the road — in which the temperature at kickoff was ten degrees or less, per Stathead.com:
The game when Blair Walsh missed the game-winning field goal in the playoffs six years ago was the coldest in franchise history. Versus the Packers this weekend will be about seven notches below that.
The Vikings will be forced to use the successful blueprint from 2020 when they knocked off the Packers at Lambeau Field, 28-22. Dalvin Cook scored four times, and then-rookie D.J. Wonnum sacked Aaron Rodgers to end the game. That contest was windy, but the temperature was 34 degrees. The 2021 meeting will be a whole new animal for cold. Yet, the gameplan will be similar. The Vikings need an enormous output from Dalvin Cook, Alexander Mattison, and Kene Nwangwu to win, mainly because Sean Mannion isn’t known as a prolific flinger of the football.
[brid autoplay=”true” video=”933915″ player=”26279″ title=”Minnesota%20Vikings%20should%20pounce%20on%20a%20Mike%20Tomlin%20trade%20this%20offseason” duration=”144″ description=”The Pittsburgh Steelers and Minnesota Vikings are both getting ready to close out another disappointing season. Both teams are led by veteran coaches, but between them, only Mike Tomlin has ever won a Super Bowl as a head coach.The Steelers are facing a lack of an identity as an organization with 18-year veteran Ben Roethlisberger likely to retire at the end of the season. There’s been no indication the Steelers are ready to move on from the 49-year old Tomlin, but there’s no telling what could happen next.” uploaddate=”2021-12-31″ thumbnailurl=”https://cdn.brid.tv/live/partners/17660/snapshot/933826_s_1640983152818.jpg” contentUrl=”https://cdn.brid.tv/live/partners/17660/streaming/933826/933826.m3u8″]
Should the Vikings [somehow] win, their playoff probability soars from 9% to 49%, while the team will scoreboard-watching, hoping the Saints and Eagles lose one game apiece in the final two weeks. Then, Minnesota would likely travel to Dallas, Green Bay, or Tampa Bay for a wildcard postseason showdown (assuming they win over the Chicago Bears in Week 18).
Finally, on Cousins missing the game due to COVID, this matchup will be the first game in his professional career he missed to injury/virus.
Since the start of 2015, Tom Brady is now the only active quarterback to miss zero games to injury/virus.
Dustin Baker is a political scientist who graduated from the University of Minnesota in 2007. He hosts a podcast with Bryant McKinnie, which airs every Wednesday with Raun Sawh and Sally from Minneapolis. His Viking fandom dates back to 1996. Listed guilty pleasures: Peanut Butter Ice Cream, ‘The Sopranos,’ and The Doors (the band).
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