You Will Learn if ‘Ravens Curse’ Is Real for Vikings in 6 Days

You Will Learn if 'Ravens Curse' Is Real for Vikings in 6 Days
Jamal Lewis

In the Super Bowl Era (since 1966), the Minnesota Vikings own the NFL’s fifth-best win percentage (.557), outranked only by the Dallas Cowboys, Pittsburgh Steelers, New England Patriots, and Baltimore Ravens.

Of the top 16 teams via win percentage since 1966, though, the Vikings are the only franchise without a Super Bowl championship. All other 15 teams in the top 16 for win percentage have won a Super Bowl – except for the Vikings.

And that’s why fans are so starved for a Super Bowl. Every other good team has one – why not Minnesota? It must be the curses, right?

Vikings fans blame a lot of misfortune on “the football gods” and whatnot, so curses are nothing new to the fanbase (particularly for kickers). In six days, those same fans will learn if the Ravens Curse remains intact.

What is the Ravens Curse? Well, the Vikings and Ravens have played six times in franchise history. In the three games that Minnesota was victorious, the Vikings later galloped to the NFC Championship. In the three games that Minnesota lost, the head coach was fired in the same season.

1998 – Vikings Win (NFCC appearance)
2002 – Vikings Lose (Dennis Green fired)
2005 – Vikings Lose (Mike Tice fired)
2009 – Vikings Win (NFCC appearance)
2013 – Vikings Lose (Leslie Frazier fired)
2017 – Vikings Win (NFCC appearance)
2020 – Vikings Lose (fill in the blank)

Here’s the factoid for visual learners:

Guess what? The Vikings lost to the Ravens in Week 9 this season, thanks to a 34-31 defensive collapse down the stretch. Several of those occurred in 2021.

Wouldn’t you know it – the head coach is on the hot seat a couple of months later.

Unless the Vikings ownership has a massive soft spot for Mike Zimmer – perhaps retaining him while trading quarterback Kirk Cousins – Zimmer is likely to move on. This would leave the Ravens Curse in place. The voodoo would be seven-for-seven, in fact.

The rumor mill speculates Zimmer is a goner. One New Year’s Day, CBS Sports‘ Jason La Canfora reported the Vikings are preparing to part ways with Zimmer. The termination hasn’t happened yet, but Vikings brass might be waiting for Zimmer to finish the season out of respect. We shall see. If he is canned, it will probably occur in six days — on Black Monday.

Regardless, the Ravens Curse is at stake – as weird or as petty as it may be.

The Vikings play the Ravens again in 2025. Maybe that’s the next NFC Championship trip.

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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