The Chargers Poked Fun at the Vikings Last Week for No Good Reason
Dustin Baker
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The Minnesota Vikings and Los Angeles Chargers don’t have a notable rivalry as teams that meet about once every four years and live in opposing conferences.
But when Los Angeles unveiled its 2023 schedule last Thursday, it was sure to take multiple potshots at the Vikings. The Chargers social media team is known for the utmost creativity and has dropped its schedule via anime video in back-to-back seasons. The 2023 release was no different.
The Chargers Poked Fun at the Vikings Last Week for No Good Reason
The Chargers tweeted the video last Thursday, and part of the schtick is playing up narratives regarding their opponents. It’s just that they laid it on the Vikings extra thick. The Vikings and Chargers play in Week 3 at U.S. Bank Stadium, and when the anime video revealed this matchup, this graphic — with a goofy-looking Kirk Cousins — was present.
In the rafters, the fine print reads:
- #1 NFLPA Team
- Justin Jefferson OROY (Runner Up)
- Mentioned in a Lizzo Song
- Timberwolves Play-in Winner 2022
- Fun Game vs. Bills 2022 Wk 11
You can watch the full Chargers video for context here.
The references were topical and seemed to imply the Vikings and their fans celebrate everything except Super Bowl championships — which is rich because the Chargers have never hoisted a Lombardi Trophy either. In fact, the Chargers have appeared in only one Super Bowl, while the Vikings have been to — and lost — four back in the 1960s and 1970s.
The “#1 NFLPA team” references the Vikings best-in-the-business team culture and facilities voted on by players in March. The NFLPA released the first-ever ‘team report cards,’ and the Vikings led the way.
Los Angeles noted Justin Jefferson’s second-place finish in the 2020 Offensive Rookie of the Year race because their quarterback, Justin Herbert, took home the award. New Man on the Minnesota Vikings is the connection to the Lizzo song. “The fun game against the Bills” in 2022 is an apparent criticism suggesting the Vikings peaked last year in Buffalo — probably not wrong.
And the weirdest takeaway? Referencing the Minnesota Timberwolves. Minneapolis’ basketball team has won consecutive play-in tournament contests in 2022 and 2023, and that somehow pertains to the Vikings, at least according to Chargers social media.
There is no connection between the Vikings and Timberwolves other than the host city of Minneapolis. Ownership is not shared, and the Timberwolves have no impact on the Vikings day-to-day activities. Imagine the Vikings social media team blaming the Chargers for the Los Angeles Clippers failure to reach the NBA Finals after trading the farm for Paul George and partnering him with Kawhi Leonard in 2019.
It wouldn’t make sense.
Thankfully, the Vikings and Chargers can settle the out-on-nowhere beef on September 24th.
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Dustin Baker is a political scientist who graduated from the University of Minnesota in 2007. Subscribe to his daily YouTube Channel, VikesNow. He hosts a podcast with Bryant McKinnie, which airs every Wednesday with Raun Sawh and Sal Spice. His Vikings obsession dates back to 1996. Listed guilty pleasures: Peanut Butter Ice Cream, ‘The Sopranos,’ Basset Hounds, and The Doors (the band).
All statistics provided by Pro Football Reference / Stathead; all contractual information provided by OverTheCap.com.
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