Vikings Have a Dastardly Drought to End
It’s Seahawks Week for the Minnesota Vikings.
Vikings Have a Dastardly Drought to End
Kevin O’Connell’s team toppled the Chicago Bears on Monday Night Football by a score of 30-12, commandingly defeating its secondary rival and keeping homefield advantage throughout the postseason alive and well. Minnesota has a 12-2 record and needs three more wins to clinch the NFC’s coveted No. 1 seed.
But Seattle stands in the way.
And for many winning franchises, “at Seattle” might sound like a relative nothingburger, but for the Vikings, a dastardly drought is intact: the Vikings haven’t won in the city of Seattle since 2006.
Minnesota has lost five consecutive games at Seattle, starting in 2012. And, yes — this is basically a Russell Wilson stat.
It isn’t necessarily “all on the line” for Minnesota this weekend — the purple team has already clinched a postseason spot, no matter what — but visions of homefield advantage or at least an NFC North crown depend on the performance in the Emerald City.
The last time the Vikings won at Seattle, linebacker Chad Greenway and quarterback Tarvaris Jackson were rookies. Seneca Wallace quarterbacked the Seahawks that day, and Vikings running back Chester Taylor ran wild to the tune of 169 rushing yards.
Thereafter, Minnesota lost games at Seattle in 2012, 2013, 2018, 2019, and 2020. They never win at the joint, and in fact, are 6-13 (.315) all-time against the Seahawks, regardless of venue.
For context, Minnesota drafted Harrison Smith in 2012 — and promptly began losing games at the Seahawks’ house. As a player, Smith — who could be a future Hall of Famer — has traveled to Seattle five times, and his team lost all five.
This season, Minnesota is not a stranger to ending droughts. It hadn’t beaten a team by 17+ points in five years until doing so against the Houston Texans in Week 3. Then, the Vikings also hadn’t scored 40 points or more in a game since 2019. It did precisely that in Week 14 against Kirk Cousins and the Falcons.
On the docket this weekend is yet another bizarre drought — of the same ilk Minnesota has had no problem shattering this season. Now, Minnesota must do it again.
The Green Bay Packers just spanked the Seahawks at home last weekend, and quarterback Geno Smith fell injured. Initially, this week, however, Smith appears to be on a tentative track to play on Sunday.
The Vikings shouldn’t care about the quarterback’s identity, though. They just need to end the damn drought and climb to 13-2.
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.
You must be logged in to post a comment.