The Real Plot Lines behind Vikings at Seahawks
There is not much hope for the Minnesota Vikings left in 2025, turning their attention to playing a spoiler the rest of the way — unless the team plans to when six games in a row. The spoiler role will begin this weekend at the Seattle Seahawks, and we have the main storylines for the event.
The real plot lines behind the Vikings at Seahawks matchup break down the factors, pressures, and swings that could shape how Week 13 unfolds.
Seattle is one of the NFL’s best teams through 12 weeks, and Minnesota must bring its A-game if it wants a chance to prevail.
Storylines for Seahawks-Vikings
The main plot lines in Week 13 for the purple team.
1. The Sam Darnold Revenge Game
Darnold led the way for the Vikings last season as QB1 and posted 4,319 passing yards, 35 touchdowns, and 12 picks. He rebuilt his career in Minnesota. But when the team needed him most — Week 18 against the Detroit Lions and the playoff game against the Los Angeles Rams — he vanished. Total disappearance.
With J.J. McCarthy set to take over in 2025, Minnesota let Darnold walk in free agency and chose not to match Seattle’s offer of $100.5 million over three years.
Now it’s late November, McCarthy has struggled through a 4-7 start, and Darnold has resumed his production in Seattle, guiding the Seahawks to an 8-3 record.
NFL media has spent about three months criticizing Minnesota for the decision to let Darnold leave. Now, the chickens come home to roost as Darnold faces the team that preferred McCarthy over him.
2. Max Brosmer’s First Start
Brosmer arrived this year as an undrafted free agent; he was never supposed to take meaningful snaps in 2025. McCarthy’s struggles draw heavier criticism because a 1st-Round investment demands results. Brosmer lives on the opposite end of that spectrum. When Jaren Hall stepped in two years ago and face-planted against the Green Bay Packers, nobody reacted because he was “just a 5th-Rounder.”
If Brosmer hits turbulence in Seattle, the reaction will be predictable: “What did you expect?” That’s the definition of house money.
Minnesota’s playoff odds jump to roughly 60% if it wins out, but none of that matters without stealing one in Seattle to start the run.
A win keeps the season breathing — barely — and delays the fade-out. Kevin O’Connell has stacked at least one five-game winning streak every year he’s coached. Brosmer now walks into the same opportunity.
Pro Football Talk‘s Mike Florio this week on Brosmer: “We’ve caught wind of cautious optimism that the moment won’t be too big for Brosmer. As one source put it, Brosmer is ‘made of the right stuff.’ He processes quickly, he throws accurately. Consistent accuracy is something McCarthy hasn’t displayed.”
“Also, McCarthy tends to have only one pitch in his arsenal — a fastball. That makes it difficult on the receivers, and it prevents the Vikings from layering the ball into the intermediate parts of the field. In recent years, that’s been a key part of the Minnesota passing game. Either way, Brosmer is getting his chance.”
With McCarthy’s persistent injury woes, this season has felt for weeks that it must end with a Brosmer trial.
“We’ll see if he passes the eyeball test. We’ll see if he can deliver the ball to the open man. We’ll see if he makes good decisions quickly, especially if/when the walls close in on him. As the source said, ‘Don’t be shocked if Max balls out.’ An upset of the 8-3 Seahawks is too much to reasonably expect for the 4-7 Vikings,” Florio continued.
“The best-case scenario would be to see enough from Brosmer to make him a potential candidate to play in 2026, once the Vikings inevitably explore all options at the position in the offseason. As they absolutely should.”
He performed well in August. There’s a world where he’s simply good — an underdog story hiding in plain sight.
3. Typical Demons for Minnesota at Seattle
The Vikings have lost five of their last six games in Seattle, with the lone exception as Minnesota’s dub at Lumen Field last year — an effort marshalled by Darnold.
In the last 20 years, Seattle has represented one of Minnesota’s most grim venues. In fact, when the schedule is released in May, fans universally groan when they see “at Seattle” on the docket.
The Vikings must ignore the history of the last two decades to pull this one off.
4. Salvaging a Disappointing Season
While the Vikings’ playoff hopes vanished in Week 11 with a loss at home to the Chicago Bears and then nearly died for good at Lambeau Field last weekend, the team could still spark a win streak of some sort to salvage enthusiasm for the season.
For example, if the purple team won a few games out of the gate with Brosmer in charge, the fan base would be tempted to believe in him for the long haul. The guy, in theory, could be the savior.
In a sad season, the Vikings will risk damaging their 2026 draft position with more wins, but let’s face it, players and coaches don’t care about the 1st-Round draft order.
Every week that passes with another loss, hope fades. Winning in Seattle is probably the very last hope of inspiring a miraculous turnaround.
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