Less Brutal Vikings, A Short List

Two years ago I wrote about a rare thrilling playoff victory by the Minnesota Vikings.  This is a favorite professional team of mine for which I’ve documented many brutal losses over the years, but as I said then, I’d never bothered to come up with a list of big wins.

The Vikings just had another exciting playoff victory a week ago, so I decided it was time to come up with my list of the five greatest Vikings wins in history.  Let’s just say it wasn’t easy, because in the last 40 years, there aren’t that many.

1)  2018 NFC Divisional playoff game at home versus the New Orleans Saints.  This game is now known as the Minneapolis Miracle.

2) 2020 NFC Wild Card playoff game in OT at New Orleans Saints.  I know, the Saints again two years later.  An exciting, unexpected win, but it’s still small consolation for losing the 2010 NFC Championship game there in OT.

3) 1980 regular season game at home versus the Cleveland Browns.  The Vikings won on a two-play, 80-yard drive with a hitch-and-pitch, then a long Hail Mary TD pass to Ahmad Rashad on the last play of the game, clinching the division and a playoff spot.

4) 2004 Wild Card playoff game at the Green Bay Packers.  Memorable for beating their arch-rival in a road playoff game, but even more memorable when receiver Randy Moss caught a game-clinching TD pass, and then faked mooned the fans.

5) 1976 NFC Championship game at home versus the Los Angeles Rams.  As of now, it's the the last time the Vikings won a game to advance to the Super Bowl.  It was a great team, with great kick-blocking special teams, but one that would lose the Super Bowl to the Oakland Raiders 32-14.  And they haven’t been back since.