"I'm not in the mood to make anything secretive", Brees said with a laugh when asked about being chased down by the media for months with questions about his contract. "Obviously, we knew it was going to be tough because all they had to do was stay back and not give up the big play". "I feel like I was destined to do this". They fell behind 16-0 at Seattle in the divisional round and lost 23-15 to the eventual Super Bowl champions.
The potholes in the road were waiting, though. A pass interference flag would stop the clock with about 5 seconds left, giving the Vikings a chance at a field goal. The shrewd play calling by offensive coordinator Pat Shurmur, culminating with a pitch to Jerick McKinnon for a 14-yard run after a fake jet-sweep, showed again why he was interviewed by four teams last week for head coaching vacancies. The third procedure forced him to miss a game for the first time in his career.
The Vikings didn't blink, though, particularly with the experience of 2016 so fresh.
But these ghosts had never dealt with the magic of Case Keenum.
All of these on-field hurdles have paled next to the pain Zimmer has endured in his personal life. Like our friends over at The Daily Norseman wrote, "Of course, since National Football League games are 60 minutes long and not 59 minutes and 35 seconds, the Vikings had an opportunity at the end of the game, and they made the best of it".
Payton's challenges: Saints coach Sean Payton unsuccessfully challenged two calls on the same series in the fourth quarter: Wright's 27-yard catch and Keenum's knee not being down before he released the ball.
Allen says that in his 16 years in the play-by-play booth, there's been too much heartbreak for Vikings fans to bear.
Viking fans told us before the game this was going to be the season they bring home a Super Bowl championship, and for at least one night their faith was rewarded.
Miracles happen every day, but rarely for professional sports teams in Minnesota. "They've been a resilient bunch all year long".
"We're not playing to make up for anything", Thielen said.
