We’ve Met Before: Vikings at Chiefs

Series: Chiefs lead 6-4, including a win in Super Bowl IV

Last Meeting: The Vikings travelled to Kansas City in Week 3 of 2007 and lost 13-10. The loss dropped the Vikings to 1-2. Rookie running back Adrian Peterson had 102 yards and a touchdown, but fellow rookie Dwayne Bowe hauled in a 16-yard catch in the fourth quarter for the go-ahead score for Kansas City. This Damon Huard-Kelly Holcomb matchup probably will not be remembered by many; I get the feeling that if I were writing for anybody other than Vikings or Chiefs fans, nobody would even know which teams Huard and Holcomb played for that day. Jared Allen had two sacks, but he was wearing red.

Current Streak(s): The Chiefs have won three of the last four in the series and the Vikings haven’t won in Kansas City since December 14, 1974; fortunately, that comes to only a three game losing streak (the NFL schedule used to be very irregular: the Vikings travelled to Kansas City in 1990, 1999, and 2007). Chiefs’ defensive back (and future Vikings’ defensive coordinator) Emmitt Thomas ran an interception back 77 yards for a touchdown that day in 1974, but quarterback Bob Berry, subbing for Fran Tarkenton in the second half, helped Minnesota finish a 35-15 throttling.

The Vikings’ most recent win over Kansas City came in December 2003 in the Metrodome, when Randy Moss and Onterrio Smith combined for five touchdowns in a 45-20 victory that temporarily saved Minnesota’s season. Moss had 111 yards and two touchdowns and Smith totaled 183 yards from scrimmage with three touchdowns in a game that was probably the high point of a terribly disappointing Vikings campaign (a 6-0 start wasted).

Trends: When the Vikings beat Kansas City, they do it big: their four all-time wins against the Chiefs have come by margins of 17 (1970, Metropolitan Stadium), 20 (1974, Arrowhead Stadium), 20 (1993, Metrodome), and 25 (2003, Metrodome). Meanwhile, four of the Chiefs six wins against Minnesota have come by four or fewer points.

What does it all mean? Probably not much. E.J. Henderson, Jim Kleinsasser, and Kevin Williams are the only players still around from that 2003 win and, as mentioned above, both teams have switched quarterbacks since 2007 (more than once). Matt Cassel has actually played against Minnesota—he knelt on the ball to the run the clock out in the Patriots’ 2006 Monday Night Football thrashing of the Vikings. Donovan McNabb is 2-0 in his career against the Chiefs with five touchdowns and two interceptions.

Here’s hoping that Allen is the key to victory.