Minnesota Vikings get no respect according to Rolling Stone

The Minnesota Vikings are being completely disrespected by the nation according to Steve Greenberg of Rolling Stone.

Mike Zimmer doesn’t seem like a Rolling Stone kind of guy but I bet he would enjoy Monday’s column on the Vikings by RS writer Steve Greenberg.

Zimmer wouldn’t have expressed himself with quite so many zippy adjectives but otherwise he could have almost written Greenberg’s piece himself.

The message of Greenberg’s piece is basically what Zimmer has been selling to the media and his team all season: the Vikings don’t get any respect.

Greenberg says that even though the Vikings trounced the Giants on national TV Sunday night, nobody out there is talking about the Vikings as serious contenders.

Evidently, when it comes to the Vikings, America is still filled with doubters. Music to the ears of Mike Zimmer.

The “nobody takes the Vikings seriously” narrative plays perfectly into what Zimmer has been selling since day one.

Greenberg calls the Vikings “one of the most overshadowed and overlooked teams in recent NFL history.” He says:

"The Vikings? They just keep hammering away. With one regular-season game to go – in Green Bay – they’re now tied with the Packers atop the NFC North. Sunday’s game will have major stakes as second-year quarterback Teddy Bridgewater and Minnesota’s purple haze of invisibility clash with the great Aaron Rodgers and green-and-gold royalty."

That’s the purple haze Mike Zimmer has worked for two years to put all in our brains. And he’s still working this angle as hard as ever.

When asked this week if he thinks the Vikings are still flying under the radar in spite of two straight blow out wins Zimmer said (via St. Paul Pioneer-Press):

"“Oh, I don’t think anybody’s real worried about us.”"

Is it true that the Vikings are widely perceived as underdogs? Perhaps. And if so, Mike Zimmer couldn’t be happier.

And even if it’s not true, Mike Zimmer still wants his players to think it’s true.

Zimmer should print out the Rolling Stone piece and hang it in the locker room somewhere. It says everything he’s been trying to say.

Next: Vikings fans know Packers still dangerous

It could all be bullcrap, but when did that ever matter to a coach seeking a motivational trick?

Zim might just become a Rolling Stone subscriber from now on, even if he’s more of a country music guy.