The Minnesota Vikings suffered heartbreak with their 14-7 Week 4 loss to the Detroit Lions but Dalvin Cook’s injury might make this one the worst of all.
I don’t know if I can take this anymore. As I did with Teddy last year, this article will have a lot about curses and the sadness of being a Minnesota Vikings fan.
I want to make it clear the most important thing here is that Dalvin Cook has a fast and healthy recovery from his injury. With that said, let’s begin.
Coming into Sunday I had absolutely no expectations for our team. After Bradford’s mystery injury and Case Keenum going from goat to G.O.A.T. I just decided to go with the flow. This team is full of so many unexpected twists and turns that getting your hopes too high or too low will almost always leave you in a state of utter disbelief. Heading into Sunday’s game I felt confident in our ability to win but was really looking to keep the ship steady until Bradford (or Teddy) was able to return.
As the game went on and the defense continued to dominate a very dangerous Detroit offense, my mindset began to change. Then when we capped the half off with a great touchdown drive (yes, we actually made the extra point) I was pumped. By the time Prater missed a ridiculous field goal that would typically go in against us I was thinking, Alright let’s go beat this damn team once and for all. It was time to get rid of last years’ memories.
Then the third quarter happened. And this is how everyone felt about it.
— Paul M Johnson (@MNpride92) October 1, 2017
One word can’t sum up how terrible the third quarter truly was. Nightmare might be the closest thing. It started off well with a pass interference call on Detroit, and then it all went to hell. Two fumbles, a dropped interception, the failure to pick up Stafford’s fumble, a missed field goal, and yes, a torn ACL all came within one freaking quarter. As soon as I saw Cook fall I knew we were in trouble. The fumble was just salt in the wound, the ultimate screw you to a play that already hurt the Vikings in more ways than any turnover or loss of yards could have. It was the ultimate “Minnesota Vikings” quarter.
As the game wore on that feeling of defeat started to creep inside. We had several chances to tie and possibly win the game, but I would guess most of us didn’t expect anything to happen. This is what Detroit does to us now, they crush our season. They win games against us that they shouldn’t win. We can’t stop finding ways to lose. That was the difference with Teddy on the field. Teddy Bridgewater found ways to win. I know oftentimes Bradford or Keenum is not to blame for a late-game collapse, but with Teddy on the field, we seemed to be the team coming away with these games. It plagued us last year, and we’ve already had one game stolen from us this season. If we want to be in the playoff race down the stretch we have to find a way to come out on top in close games, something we have not done is a long time.
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I had some hope early Monday that maybe, just maybe, Cook would be okay. Perhaps the football Gods would cast some sort of light on a team that has been snake-bitten worse than any franchise in the history of sports. I mean, just look at the last twenty-one months. It’s normally tough to be a Vikings fan, but over this time period, we have had Seattle, Teddy, Adrian, the entire O-line (basically the entire 2016 season was a mess), Bradford, and now Cook. This has been a remarkably awful stretch of injuries and pure bad luck. Almost any other organization might just shut down the franchise at this point.
Now I’ll try to find a little optimism. Latavius Murray is a very good running back. He’s a former pro bowler and a flat-out bruiser. Can he make the plays and generate the excitement that Cook brings to the table? No. But he can be a reliable running back who picks up good yardage. This is still a team that is capable of winning ten games if everything goes right…which is almost guaranteed not to happen, but it’s worth hoping.
With the group of players on this team, there is a chance to make a little run. Whenever our quarterback fiasco figures itself out we could be looking at a good team with a decent shot at the playoffs. For this to happen though, I believe we need to win three of our next four games. At Chicago, vs. Green Bay, vs. Baltimore, and at Cleveland (in London). Outside of Green Bay, all of these games should favor the Vikes. After this, the schedule gets a little difficult as we face many tough opponents on the road, so it is critical that we take care of business when we have to and head into the second half of the season on the right note.
The Dalvin injury was a big blow. The worst part about this injury is that Cook was set up for a huge year. He looked just as good as he was described in the offseason, maybe even a little better. For me, these injuries are very emotional. Even though I have never met Dalvin Cook in my life, let alone be in the same room as him, I feel like I know the guy. Injuries are a part of sports, happening this frequently to the same team is getting old. Wishing you a speedy recovery Dalvin, see you next year.