5 facts about the Minnesota Vikings we wish weren’t true
By Dustin Baker
On the whole, the Vikings don’t play in many close games
A strange trend follows Mike Zimmer’s style of coaching. If you’re a Vikings fan, you’ve probably noticed it. For the most part, Minnesota either wins decisively or loses decisively.
In the last six seasons, the purple and gold have played in the second-fewest close games in all of the NFL. Just 36 of their games have been decided by seven points or less since 2014 (38 percent). Only the New England Patriots have played fewer close games (35).
This should tell you that when Minnesota wins, they do it convincingly. But when they lose, they lose definitively.
Of all games decided by seven points or less since 2014, the Vikings’ record is 17-18-1 (.486), which ranks 21st in the league. Before you get too salty on that close-game record, know that Minnesota has 43 victories by seven or more points in the same time frame (third-most in the NFL). Only the Patriots and Chiefs have more of these wins in the last six seasons.
Ergo, the Vikings do a phenomenal job beating teams up. But when a game is close, things get nerve-wracking.