The Minnesota Vikings are no strangers to misfortune, but the most significant ones of them are all eerily tied to a specific number.
The Minnesota Vikings have been no stranger to misfortune and heartbreak throughout the years. Historically, some could argue it started being on the losing end of the first-ever Hail Mary in a loss to the Dallas Cowboys in the 1975 playoffs.
Most recently, the 2017 NFC Championship, also known as the “38-7” game against the Philadelphia Eagles, kept the Vikings one win away from hosting the first-ever home Super Bowl.
From Brett Favre to Blair Walsh, gut-wrenching moments have plagued Minnesota since their inception. But eerily enough, a certain jersey number is attached to the Vikings‘ strings of sorrows, with lucky No. 7, ironically, in typical Minnesota fashion, being the most unlucky for them.
Why has the No. 7 jersey caused problems for the Minnesota Vikings?
Starting out, multiple Vikings quarterback busts have donned a purple No. 7 on their jerseys. 2011 first-round signal-caller Christian Ponder and 2006 second-rounder, the late Tarvaris Jackson, both experienced the misfortunes of the No. 7 jersey.
On the other side of the coin, quarterbacks who have found successful seasons with the number have usually seen heartbreak at the end in the most gut-wrenching ways.
Randall Cunningham and Case Keenum had some of their best NFL moments rocking the number for the Vikings. But both went on to experience an agonizing defeat in the NFC Championship.
Kaare Vedvik and Daniel Carlson are honorable mentions, as well. Vedvik, a kicker, was acquired in a head-scratching trade with the Baltimore Ravens in 2019 that was made by former Minnesota general manager Rick Spielman. The Vikings sent a fifth-round draft pick to the Ravens for Vedvik, who went on to be released just a few weeks later.
Baltimore essentially used the pick they acquired from Minnesota to land All-Pro defensive lineman Calais Campbell a year later.
Carlson, another kicker, missed all three of his field-goal attempts during a Vikings Week 2 tie with the Green Bay Packers, including a potential game-winning kick in overtime. He was cut by Minnesota after the tie with Green Bay, and since then, he has flourished as the kicker for the Las Vegas Raiders.
Currently, Vikings cornerback Patrick Peterson dons the No. 7 on his jersey, and while he put together a respectable season in his debut year with the franchise, he essentially watched the Vikings draft his replacement in former Clemson corner Andrew Booth Jr. earlier this year
While numbers remain unanimous with iconography in professional sports, whether it’s No. 23 in the NBA, or No. 12 in the NFL, No. 7 is the furthest one that spells luck on the Vikings and it remains a catalyst for cruelty in the team’s history.