What happened the last time the Vikings started a season at 7-1?

Thanks to their comeback win over the Washington Commanders on Sunday, the Minnesota Vikings are now off to their first 7-1 start to a season since 2009.

By getting a victory in their Week 9 matchup against the Washington Commanders, the Minnesota Vikings improved their record to 7-1 this season. Not since the 2009 campaign have the Vikings begun a season with seven wins in their first eight games as they have this year.

In fact, the 7-1 start by Minnesota this season is the fourth time since 1990 that the franchise has begun a season with a 7-1 record. 2009 is the most recent example, while the Vikings also got off to a 7-1 start in the 2000 and 1998 campaigns.

In all three previous instances, Minnesota went on to play in that season’s NFC Championship. Could the same be in store for this year’s Vikings?

Minnesota Vikings came up short in 2009 after 7-1 start

After getting a Week 8 win over the Green Bay Packers in quarterback Brett Favre‘s first trip back to Lambeau Field as an opponent, Minnesota improved their record to 7-1 in the middle of the 2009 season.

That year, the Vikings were led by Favre under center, a young Adrian Peterson in the backfield, a dynamic rookie wide receiver in Percy Harvin, and a top-10 defense that featured plenty of talent, including Jared Allen, Kevin Williams, and Antoine Winfield.

After their 7-1 start, Minnesota’s 2009 team went on to win their next three matchups to bring their record to 10-1. At this point, the No. 1 seed in the NFC playoffs appeared to be the Vikings’ for the taking.

But, unfortunately, Minnesota wound up stumbling into the 2009 postseason instead. The Vikings finished their 2009 schedule with losses in three of their final five games, and these struggles allowed the New Orleans Saints to capture the top seed in the NFC playoff bracket, something that would come into play later on for Minnesota.

The Vikings ended up with a 13-3 record at the conclusion of the 2009 regular season, which turned out to be good enough to finish with the No. 2 seed in the NFC.

After a first-round bye in the 2009 playoffs, Minnesota hosted the Dallas Cowboys for a divisional-round matchup inside the Metrodome. The Vikings had zero trouble with Tony Romo and the Cowboys as they cruised to a 34-3 win to move on to a showdown against the Saints in the 2009 NFC Championship.

Many Minnesota fans already know what happened in New Orleans during the 2009 NFC Championship, so we don’t need to go over the unfortunate details. But the Vikings failed to get a win over the Saints in this matchup, and they were sent home for good following the loss in New Orleans.

Overall, there was plenty for Minnesota to be pleased with during the 2009 season. This Vikings team ultimately came up short in achieving their biggest goal, but the 2009 campaign is still one that Minnesota’s fan base is going to remember for a very long time.

Will the current Vikings end up creating as many memories this season as Minnesota’s team did in 2009?