For the eighth straight season, the Minnesota Vikings will be watching the NFL's Conference Championship Sunday from home, as their 9-8 record wasn't quite good enough to get them into the playoffs.
The five-game winning streak to close out the campaign was undoubtedly impressive, but that doesn't change the fact that Minnesota has now failed to make the postseason in back-to-back years since 2008 and 2009.
But what's done is done, and while the Vikings obviously won't be participating in the NFL's version of the Final Four—which will see the New England Patriots visit the Denver Broncos in the AFC and the Seattle Seahawks host the Los Angeles Rams in the NFC—there will be several players who once called Minnesota home suiting up on Sunday with the hope of securing a spot in Super Bowl 60.
Just to get this out of the way at the start, you'll only see three of the four teams listed, as the Broncos have no former Vikings on the roster.
Every former Minnesota Vikings player set to suit up in the NFC and AFC title games
Seattle Seahawks
The most notable former Viking playing this weekend, of course, is Seahawks quarterback Sam Darnold, who stepped in for the injured J.J. McCarthy a season ago and led Minnesota to a 14-3 regular-season record before fizzling out in a postseason loss to none other than the very same Rams he's facing on Sunday. So, this actually serves as a bit of a revenge game for the two-time Pro Bowler.
Seattle also has a pair of former Vikings on the practice squad in cornerback Shaquil Griffin and running back Cam Akers. Griffin isn't likely to be elevated, but given the ACL tear suffered by Zach Charbonnet in Seattle's Divisional Round win over the San Francisco 49ers, there's a good chance Akers could be brought in to back up Kenneth Walker III.
And lastly, there's linebacker and special-teamer Chazz Surratt, who was taken by the Vikes in the third round of the 2021 draft but ultimately lasted just one year in Minnesota, as he was part of the final roster cuts ahead of his second season. Surratt appeared in 11 games for Seattle this season but has been on injured reserve since suffering an ankle injury in Week 12. His 21-day practice window was opened ahead of the Divisional Round, but he ultimately remained on IR. But there seems to be a solid chance that he could be activated ahead of Sunday's contest with the Rams.
Los Angeles Rams
As for the Rams, they've got three former Vikings on the active roster.
First, there's veteran long snapper Jake McQuaide, who spent roughly a month in Minnesota in 2024 as a fill-in for Andrew DePaola. Then, you've got backup offensive tackle David Quessenberry, who spent the 2023 and 2024 campaigns with the Vikings, appearing in 33 of a possible 34 regular-season games, as well as last year's playoff loss to the Rams.
And lastly, there's backup tight end Nick Vannett, who actually began this season with the Vikings before the Rams plucked him off the practice squad in late November.
New England Patriots
The Patriots are absolutely loaded with former Vikings, a list headlined by wideout Stefon Diggs, who caught 365 passes for 4,623 yards with 30 touchdowns in five seasons in Minnesota from 2015 to 2019.
There's also center Garrett Bradbury, defensive lineman Rhyiris Tonga, offensive lineman Vaderian Lowe, and backup quarterback Joshua Dobbs.
New England also recently signed former Vikings wideout Trent Sherfield to the practice squad.