With a hard-fought 10-7 victory over the Denver Broncos this past Sunday in the AFC Championship Game, the New England Patriots punched their ticket to Super Bowl 60, thus setting up a Super Bowl 49 rematch with the Seattle Seahawks, who took care of business in the NFC title game with a 31-27 win over the Los Angeles Rams.
The way things played out, of course, couldn't have been easy for the Minnesota Vikings to watch, as several former members of the franchise will now get a shot to hoist the Lombardi Trophy.
That list is obviously headlined by Sam Darnold, who is one of four former Vikes on the Seattle roster but currently the only active member, as running back Cam Akers and cornerback Shaquil Griffin reside on the practice squad, while linebacker and special-teamer Chazz Surratt sits on injured reserve, at least for now, as he's been a full participant in practice recently.
The Patriots certainly have their fair share of players who once called Minnesota home in wideout Stefon Diggs, center Garrett Bradbury, defensive lineman Rhyiris Tonga, offensive lineman Vaderian Lowe, and backup quarterback Joshua Dobbs.
And New England's list now once again includes wide receiver Trent Sherfield, who was one of two players signed to the Patriots' practice squad on Wednesday, the other being fifth-year linebacker Patrick Johnson, who appeared in nine regular-season games in 2025 with the Philadelphia Eagles.
Now, the reason we say "once again" in Sherfield's case is that this is the second time in just over two weeks that the 29-year-old has signed a contract with New England.
Former Minnesota Vikings WR Trent Sherfield back with New England Patriots after being released
After going undrafted out of Vanderbilt in 2018, Sherfield signed with the Arizona Cardinals, with whom he ultimately spent three seasons before a trio of one-year stints with the San Francisco 49ers, Miami Dolphins, and Buffalo Bills.
The Illinois native joined Minnesota on a one-year, $1.179 million deal in 2024 and appeared in all 17 regular-season games, catching eight passes for 83 yards and a touchdown and adding another two receptions for eight yards on three targets in the Vikings' disappointing defeat to the Los Angeles Rams in the Wild Card Round.
Sherfield inked a two-year contract with the Broncos last offseason but was waived midway through this season after recording only three receptions for 21 yards in 10 games. He then returned to the Cardinals as a member of the practice squad and was twice elevated to the main roster, but was only targeted once.
Earlier this month, a few days before their Divisional Round matchup with the Houston Texans, the Patriots signed Sherfield to the practice squad but released him one day ahead of the AFC title game.