Vikings Won't Give Up Without a Fight

[HappyViking]

https://www.vikings.com/news/2021-season-wont-give-up-without-a-fight

EAGAN, Minn. – Can the Vikings continue to claw their way toward a postseason berth?





Head Coach Mike Zimmer certainly believes his team has the fight to do it.





There's no doubt about it – Minnesota is in a tough spot. The
Vikings defense is emaciated, having played Sunday's game at San
Francisco without four starters on the defensive line.





Dalvin Cook suffered a shoulder injury Sunday that makes his status "day to day," according to Zimmer.





Every week (as of late), players have been added to the Reserve/COVID-19 list, including Patrick Peterson on Monday.
Many were emotionally impacted by the absence of Everson Griffen, who
is away from the team while weathering a personal matter.





But despite all of the above obstacles, the Vikings continue to
find themselves in down-to-the-wire games and, with a 5-6 record, still
within reach of their playoff goals.





You might feel fatigued, Vikings fans, but there are six games remaining on Minnesota's schedule.





"We still hold our own fate," safety Xavier Woods told media members Monday.

Zimmer told reporters following Sunday's loss at San Francisco that
he remains proud of this team of "fighters" who work hard day-in and
day-out. He and Adam Thielen reiterated that mindset on Monday.

Thielen credited the team's leadership for cultivating a resilient
culture within the 2021 Vikings locker room. He noted that the attitude
"trickles its way down" all the way to Minnesota's rookie class and that
Zimmer and his coaching staff "are doing a great job leading us."





Thielen also emphasized that even when a game goes wayward, players remain focused and determined.





"Guys are just staying in it. It's pretty cool to see on the
sideline, no matter what happens, nobody's panicking, nobody's pointing
fingers, nobody's down. Nobody's head is down," he said. "Everybody's
just like, 'All right. Let's go. It's time to go. We've gotta fight.'
It's pretty cool to see that because, now being nine years in the NFL,
I've been in situations where it's not always like that. That's
definitely a positive.





"Now does that change our record? No," Thielen added. "So we've got
to find a way now to continue to do that, and to build off that …
finish these games and ultimately do what we've got to do to win this
week."

Zimmer said it's typical for a team that's struggling to stop
putting forth the same level of effort, to decrease work and study
habits.





But that isn't the story for this team.





"This team hasn't done that. They've been resilient. We went down
by 11, I think, and returned a kickoff for a touchdown. Throughout the
whole course of the year, it's kind of been like that," Zimmer said. "We
make a bad play on either offense or defense … heck, the defense, when
Dalvin fumbled, we could have given them a touchdown and the game
probably would have been over. But we held them to a field goal and were
able to fight through it, and it still gave us an opportunity to win."





Let's not sugarcoat this: The 2021 season has delivered its fair
share of disappointment, and moral victories don't count toward the
playoff race.

[Guest]

Yeah whatever. Seriously? Until there are results, this is just empty talk.

[Guest]

@Vikergirl said:
Yeah whatever. Seriously? Until there are results, this is just empty talk.

Agreed. I'm beyond this as a fan. 

[Guest]

The Vikes actually played better these past three games than I expected by winning two of three.  I thought they'd get blown out by the red hot 9ers, but they had stayed with them. 

I now think the Vikes will make the playoffs (yes, you can now blame me if they don't). B)

[Guest]

@HappyViking said:

The Vikes actually played better these past three games than I expected by winning two of three.  I thought they'd get blown out by the red hot 9ers, but they had stayed with them. 

I now think the Vikes will make the playoffs (yes, you can now blame me if they don't). B)

I don't know whether to laugh or cry at this. I want more than making the playoffs and getting eliminated after 1 game. The new format lets someone else squeak in which isn't necessarily a good thing.

[Guest]

@HappyViking said:

The Vikes actually played better these past three games than I expected by winning two of three.  I thought they'd get blown out by the red hot 9ers, but they had stayed with them. 

I now think the Vikes will make the playoffs (yes, you can now blame me if they don't). B)

They are still a favorite to make the playoffs as it stands today. And I've given them credit for continuing to fight this year, they haven't given up and they are still with Zimmer. But its going to be week to week for sure. And the writing on the wall for a typical Viking ending is there. 

[Guest]

@Vikergirl said:

@HappyViking said:

The Vikes actually played better these past three games than I expected by winning two of three.  I thought they'd get blown out by the red hot 9ers, but they had stayed with them. 

I now think the Vikes will make the playoffs (yes, you can now blame me if they don't). B)

I don't know whether to laugh or cry at this. I want more than making the playoffs and getting eliminated after 1 game. The new format lets someone else squeak in which isn't necessarily a good thing.

At the beginning of the season I thought they'd be around .500 (9-7 at best).  Maybe you thought this was a SB contending team back in August, but not me.
I really do hope they do make the playoffs even if it's only one and done. 

[Guest]

@HappyViking said:

@Vikergirl said:

@HappyViking said:

The Vikes actually played better these past three games than I expected by winning two of three.  I thought they'd get blown out by the red hot 9ers, but they had stayed with them. 

I now think the Vikes will make the playoffs (yes, you can now blame me if they don't). B)

I don't know whether to laugh or cry at this. I want more than making the playoffs and getting eliminated after 1 game. The new format lets someone else squeak in which isn't necessarily a good thing.

At the beginning of the season I thought they'd be around .500 (9-7 at best).  Maybe you thought this was a SB contending team back in August, but not me.
I really do hope they do make the playoffs even if it's only one and done. 

No I didn't think this was a contender. I picked 9 and 8. We'll see if that hit that mark or not. I am just ready to move on from this era and start again.

[Guest]

Running twice from the 7 on first and goal, down by 8 at the end of the game is not fighting.  This team does not play to win, they do not play aggressively.  When the situation is tight, they look like a scared team that is playing not to lose. Being on the field and going through the motions is not fighting, the great teams go to another level in the bigger moments, we tend to shrink during those moments and that is the main reason why we have a losing record despite being up by at least 7 in every game.  

[Guest]

These guys do play hard for Zimmer, there is no denying that.

Last year and 1/2 have fatigued my fandom...This year feels particularly snake-bit, even for the Vikings.

All about momentum and how bad is your MASH unit come December. 

I guess a 1 and done is better than no playoffs. But looking at the injury report and remaining schedule? I'm not feeling postseason is in the cards for 21.