Inside The Vikings

The 5 best Vikings moments of the last 5 seasons

Kevin O'Connell's first season as head coach was special.

Nolan O'Hara

Minnesota Vikings tight end Kyle Rudolph (82) catches a pass for the winning touchdown over New Orleans Saints cornerback P.J. Williams (26) during overtime of a NFC Wild Card playoff game at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome in New Orleans on Jan. 5, 2020.
Minnesota Vikings tight end Kyle Rudolph (82) catches a pass for the winning touchdown over New Orleans Saints cornerback P.J. Williams (26) during overtime of a NFC Wild Card playoff game at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome in New Orleans on Jan. 5, 2020. / Chuck Cook -USA TODAY Sports

Vikings fans certainly aren't unfamiliar with disappointment.

From four Super Bowl losses to heartbreaking NFC Championship Game defeats and everything in between, Minnesotans have been through the ringer over the years cheering for the purple and gold.

But along with the heartbreak, the Vikings have provided plenty of memorable moments for the right reasons. There's Brett Favre's walk-off touchdown pass to Greg Lewis, Adrian Peterson's record-setting 296-yard game — and who could forget the Minneapolis Miracle?

Though the Vikings have only made two playoff appearances in the last five seasons, there have also been no shortage of great moments in recent memory. Here is a look at five of the best moments the Vikings have provided fans in Minnesota across the past five seasons:

5. Justin Jefferson's first career touchdown vs. Titans

The fifth-best moment of the past five seasons takes us back to Week 3 of the 2020 season — Justin Jefferson's rookie year. The Vikings were facing the Tennessee Titans on Sept. 27, 2020, and leading 17-12. Jefferson broke free down the right sideline, hauled in a pass from quarterback Kirk Cousins and his legs did the rest of the work on his way to a 71-yard touchdown, the first of his career.

While the Vikings went on to lose that game 31-30 to fall to 0-3 on the season, it was clear that it would be the just beginning of Jefferson's soon-to-be special career.

4. Greg Joseph's 61-yard walk-off field goal vs. Giants

Kevin O'Connell's first season as head coach of the Vikings was a special one, and their Week 16 game against the New York Giants on Christmas Eve 2022 would only help the legend grow.

Saquon Barkley's 27-yard TD run and Daniel Jones' two-point conversion pass to Daniel Bellinger knotted the game at 24-24. But the Vikings were able to mount a drive capped by a 17-yard screen pass from Cousins to Jefferson that put them within range — sort of — for a field goal.

Greg Joseph lined up for a 61-yard field goal and nailed it as time expired, securing a 27-24 walk-off win that improved their record to 12-3 on the season.

3. A finish vs. Bills that will leave you speechless

Where can one even begin with this game? The Vikings were facing the Buffalo Bills in Week 10 of the 2022 season on the road on Nov. 13, 2022. It wasn't looking pretty as the Vikings fell behind 27-10 in the third quarter. But Dalvin Cook got a comeback started with an 81-yard touchdown run.

The Vikings later got within 27-23 when C.J. Ham ran in for a three-yard score, though Joseph's missed extra point put the team in a tough spot where a field goal wouldn't tie the game.

No matter. The Vikings mounted a drive down four in the waning minutes of the fourth quarter. On fourth-and-18, Jefferson hauled in perhaps the greatest catch in NFL history, pulling down a pass from Cousins with one hand despite defenders all around him. The Vikings were eventually knocking on the door for the go-ahead touchdown, positioned right at the goal line.

But the Bills defense held up, stopping Cousins on a quarterback sneak from the 1-yard line on fourth down. Game over. Or was it? Bills quarterback Josh Allen tried a quarterback sneak to give his team a little more breathing room at the goal line, but fumbled and Eric Kendricks recovered for a Vikings TD.

That gave the Vikings a 30-27 lead with 41 seconds remaining. Game over. Or was it?

Allen proceeded to march the Bills right down the field, setting up Tyler Bass for an easy 29-yard field goal to tie the game at 30-30 and force overtime. But the Vikings would get the last laugh as Cousins connected with Jefferson twice on a drive during the extra session, setting up Joseph for a 33-yard, game-winning field goal that improved the Vikings' record to 8-1 on the season.

2. Biggest comeback of all time vs. Colts

Most of these moments really go to show how special O'Connell's first season as head coach of the Vikings was in 2022. Five weeks after the special comeback against the Bills and just a week before the walk off against the Giants, the Vikings completed the greatest comeback in NFL history.

If you missed the first half and tuned in at the halftime break, you might have just found something else to do with your day instead of watching the second half. The Vikings were trailing 33-0 and showed no signs of life throughout the opening 30 minutes of the contest. It was a brutal half.

But if you did stick around for the second half, you got the chance to witness something special. It started with a 2-yard touchdown pass from Cousins to K.J. Osborn. While Chase McLaughlin hit a field goal for the Colts to put them back up 36-7, the Vikings got a TD run from Ham just before the end of the third quarter. Then they completely broke open the game, and made history, in the fourth.

Cousins found Jefferson for an 8-yard touchdown pass. Then he hit Adam Thielen for a 1-yard score. Then Cook took a short pass from Cousins and broke free 64 yards for another touchdown that tied the game at 36-36, completely erasing the 33-point advantage the Colts once held.

The Vikings found their way into field-goal range in the final seconds, and Joseph made a 40-yard boot to lift the Vikings to a 39-36 win to complete the greatest comeback in NFL history.

The Vikings also improved to 11-3 with the victory and clinched the NFC North title.

1. Kyle Rudolph's overtime TD vs. Saints in wild-card game

The Vikings made the playoffs during the 2019 season and found themselves in the wild-card round facing the New Orleans Saints on Jan. 5, 2020. While a pair of touchdown runs from Cook had given the Vikings a 20-10 lead, the Saints were able to fight their way back and force overtime when Wil Lutz made a late, game-tying 49-yard field goal.

But the Vikings got the ball first in overtime, and they made sure not to let the Saints get the ball back. Cousins notably hit Thielen for a 43-yard gain that put Minnesota in prime scoring position on the opening drive of the overtime session. The Saints stopped Cook on a pair of runs, but on third-and-goal, Cousins hit Kyle Rudolph in the left corner for a game-winning touchdown pass.

That ensured the Vikings would live to see another week and prevented Vikings fans from suffering another heartbreaking loss to a Saints team that provided more than enough back in 2009.

Published |Modified
Nolan O'Hara

NOLAN O'HARA