MNF: Seahawks vs Vikings Game Thread

Monday Night Football, Week 14. Tonight the Minnesota Vikings travel west to the Emerald City to take on the Seattle Seahawks.

Coming into the season the Minnesota Vikings were a popular bet to be the NFC representative in the Super Bowl. While that is still a possibility, it’s not looking particularly likely. At 6-5-1 the Vikings come into the game losers of three of their last five games. Their once dominant defense has just been pretty good, and their offense, expected to take a leap forward with Kirk Cousins at the helm, has been average. The combination has made for a team lurking on the periphery of the NFC playoff race, currently positioned as the 6th and last seed in the NFC playoffs. A loss tonight would be very damaging to the Vikings playoff hopes.

Unlike the Vikings, the 7-5 Seattle Seahawks were not a popular choice to make a deep run in the playoffs this season. The perception was the Seahawks were on a steep decline, and would need to rebuild for a year or two. That looked to be the case just a few weeks ago, but now the Seahawks have caught fire, winners of three straight games. Led by their superb quarterback Russell Wilson, having a career year, the Seahawks rank first in the NFL in rushing yards and third in the NFL in passing touchdowns despite throwing the ball less than any team in the league. A win here would put the Seahawks in the driver’s seat for a wild card bid, with games against the lowly Arizona Cardinals and San Francisco 49ers remaining on the schedule.

It’s the Vikings and the Seahawks in a NFC clash with major playoff implications for both teams on Monday Night Football.

Enjoy the game everybody.