MN Vikings Misfortune Leading to More NFL Rule Changes

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Kevin O'Connell and Sean McVay - NFC Wild Card Round-Minnesota Vikings at Los Angeles Rams
Credit: Joe Camporeale-Imagn Images

As a practicing member for 35+ years, I’d like to laugh through the pain and tell you about how we Minnesota Vikings fans have become numb to the constant barrage of misfortunate that’s been unfairly inflicted upon us since birth.

That would be a lie, though. The truth: most of us (myself included) know exactly how much the football gods hate the Minnesota Vikings. And I don’t want to speak for anyone else, but I am growing increasingly sensitive to how much other teams and fanbases continue to benefit from an entire history of MN Vikings’ unfortunate events.

For example — did you know that prior to 2010, NFL playoff overtimes were straight sudden-death? It didn’t matter who got the ball first or what the first score was — field goal, safety or touchdown. The first team to score in OT won the game.

When Minnesota Vikings misfortune forces NFL rule changes…

Of course, that seems absurd now. I mean, it’s not difficult to imagine a “hypothetical” playoff scenario where a rule like that could prove disastrous. Let’s say, just as an example, your favorite team is playing in one of the greatest NFC Championship games of all time, a shootout on turf only held back by an unholy number of turnovers by each team.

As the second half of this unimaginable rollercoaster — filled with highs and lows of excitement on seemingly every drive — wears on, it’s becoming increasingly obvious that this is one of those ‘last team with the ball is going to win’ type of football games.

Brett Favre, Drew Brees - NFC Championship-Minnesota Vikings at New Orleans Saints
Credit: Matt Stamey-Imagn Images

We’re talking about a (literally) bloody, knock-down, drag out, haymaker-filled heavyweight bout lead by two Hall of Fame quarterbacks who can both smell a rare chance at the Lombardi Trophy. As happens quite often in legendary playoff games like this one, four quarters isn’t enough to declare a winner.

To set the scene, let’s just say that one of the veteran QBs in this “hypothetical” matchup just threw the dumbest and most consequential across-the-body interception in playoff history, with under 10 seconds remaining in regulation, and now you’re heading to overtime with the score… oh, let’s just call it, 28-28.

Related: Former Vikings Emergency QB1 Quietly Signs with Rival

Up next… the most important part of the football game… an overtime coin toss. The way these QBs are cooking, everyone knows that whoever wins the toss to start OT is going to the Super Bowl. Even after that devastating INT, 35 yards for these two offenses is as likely to happen as the sun rising in the East tomorrow morning.

Of course, we all know what happened next during our not-so-hypothetical 2009 NFC Championship game between the Minnesota Vikings and New Orleans Saints. The Bountygate Saints won the toss and, as expected, Drew Brees drove them into field goal range… and Garrett Hartley knocked it through the middle of the uprights. Just like that, all of our Super Bowl hopes and dreams were shattered yet again.

Not to worry, though! That offseason, the OT sudden-death rule was changed to how it stands now. Starting in 2010, playoff overtimes began allowing both teams a chance with the football, unless the team possessing it first scores a touchdown.

If the first possession of OT ends in a field goal, like the Saints’ did in 2009, the coin toss loser is now allowed a chance on offense to either tie with a FG or win with a TD. Yeah, you’re welcome. Don’t worry about us Vikings fans. Favre probably would’ve thrown the game away again anyway… [pain].

Minnesota Vikings misfortune forcing more NFL rule changes

Want a more recent example of the Minnesota Vikings misfortune forcing rule changes? How about just last season, when quarterback Sam Darnold was ripped to the ground by his facemask in the closing seconds of the Vikings’ week 8 matchup vs the Rams?

The next week, rumors surfaced that there could be a rule change this offseason allowing facemasks to become reviewable. Well earlier this week, that rule was officially changed. Going forward, NFL replay assist has been expanded to include called facemask, horsecollar and pass interference penalties.

I know, I know… this rule change doesn’t directly apply to the Sam Darnold NON-CALL facemask from week 8, since a flag was never thrown on that play. But, had replay assist been available to fix incorrect penalty flags back then, is it more likely that the refs would have thrown a flag after seeing Darnold fall to the ground awkwardly and then lose his mind at the no-call? It’s certainly plausible.

And without a doubt, that week 8 no-call helped trigger the discussions surrounding expanded replay assist, as it pertains to penalty flags, even if the Vikings technically would not have benefitted from the final changes, on that play. So again, you’re welcome.

But wait, that isn’t the only rule change discussed at this year’s owners meetings, spurred by unfortunate events that hurt the Minnesota Vikings last season. The other one was not passed or voted down by the owners. Instead, discussions over future playoff seedings were tabled for later this offseason.

Playoff seeding format could change after more 2025 Vikings misfortune

Since the NFL first added Wild Card teams to their playoff format back in 1978, they have seeded those wild card teams behind all division winners, no matter what the records of those teams indicate.

This year, that meant the 14-3 Minnesota Vikings, who finished one game behind the 15-2 Detroit Lions in the NFC North were awarded the conference’s No. 1 wild card (5-seed), behind the 10-7 Tampa Bay Bucs and 10-7 LA Rams, who won the NFC South and West divisions, respectively.

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Every year, wild card teams with superior regular season records end up being seeded behind inferior division winners, with worse records. While a possible change in format, to better reward wins vs division titles, has been a fun talker for decades. Still, any rule change ever proposed to shift away from division-weighted playoff seedings has been immediately voted down.

This offseason, however, following the Vikings’ first round exit in the 2024-25 playoffs, higher-seeded wild card teams suddenly has more momentum than ever before. Not only does it have a chance to pass, but NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport told the Pat McAfee Show (ESPN) on Friday that he thinks it will pass, along with the ban on the tush push.

Rapoport: “I have to say, I was really surprised by this. I assumed this would get voted down like it always has been. But then, you started to hear there was some pretty good debate and maybe it gets tabled, and I was just surprised. But it does seem like there is a little momentum toward if a division winner has a losing record, maybe they don’t host a playoff game”…”so I would say yeah, to me, that is a possibility in May as well.”

McAfee: …”the Vikings deserved a home playoff game is pretty much what they’re saying.”

Pat McAfee Show – ESPN

If the deeply rooted NFL insider is correct. then (yet again), the rest of the NFL would benefit directly from recent Minnesota Vikings’ misfortune. Shocker. Yet again, you’re welcome. You should thank us (and we deserve it), but you won’t. It’s okay, we’ll just passive aggressively hold it against you forever.

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