As the Vikings filed into the locker room after grinding out a 23-22 win over the Arizona Cardinals on Sunday at U.S. Bank Stadium, head coach Kevin O’Connell gathered his players in a circle and delivered his postgame speech. The intimate moment has become appointment viewing for the fan base, because the Vikings post the video on social media in the immediate aftermath of each win. The heart of the postgame speech this time around centered on the fact that even though the Vikings didn’t play their best game, they now boast a 10-2 record with everything they want to accomplish still out in front of them. “All we want is 60 minutes once a week for however long they’ll let us play,” O’Connell told his players as he paced around with adrenaline coursing through his veins. “We’re just going to keep chasing it and chasing it and chasing it.” The steadfast belief that O’Connell has long had in this particular group of players can be traced back to training camp. Never mind that nobody was expecting much out of the Vikings at the time, with the Las Vegas prognosticators setting their line at 6½ wins, and a certain ESPN simulation model predicting they would be so bad that they would finish with the No. 1 overall pick. The narratives weren’t something O’Connell was concerned with at the time, and they’re certainly not something he’s concerned with right now. He truly believes the Vikings have what it takes to contend for the Super Bowl, and they sure seem to be capable of doing that. So, why is a large portion of the fan base still having such a hard time leaning in? The answer to that question is deeply rooted in the heartbreaks that have plagued this franchise since it started life here in 1961. Those that follow the Vikings religiously have guarded their hearts by operating with a cynicism that all but guarantees nothing good is ever going to happen to them. They can’t be let down if they never believed in the first place, right? The most recent example of this self-fulfilling prophecy came during the 2022 season when the Vikings carried a 13-4 record into the playoffs and promptly got upset by the New York Giants in the first round. The scars from that disappointment seem to have shaped the way the fan base has digested everything that has happened to this point in the 2024 season. The problem with that way of thinking is that this version of the Vikings is so much better. To conflate the 2022 season and the 2024 season is misguided because they are not even close to being the same. Though the recent escape acts might feel similar, they pale in comparison to the escape acts the 2022 team needed to string together wins on a weekly basis. The perfect 11-0 record in games decided by a single possession was a statistical anomaly that featured a double-doink in London to beat the New Orleans Saints, roughly a million things falling in their favor to beat the Buffalo Bills, and the greatest comeback of all time to beat the Indianapolis Colts. Just to name a few. As fun as that version of the Vikings proved to be — improbable win after improbable win after improbable win — it required too much luck to be a sustainable model for success. That’s not the case with this version of the Vikings, because, well, there hasn’t been much luck involved at all. After whooping their opponents during an impressive 5-0 start, the Vikings dropped a pair of games in succession, only to immediately bounce back with another 5-0 stretch during which they have almost always been in control regardless of the final score. Now, the Vikings head into the home stretch with games against the Atlanta Falcons, Chicago Bears, Seattle Seahawks, Green Bay Packers and Detroit Lions. Then will come the playoffs, where this version of the Vikings will get a chance to prove once and for all that it is, indeed, better than O’Connell’s first team. “My goal from the beginning was to try to get to a place where when we did get to December, we were playing with a chance to be peaking,” O’Connell said. “There’s certainly an opportunity for our team to do that.” Greg Dortch #4 of the Arizona Cardinals is tackled by Shaquill Griffin #1 of the Minnesota Vikings during the first quarter at U.S. Bank Stadium on Dec. 01, 2024 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Photo by Stephen Maturen/Getty Images) Related Articles Minnesota Vikings | Five takeaways from Vikings’ 23-22 win over Cardinals Minnesota Vikings | Vikings running back Aaron Jones vows to clean up fumbling issue Minnesota Vikings | Sam Darnold plays hero as Vikings pull off 23-22 comeback win over Cardinals Minnesota Vikings | The Loop Fantasy Football Report Week 13: Last-minute moves Minnesota Vikings | Former Giants QB Daniel Jones arrives in Minnesota ready to help Vikings wherever he can