The Vikings close out their regular season Sunday in Chicago against a feeble Bears team. Purple worry warts (as usual) have much to fret about including a Vikings hangover from their dismal showing against the Packers, the health of key players, a possible loss to the Bears Sunday, and potential injuries on a slippery grass field at Soldier Field, seeding for the upcoming playoffs and whether their favorites can march all the way to the Super Bowl.
Whew!
I know I missed somethings (uh, leaky defense) but take a deep breath, Purple Nation. “Doctor Shama” offers the following advice:
Be grateful for what the 2022-2023 Vikings have already put in place. And consider that even if they fail Sunday in Chicago against the Bears and flop in the playoffs, the Vikings have gone far beyond expectations and probably delivered the most theatric season since the franchise started in 1961.
Kirk Cousins
Remember the 2022 offseason last winter and a new decision-making group taking over in the front office and on the field? Were the Vikings going to clear out their roster and rebuild? Dump Kirk Cousins and start over at quarterback? Say adios to other veterans, too?
Instead, new GM Kwesi Adopho-Mensah and new head coach Kevin O’Connell committed to tweaking instead of tearing down. They retained the veteran corps and added a few key contributors like tight end T.J.Hockenson, while changing schemes and culture.
Want to see what a rebuild looks like? Read up on the Bears, who under their new general manager, Ryan Poles, are 3-13 this season. That’s the worst record in the NFC.
Last summer Purple Nation thought an optimistic outlook for the Vikings would be a 10-7 finish while perhaps backing into the playoffs, and likely with no home field advantage in the postseason. Instead, the playoff-bound Vikings will finish the regular season with no worse than a 12-5 record and probably 13-4. They could also host multiple playoff games at U.S. Bank Stadium.
Either 12-5, or 13-4 is a franchise best number of wins since 2017’s 13-3 record (when NFL teams played 16 games). The Vikings are NFC North Division champions for the first time since the 2017 season. Minnesota last qualified for the playoffs in 2019.
The Vikings have outdone themselves and all the other NFL teams in playing dramatic and entertaining football. They have won 11 games by eight points or fewer. Five times the victory margin has been three points. “Comeback” Cousins has led eight fourth quarter rallies and in the process changed his image from loser to winner.
The 2022 Vikings have triumphed in games worthy of best-selling fiction, and this club belongs on a short list of the most memorable teams in franchise history. Two memories for the ages:
The overtime win in Buffalo was improbable for several reasons including that the Bills were positioned to run out the clock late in the fourth quarter but fumbled at their own goal line. Minnesota’s Eric Kendricks recovered the ball in the end zone for a touchdown and a 30-27 lead. In one of the NFL’s wildest games in the new millenium, the Bills managed a field goal with time expiring in the fourth quarter. The Vikings broke a 30-30 tie with a Greg Joseph field goal in overtime.
The Bills are among the NFL elites. Not so the Colts who a few weekends ago in Minneapolis held a 33-0 halftime lead over the Vikings. Even during a season of good fortune unlike any in Vikings’ history, few observers in U.S. Bank Stadium that day expected the Purple to rally and win. The 39-36 win was the biggest comeback in NFL history. In disbelief, the Purple worry warts switched from lusty boos to triumphant cheers.
Justin Jefferson image courtesy of Minnesota Vikings
Cousins has prompted whispers of being NFL MVP worthy. Not so with wide receiver Justin Jefferson whose name has been shouted out with the thunder of a Gjallarhorn. No NFL wide receiver has ever won the award so Jefferson’s candidacy says something special about his 2022 season that has him setting franchise and league records.
Neither Cousins nor Jefferson would be experiencing special seasons without the presence of O’Connell. He is an offensive whiz with schemes, adjustments and play calls. His leadership style has minimized fear among players and created a player-friendly culture without sacrificing discipline.
O’Connell is a good dude, a human being who is welcome in any “Minnesota nice” neighborhood. I’ll guarantee his competitive spirit wants to drive the Viking bus all the way to a franchise first Super Bowl victory. I strongly suspect at this moment he is also grateful for the success of his first season as an NFL head coach and all that he, his staff and players have accomplished.
Vikings fans should say amen to that, while still rooting for more success.
The Vikings are 6-1 after today’s 34-26 win over the Cardinals. With a win next Sunday over the Commanders, they can match the 7-1 starts of the 1998 and 2009 teams that are among the best in franchise history.
Those two teams went on to 15-1 and 12-4 regular season records respectively. Both flirted with Super Bowl trips before losing in NFC title games.
No one should put the 2022 Vikings in that company yet but the latest edition of the Purple has been impressive so far this season. They’ve managed to win five straight often making timely plays in close games (winning twice by eight points, and three, four and seven).
That was true today when Za’Darius Smith and Harrison Phillips put together consecutive sacks of Cardinals’ QB Kyler Murray in the closing seconds of the game. Smith had three sacks on the day, a fitting achievement on a day when sack master Jared Allen of the Vikings was inducted into the team’s Ring of Honor.
The raucous crowd at U.S. Bank Stadium was noisy today, even by their ear-pounding standards. This town loves a winner and the citizenry is passionate about the local NFL team above all others. Fans were giddy about the possibility of seeing the Vikings remain among the NFL elite today.
Kirk Cousins
“You can’t say enough about our fans today, the noise they brought,” Vikings QB Kirk Cousins said on KFAN after the game. “From the first half to the last it’s just a tremendous environment. It’s a privilege to get to play here.”
Cousins completed 24 passes today and moved to 3,000 career completions. He is the 31st QB in NFL history to reach 3,000 completions. He has also thrown a touchdown pass in 37 consecutive games.
The Cardinals’ set their defense to stop the Vikings outside offense so Minnesota took advantage rushing inside for many of their 173 yards. Dalvin Cook ran for 111 yards, approaching his total in last year’s loss to Arizona when he had 131. Cousins even ran for 22 yards including a rare touchdown run of 17 to score Minnesota’s first touchdown.
Cousins and the Vikings, though, have struggled this season against blitzes. The Cardinals used one to force a Cousins fumble in the third quarter that set up a touchdown drive narrowing the score to 28-23.
As usual, though, the Vikings won with contributions from the offense, defense, special teams and the crowd (4-0 record at home). The Vikings converted three Arizona turnovers into 13 points in the second half. Typical of seizing opportunities by this team.
Worth Noting
Reserve quarterback Nick Mullens recently praising the communications between the coaching staff and players: “If you can communicate, you can execute. That’s been a great trait for us here.”
Mullens said head coach Kevin O’Connell and his staff have created a player-friendly environment that includes expectations and boundaries. “The players are very aware of the standard that the coaches and ourselves hold for each other,” Mullens said. “Upholding that standard each week is what we strive for. And we’ve done a good job and look forward to just keep earning the right to do that.”
For a home game like today that started at noon Vikings will arrive at the stadium about 9:30 a.m. Veteran safety Harrison Smith will use the hot tub to warm up his 33-year-old body and doesn’t go out on the field much prior to kickoff. “Just try to get the body warm and loose. Nothing crazy,” he recently told Sports Headliners.
Smith said he doesn’t sleep well after games and sometimes tries to catch up on rest Monday when he’s also doing an assessment about his body. He will get a massage on Mondays or Tuesdays. Later in the week there will be more practice and preparation for the upcoming game.
“I’ve played golf a few times on Tuesdays (this year),” Smith said. “It’s a good excuse to get some vitamin D if the sun is out. If I am hurt, though, I don’t play.”
Vikings kicker Greg Joseph, 28, talking last week about his future in football and hoping to keep playing well into his 30s: “Oh, I feel like I’m only gonna get better and better and stronger and stronger, which is exciting. I keep trying to reset my ceiling every year. So yeah, just excited. …”
Plans after football? “Whatever God has in store for me,” Joseph said.
Axios Sports points out that dating back to last Thursday and going through November 22 “there will be either FBS college football or NFL every single day.”
St. Paul native Pat Eilers, who played safety for the Vikings and Notre Dame, has made (along with wife Jana) a $5 million donation to his alma mater to support the director of sports performance position. The Eilers have provided previous gifts to Notre Dame and their children have attended school there.
It seems like a roll of the dice as to what kind of season starting Wild goalie Marc–Andre Fleury can have at age 38. Coach Dean Evason and GM Bill Guerin must be monitoring his performance and calculating how to handle the goalie roster.
Fleury’s 38th birthday is November 28, the same age that goalie Gump Worsley was a member of the Stanley Cup Canadiens decades ago. Worsley won another Cup with the Canadiens in 1969 at age 39 (almost 40) and is the oldest NHL goaltender to have that distinction. Worsley later played for the North Stars and retired at age 44.
Retired Twins executive Terry Ryan, who was with the Phillies after leaving the Twins, is living in Eagan.
It was 35 years ago last Tuesday the Twins defeated the Cardinals in Game Seven of the 1987 World Series in Minneapolis. Wheaties boxes celebrating the World Series championship are available for sale on Ebay.
The Timberwolves sold $5 upper level tickets for home games last week against the Spurs.
Timberwolves limited partner Alex Rodriguez has purchased a home in Minnesota.
Stillwater-based Creative Charters is offering a same day trip to the Minnesota-Nebraska football game Saturday in Lincoln and has space available on the plane. Kickoff is 11 a.m.
St. Thomas football coach Glenn Caruso speaks to the CORES lunch group November 10 at the Bloomington Event Center. He is a six-time National Coach of the Year and is leading the Tommies in their second season of Division I competition where they top the Pioneer League at 5-0. CORES is open to the public but reservations must be made by November 7. More information about CORES is available by contacting Jim Dotseth, dotsethj@comcast.net. CORES is an acronym for coaches, officials, reporters, educators and sports fans.
Minnesota icon Harvey Mackay turns 90 tomorrow, October 24. He has impacted a lot of us with his accomplishments and wisdom, including this writer. Speaking for the masses, “Happy Birthday, Harvey!”
Many know Harvey as the founder of a Minneapolis envelope business, but even more of the world knows him as the author of New York Times best-selling business books and as a syndicated columnist for newspapers including the Minneapolis StarTribune. I have his books and read his columns but more importantly have memories of the kindness he has directed my way over the decades.
In 1990 a new ownership group booted me from my marketing position with the Minnesota North Stars. A few days later the doorbell rang at home announcing a delivery of balloons, along with an encouraging note from Harvey predicting my next career stop would be a home run.
This millennium there have been invitations to fly on a private jet with Harvey and other friends of his to away University of Minnesota football games. He also remembers my birthday every year and has a warm smile on the few occasions our paths may cross these days.
Doing for others is part of his DNA and the importance of giving are words he lives by. Harvey has made a tradition of annually donning a Santa Claus suit and ringing the bell for the Salvation Army in Minnesota. The weather is often frigid but for three hours he helps raise money for the needy because his dad taught him volunteerism should be a priority for everyone.
Harvey Mackay
Harvey has a world-class network of friends, and he makes it a point to know details about them. PR maven DaveMona recalled that when Harvey travelled internationally, he found places selling commemorative stamps because he had a customer who collected stamps. “Are you going to end your business relationship with someone who adds to your stamp collection?” Mona asked in admiration.
I first met Harvey when I was sports editor of the University of Minnesota’s student newspaper. In the 1960s boosters could help with recruiting and Harvey jumped in with both feet. Growing up in St. Paul he had loved the Gophers and he attended the University where he played on the golf team for legendary coach Les Bolstad.
Graduating in 1954, Harvey had ambitions to play pro golf but despite his fierce drive to excel he realized that career wasn’t going to take off. At age 26 he founded his envelope company located within about a 60 second drive to the U campus.
Why envelopes? Because everybody needs envelopes and Harvey couldn’t envision a time when the world would not. Today he is chairman of MackayMitchell Envelope Company, a $100 million business. The company has 450 employees and manufactures 25 million envelopes a day.
Several years ago, Harvey sent a PDF of a story I wrote about him for the MinnesotaDaily in January of 1968. It was headlined: “When Mackay Speaks, Top Athletes Come Here.” The gesture was another example of Harvey’s thoughtfulness.
Harvey helped convince many football and basketball athletes to make the U their college choice. The list includes the late John Williams who was an All-American tackle on the Gophers’ 1967 Big Ten title team, and 1969 basketball captain AlNuness who became a vice president at Jostens. “I tell the kids about the great job opportunity here after graduation, the M Club, the law school and things like that,” Harvey said in the article.
In the 1970s I wrote a cover story for Corporate Report magazine with Harvey’s photo in the foreground and a domed stadium in the background. The Twins and Vikings were getting restless about the limited capacity and revenue sources at Met Stadium. Harvey, as president of the Minneapolis Chamber of Commerce, helped lead a drive that eventually turned a domed stadium into the reality of the Metrodome.
The Metrodome opened in 1982 and a couple of years later Twins owner CalvinGriffith could break his lease if not enough tickets were sold. He could then relocate the franchise if he chose to do so. Harvey got an idea and marshalled the help of others in the business community. One day he walked up to the stadium box office and ordered 45,400 tickets to alleviate the problem, according to a 1984 New York Times article.
Several months before that Harvey chased down Arkansas head football coach LouHoltz, and with U AD Paul Giel in the hospital, convinced Holtz to take the Gophers’ job. Harvey revered Giel who was an All-American golden boy as a Gopher athlete, a star for the ages in football and baseball in the early 1950s who became Minnesota’s athletic director in 1971. (BTW) Tom Brokaw will tell you about riding the train from South Dakota in his youth to watch Giel run and pass the football for the Gophers in Memorial Stadium.
At my request several years ago, Harvey spoke to a club that I belong to and he brought up Giel’s name. “If 100 people walked into a room where Paul Giel was, 100 people wouldn’t like Paul Giel. 100 people would love him.”
Harvey has maintained a connection to Gopher football to this day and he has built a friendship with coach P.J. Fleck. “Happy birthday, Harvey,” Fleck said last week. “Harvey has been very instrumental in…my time here. He always says, ‘I only need 37 seconds.’
“He’s given me some incredible wisdom and perspective in the six years I’ve been here, and he’s become a really good friend to me. He’s been in our locker room…after games, and he’s always just there to be able to talk through some things.”
P.J. Fleck
Fleck said Harvey will ask him what is going on and what he’s thinking about to gauge the coach’s state of mind. “He always has something for that exact way of thinking of the thing that I am going through, and I think that’s what makes him special,” Fleck said. “It’s not just some broad terms, he really breaks it down to what I am doing, what our team is doing and really kind of hits home the message.
“But one thing always sticks out to me is, ’I need 37 seconds.’ …That’s how he gets in the door.”
Harvey has relished challenges all his life. Deep into his adult years he decided to become a superb amateur tennis player and he did by taking lessons and having a dogged pursuit of his goal.
More than 30 years ago Minnesotans scoffed at the idea of Minneapolis hosting the Super Bowl. Mona remembers everyone thought it was a crazy idea to convince NFL powers to come here in the dead of winter, but Harvey said, “We’re going to win this.”
Then he proceeded to sell everyone on all the assets and things this area has to offer. With the efforts of Harvey and many others, Minneapolis won the bid for the 1992 Super Bowl. The city also hosted the 2018 Super Bowl.
Harvey is famous for his Mackay Morals in his columns and books. One of them is: Life is 10 percent how you make it and 90 percent how you take it.
Over the decades Harvey has gotten up off the mat many times. In his birthday email to me in 2021 he wrote about his months of struggles with COVID. Whether it’s illness or a back issue hospitalizing Harvey, he always fights back. He loves life and every second is precious.
My phone calls with him most always include a warning about his time constraints. He describes time management as the most important management of all. It is the one resource we cannot buy or replace. That’s why those in Harvey’s world can expect brief phone calls and sometimes at odd hours of the day and night.
Greg Bailey, Harvey’s right-hand man for all things needed, was asked if there is a curfew on the calls? “That’s gotten better. He used to call pretty much any time but now he doesn’t call before 6:30, 7 in the morning and (after) 11 at night.”
Harvey can view sleep as a waste of time. I remember decades ago when it was a big deal for Americans to visit Fidel Castro’s Cuba. Harvey was part of a business delegation that visited Havana, and he didn’t go to sleep while he was there because he didn’t want to miss anything.
Bailey smiled when a visitor referred to him as Harvey’s do-it-all assistant. “It’s almost like a marriage,” Bailey said. “When he had dinner with my wife, when I was almost hired for the job, he asked, ‘You know this is kind of like a marriage if we get together? My wife turned to him and said, ‘As long as you remember I am his first wife.’ “
Bailey’s life is more exciting than when he was writing annual reports pre-Harvey. He talks about the fun of those Gopher football trips and “rubbing shoulders” with some of the most famous people on the planet including Muhammad Ali. “It’s been 27 plus years working hand-in-hand. Very interesting, that’s for sure.”
Harvey and wife Carol Ann were close friends with Ali and his wife Lonnie. Ali is gone now as is another friend, Larry King. They would have been entertained at a mega birthday bash Harvey is throwing in November in Phoenix. Friends are coming in from all over for a celebration weekend that includes an Elton John concert November 11 at Chase Field. Harvey will also celebrate tomorrow night with a smaller gathering at an Arizona restaurant.
Before Harvey ever bonded with Ali, he did his homework and learned the heavyweight boxing champion—sometimes referred to as the most famous person in the world—loved magic and performed tricks. Well, guess who taught himself magic to make an impression?
Harvey can also play tricks on his friends. He shared a story awhile back about Ali and King that is a favorite. “Larry loved boxing and Muhammad Ali,” Harvey wrote via email. “He once wrote in his column in USA Today that meeting Muhammad was ‘the biggest thrill in my life … I couldn’t sleep last night … chills running up and down my spine.’
“One night I was having dinner with Larry in New York, and I brought Muhammad with me as a surprise. Suddenly a woman came up and said, ‘Oh, Mr. Mackay, I’ve read all your books … Can I have your autograph?’
“Larry went nuts and said, ‘Don’t you know who this is? This is Muhammad Ali. Don’t you want his autograph?’
“I looked at Larry and said you bit it hook, line and sinker. I paid her $50 an hour to come up and ask for my autograph.
“We were still laughing about that years later. But the point is don’t ever be boring. Don’t be predictable. Show some creativity with your friends and have some fun.”
Mona and his wife Linda will be part of the group that will be on the receiving end of that creativity and fun next month for the birthday extravaganza in Phoenix. Mona marvels at the life Harvey has led and the vibrancy he still possesses.
“He is a lifetime learner. It’s amazing as he approaches 90. …He is one of the most curious people I’ve ever met.”
That’s Harvey. He will find something that intrigues him and off he goes.
“He’s never allowed himself to go stale,” Mona said. “Constantly looking for new mountains to climb, new things to master. …Quality golfer who became a world-class tennis player. How often does something like that happen? But he has always kept himself in good shape and he has remained both physically and mentally active, and he loves a challenge. Because if he hears someone is (an) underdog he wants to get involved.”
Oh, and BTW, earlier this month Harvey came out with a new book: HarveyMackay’s ABCs of Success. It’s a busy fall for Harvey—just the way he likes it.
