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1998, 2009, or 2017


wcblack34

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I am going to take a different approach.

1998 was great, even though I was also fairly young myself.  We were unfortunate enough to land an elite talent later in the first round due to off-field issues.  Moss destroyed the league and we cobbled together one, final great season from Randall Cunningham.  The team was fun and incredibly explosive.  It felt like catching a lightning in a bottle, which it largely proved to be as Cunningham fell off and many players seemed to post a career season (Jimmy Hitchcock).  Entertaining, heartbreaking, though it seemed fleeting regardless.

2009 felt like mercenaries coming together to win a battle.  There's the obvious Favre angle, yet it also felt as though the team in general was just pieced together and could fall apart at any moment.  As was mentioned, some less than likeable characters on this outfit as well.  Don't get me wrong; it was heartbreaking losing to the Saints.  It was a golden opportunity.  I just did not feel the same affinity for this squad as I did for 1998.

2017 has been a slow burn.  Starting with Zimmer and the continued maturation of Spielman as GM, it feels as though we have been building towards this.  The players are likeable.  There are no knuckleheads.  If players fail, it never seems to be due to lack of effort/being a primadonna.  While things can change in a heartbeat in the NFL, there is the foundation of something potentially special.  A mix of homegrown stars (Rhodes/Smith/Griffen) along with free agent acquisitions who seem to have bought-in to the cause (Joseph/Newman, etc.).  While there have been better Vikings teams in my years following the team, not sure I have ever enjoyed one more, even if the on-field product can be a bit bland at times.

Not diminishing 1998 or 2009.  Both great teams.  Just feel more of a kinship with the current squad.

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All you young whippersnappers!  It's not an option but for me...1969!  The leadership and toughness of Joe Kapp at Quarterback, and the Purple People Eaters at their most destructive!  That was a fun team to watch.  That's pretty much when I really became a Vikings fanatic!

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Wow, I just did some recon on 1998. The Vikings were 11 point favorites against the Falcons, sheeesshh!! The Broncos were then 7.5 point favorites against them in the SB, meaning the Vikes would have probably been a FG favorite to win the SB prior to the Falcons game. Looking at it through that lens and having those high expectations through-out the entire year, it'd be tough to pick that year?  

I live in Wisconsin soooo 2009 is a no brainer for me. 

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34 minutes ago, PaulWall_23 said:

Wow, I just did some recon on 1998. The Vikings were 11 point favorites against the Falcons, sheeesshh!! The Broncos were then 7.5 point favorites against them in the SB, meaning the Vikes would have probably been a FG favorite to win the SB prior to the Falcons game. Looking at it through that lens and having those high expectations through-out the entire year, it'd be tough to pick that year?  

I live in Wisconsin soooo 2009 is a no brainer for me. 

No, the Vikings still would have been the underdog in the Super Bowl, considering how many players suffered injuries in the NFCC and likely wouldn't have been able to play...or at the very least, would have been shadows of themselves....a mediocre defense would have been utterly awful.

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31 minutes ago, disaacs said:

No, the Vikings still would have been the underdog in the Super Bowl, considering how many players suffered injuries in the NFCC and likely wouldn't have been able to play...or at the very least, would have been shadows of themselves....a mediocre defense would have been utterly awful.

I'm not necessarily willing to concede that.  The Vikings offense was the special part of that team, and it was intact.

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I was only 11 in 1998, so I didn't really have a deep understanding of much. I was in college in 2009 and it was a blast, but for whatever reason it no longer feels very special. I think because of the depth of this roster, this is the one I'll remember for a while. We're doing this with our backup RB and a guy who came into the season third in the pecking order for most fans. This isn't an old team either, so you get the feeling this can be sustained.

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Easy question to answer...in 1998 I was still a Packer fan, so that eliminates that year from consideration lol.  The 2009 season was special to me, as I felt we were the "team of destiny" so to speak, only to be robbed in the NFCCG.  This season has  been great, but I always feel like we are fighting an uphill battle, for some reason.

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1 hour ago, Klomp said:

I was only 11 in 1998, so I didn't really have a deep understanding of much. I was in college in 2009 and it was a blast, but for whatever reason it no longer feels very special. I think because of the depth of this roster, this is the one I'll remember for a while. We're doing this with our backup RB and a guy who came into the season third in the pecking order for most fans. This isn't an old team either, so you get the feeling this can be sustained.

This is a great answer. I feel the same. 

I will say the 1998 cemented my fandom because of the explosive nature of the offense. It was so different watching that team steamroll everyone. Losing that game made me feel a fierce loyalty and desire to overcome a single loss.

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I was just old enough in 98 to realize how dominant we were and how amazing the Moss/Carter duo was. I remember looking at the newspaper sports section and seeing "15-1" and feeling like a bad ***.

2009 was cool because that was another great offense, and the exceptions were big when Favre joined. We played that season like I thought we would.

This year has definitely been the weirdest. After blowing that 5-0 start last season I didn't really know what to make of this season going in. I didn't have any expectations, so everything has been a bonus. This isn't the most exciting team to watch, but seeing us go 13-3 in the regular season and now about to play in another NFC Championship is interesting.

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FWIW, I was hopeful the Packers would draft Moss, thinking he and Favre would be an unstoppable combination.  Instead they drafted a DE who they ultimately allowed to leave via free agency.  Then Ron Wolf spent the first three draft picks the next season on DB's in order to counter the effect Moss had on their defense!  IIRC, two of those three picks were coming off injuries.

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