After the Minnesota Vikings lost their fourth straight game and were shut out for the first time in 18 years, coach Kevin O'Connell simplified the game plan for the offense — and the focus for the entire team as the calendar turned to December.

The Vikings, who had started the season 10-0 before finishing 12-2, hosted the 10-4 Cowboys, who were the wild-card because the Cardinals (yes, the Cardinals) had won the NFC East. The Vikings led late, 14-10. It didn’t last.

Last offseason, Detroit proposed that four division champs and three wild cards from each conference make the playoffs and be seeded by record. That format wouldn't help the Vikings this year, but it would've guaranteed them a top-three seed and a home game in last season's playoffs.

CBS Sports' Ryan Wilson recently released the latest 2026 NFL mock draft of the cycle. Within it, the Vikings were attached to a defender with NFL bloodlines, Avieon Terrell. The Clemson cornerback has seen himself be attached to the first round of mock drafts since the Spring, but rarely have we seen him paired with the Vikings.

Kevin O’Connell’s culture is still strong. Winning four straight games to even their record at 8-8 cost the Vikings a handful of slots in the NFL draft, but it reinforced that O’Connell still has plenty of respect in the locker room. The Vikings didn’t quit this year, and that’s important.

The Minnesota Vikings hit the road to face the New York Giants last week. They arrived later than anticipated and limped out of the Meadowlands with a

This is the 65th season of Vikings football. The only seasons they've been skunked from the Pro Bowl previously were in 2014, Mike Zimmer's first year as head coach, and 1983, which was Bud Grant's would-be final season as coach until he returned in 1985 after the Les Steckel disaster of 1984.

The Minnesota Vikings close out the regular season on Sunday against the Green Bay Packers, and Kevin O'Connell is hoping J.J. McCarthy can return from an injury to his throwing hand.