If the Vikings task of upsetting the reigning Super Bowl champion Chiefs this weekend wasn't enough as is, the NFL powers that be gifted Vikings fans the CBS No. 1 broadcast crew of Jim Nantz, Tony Romo Tracy Wolfson.
Sounds great until you realize there might be a Jim Nantz Curse hiding in plain sight.
Minnesota last won a game with Nantz in the booth back in 2013 when they beat the Steelers 34-27 in London. Every Vikings game Nantz has done since has been an ugly loss for the Purple.
Last season, when the Vikings went 13-4 in the regular season, Nantz was on the call for two of the games and both were embarrassing blowouts. Nantz had the game that saw CBS dump its national coverage early because the Cowboys were killing the Vikings. And then in Week 17 it was Nantz on the call for the Packers' 41-17 destruction clobbering of the Vikings at Lambeau Field.
Not even the Case Keenum-led Vikings that reached the NFC title game could overcome the Jim Nantz Curse in 2017. In 2018, Nantz was on the call when Josh Allen jumped over Anthony Barr and the Bills slaughtered the Vikings as huge underdogs.
This thing might be real, folks. We're talking about 10 years and six straight losses for the Vikings when Nantz is the announcer. Here's a brief summary of each Nantz disaster.
2016 Thanksgiving @ Detroit | 16-13 Lions
Vikings and Lions traded first quarter touchdowns but as families across America settled into turkey lunches the two teams decided to feature their kickers, with Detroit's Matt Prater nailing a game-winning 40-yard field goal as time expired.
2017 Week 14 @ Carolina | 31-24 Panthers
Minnesota made up an 11-point fourth quarter deficit with a 52-yard Keenum TD pass to Adam Thielen, and two-point conversion to Blake Bell. Then Kai Forbath hit a field goal to tie the game, all of that happenign in the space of 2 minutes, 29 seconds.
And then Cam Newton busted off a 62-yard run with 2:24 left in the game to set up the game-winning touchdown.
2018 Week 3 vs. Buffalo | 27-6 Bills
The Josh Allen game. Do we need to say more?
Allen hurdled Barr, scored twice on the ground and added another in the air as the 0-2 Bills beat the Vikings at U.S. Bank Stadium.
2019 Week 4 @ Chicago | 16-6 Bears
The Chase Daniel-led Bears beat the Vikings as Dalvin Cook was held to just 35 rushing yards on 14 carries. Eddie Pineiro made three field goals for the Bears. Honest to the football gods, the Jim Nantz Curse is so strong that Minnesota couldn't beat Chase Daniel.
2022 Week 10 vs. Dallas | 40-3 Cowboys
Minnesota followed up one of the best wins of the 2022 season with the biggest loss of the season as the Dallas offense racked up 458 yards in the 40-3 stomping. The game was so out of hand that CBS switched the national audience to a different game.
2022 Week 17 @ Green Bay | 41-17 Packers
Justin Jefferson was held to just one catch while Cousins turned the ball over four times.
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