The Vikings are making a habit of having someone step up with a "player of the week" performance.
For the seventh time in 15 games this season, they've claimed one of the three weekly NFC awards. This time, it's their first repeat winner, as kicker Greg Joseph has earned his second NFC special teams player of the week nod. Joseph also won the award following the Week 4 London game, when he hit five field goals.
This time, Joseph was rewarded for his franchise record 61-yard game-winning field goal to beat the Giants in the final seconds of Saturday's game. It was the second-longest field goal made in the NFL this season.
Joseph also made a 40-yard field goal earlier in the game and went three for three on extra points. After some serious struggles this season — he missed five extra points and five FGAs from 50-plus between weeks 3 and 12 — Joseph has come to life recently. He's made his last 21 kicks dating back to the second half of the Patriots game in Week 12, including game-winners in two consecutive weeks now.
When Joseph went out to the midfield logo to try to give the Vikings' their 12th win of the season, he was attempting a field goal that was five yards longer than his career high of 56. That wasn't an issue. He struck the ball so perfectly that it split the uprights down the middle with several yards to spare.
"I had my aiming point," Joseph said. "It went right down my line. Once I looked up and saw it on that line, I felt good, knew it was good, and then just watched it through."
Joseph now has five game-winning field goals this season, which is tied for the most ever. One more would give him the record all to himself.
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