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The 2025 season is not what the Minnesota Vikings had in mind after finishing 14-3 last year.
Entering Sunday, the Vikings had lost four straight games, falling to 4-8 with very little playoff hope heading into a contest against the Washington Commanders. But when the clock hit zero at US Bank Stadium, the score read 31-0 in favor of the home team.
The Vikings looked dominant a season ago, and a pregame message from head coach Kevin O’Connell could be the main reason.
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Minnesota Vikings linebacker Andrew Van Ginkel (43) celebrates after sacking Seattle Seahawks quarterback Sam Darnold (14) in the second quarter on Sunday, Nov. 30, 2025, at Lumen Field in Seattle. (Anthony Souffle/The Minnesota Star Tribune)
Defensive captain Harrison Smith gasped in the Vikings’ locker room after snapping their four-game winning streak, where he told FOX 9 KMSP that O’Connell wanted his team to channel his high school self. It’s a relevant message because when playoff chances are slim toward the end of a season, players sometimes ease off the gas.
O’Connell reminded his players of those days when the NFL was just a dream, and Smith’s teammates, Josh Metellus and Andrew Van Ginkel, felt he was perfect heading into his final home game.
“As soon as KO said it, I whispered under my breath, ‘Go get it,'” Metellus told Pak Gazette Digital after he and Van Ginkel helped Raising Cane’s donate 100 kids’ bikes to the Boys & Girls Club of The Twin Cities in Minneapolis on Monday. “That’s what I would tell myself right now if my 16-year-old self was talking to me right now. ‘Go get it. Leave it all on the line and whatever happens, happens.’
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“That’s how I’ve been my entire career up to this point, and KO brought me back to that moment. It was really special.”
For Metellus, O’Connell’s message reminded him of those high school days when he wasn’t recruited as much as his teammates at Charles W. Flanagan High School in Pembroke Pines, Florida. He would eventually get a chance to play for the Michigan Wolverines, but Metellus went to every Friday night game telling himself the same thing.
Joshua Metellus of the Minnesota Vikings is on the field before an NFL football game against the Los Angeles Chargers at SoFi Stadium on October 23, 2025 in Inglewood, California. (Brooke Sutton/Getty Images)
Go get it.
“I think, especially for me, hearing that message, I’ve had a different path to success than a lot of guys have had. I was thinking about high school, 16 years old and no offers and playing with a group of guys that were really good, highly recruited. Always coming in and telling myself on a Friday night, ‘I just got it. Whatever you want to do, just go get it,'” Metellus explained. “I knew everything I wanted was in front of me. I heard the stories, I saw the success stories of the guys, and I just pushed myself and went out and got it. I always knew I would be where I wanted to be.”
When Van Ginkel heard the message, he remembered his high school days at Rock Valley Community in Iowa.
“It’s huge just because we’ve been playing this game, many of us since grade school and high school. In those days, you would dream of playing college football, playing in the NFL,” he said. “To play against [Commanders star] Jayden Daniels, who is an elite quarterback, getting back on that field and being in the NFL is a big deal and something we shouldn’t take lightly because it could be gone in the blink of an eye. Always be out there with enthusiasm and joy, and remember that your younger self would die to do this.”
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Van Ginkel played a vital role in the victory, intercepting Daniels after perfectly reading a fourth-down screen pass in Vikings territory.
At 5-8, the Vikings still have very little hope of making the playoffs, but they are still living the dream. That’s what O’Connell wanted to remind his team, and that’s what excited Smith.
It’s safe to say the Vikings will finish these four remaining games playing like it’s the last one of each week because, as they both said, the NFL is never promised.
Make the most of the time you spend playing the game you love.
GIVE BACK TO THE COMMUNITY
Metellus and Van Ginkel enjoyed impacting some of the children in their Minneapolis community as they partnered with Raising Cane’s for their sixth annual bike giveaway.
The gift of some holiday cheer and new wheels for these kids to ride is bigger than last year, as Raising Cane’s is giving away more than 4,000 bikes nationwide compared to 2,500 last year.
Josh Metellus and Andrew Van Ginkel smile with a child during Raising Cane’s Christmas bike giveaway in Minneapolis on December 8, 2026. (Raising the cane)
“The event was amazing,” Van Ginkel said. “You see the smiles on the kids’ faces, and any way we can bring joy and excitement this holiday season and give back to the Boys & Girls Club, it’s special to me. It means a lot and we thank Raising Cane’s for donating these 100 bikes, and they said they donated 4,000 across the United States. So, it means a lot and I’m excited to be a part of it.”
Metellus added, “I think it’s great that Raising Cane’s blesses these kids with the opportunity to receive a bike and know that the community cares about them. There are people who care about promoting their development in this world. Being a part of this is always special. Because of the way I was raised, I always appreciate these things, especially during the holiday season.”
