The Minnesota Vikings authored the biggest comeback in NFL history to clinch the NFC North division title with a 39-36 overtime victory over the Indianapolis Colts on Saturday.
The Vikings erased a 33-0 halftime deficit and grabbed the win on Greg Joseph's 40-yard field goal with two seconds left in the extra session.
The previous largest comeback in NFL history was the Buffalo Bills' rally from a 32-point deficit to beat the Houston Oilers in a Wild Card round playoff game in January, 1993.
"We just pulled off the biggest comeback in NFL history – OK, I need a second," Minnesota quarterback Kirk Cousins said in an onfield interview with NFL Network in Minneapolis.
Cousins connected on three touchdown passes in the fourth quarter. That included a 64-yard TD on a screen pass to Dalvin Cook which was followed by a two-point conversion pass to TJ Hockenson that tied the score at 36-36 with 2:15 left in regulation.
The Vikings also got second-half touchdowns from KJ Osborn, CJ Ham, Justin Jefferson and Adam Thielen while their often maligned defense held the Colts to three points.
Each team punted on their opening possession of overtime, the Vikings finally striking for the win on their second OT opportunity.
Minnesota had won the coin toss and had the first possession of overtime, but their drive stalled. Their defense then forced a punt and the Vikings had the ball at their own 10 yard line with 1:41 to play.
Cousins directed a six-play, 60-yard drive capped by Joseph's game-winner. He threw for a career-high 460 yards, including 417 in the second half and overtime. His four touchdowns helped overcome two interceptions.
The Colts had returned a blocked punt in the first quarter for a touchdown to seize an early 10-lead.
A Vikings fumble then gave Indianapolis the ball for a drive that resulted in another Colts TD.
Minnesota trailed 23-0 when cornerback Chandon Sullivan appeared to return a fumble for a touchdown, but the play had been whistled dead before the fumble.
The Colts then took a 30-0 lead when Julian Blackmon returned a Cousins interception 17 yards for a touchdown.
Indianapolis kicker Chase McLaughlin capped the first-half scoring with the third of his four field goals.
"It was an ugly first half," Cousins said.
He said there "was belief" in the Vikings locker room at halftime, when cornerback Patrick Peterson said "all we need is five touchdowns."
"I thought he was being sarcastic," Cousins admitted.
The Vikings have captured their first division title since 2017.
"It's really the goal every year when the season starts, it's to win your division, get a home playoff game and get in the dance," Cousins said. "That's the first goal, we've been able to secure that. But we've got to play better."
Some of Darwish's last words
"They see their tomorrows slipping out of their reach. And though it seems to them that everything outside this reality is heaven, yet they do not want to go to that heaven. They stay, because they are afflicted with hope." - Mahmoud Darwish, to attendees of the Palestine Festival of Literature, 2008
His life in brief: Born in a village near Galilee, he lived in exile for most of his life and started writing poetry after high school. He was arrested several times by Israel for what were deemed to be inciteful poems. Most of his work focused on the love and yearning for his homeland, and he was regarded the Palestinian poet of resistance. Over the course of his life, he published more than 30 poetry collections and books of prose, with his work translated into more than 20 languages. Many of his poems were set to music by Arab composers, most significantly Marcel Khalife. Darwish died on August 9, 2008 after undergoing heart surgery in the United States. He was later buried in Ramallah where a shrine was erected in his honour.
THE SPECS
Jaguar F-Pace SVR
Engine: 5-litre supercharged V8
Transmission: 8-speed automatic
Power: 542bhp
Torque: 680Nm
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Why seagrass matters
- Carbon sink: Seagrass sequesters carbon up to 35X faster than tropical rainforests
- Marine nursery: Crucial habitat for juvenile fish, crustations, and invertebrates
- Biodiversity: Support species like sea turtles, dugongs, and seabirds
- Coastal protection: Reduce erosion and improve water quality
Other workplace saving schemes
- The UAE government announced a retirement savings plan for private and free zone sector employees in 2023.
- Dubai’s savings retirement scheme for foreign employees working in the emirate’s government and public sector came into effect in 2022.
- National Bonds unveiled a Golden Pension Scheme in 2022 to help private-sector foreign employees with their financial planning.
- In April 2021, Hayah Insurance unveiled a workplace savings plan to help UAE employees save for their retirement.
- Lunate, an Abu Dhabi-based investment manager, has launched a fund that will allow UAE private companies to offer employees investment returns on end-of-service benefits.
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Moral education needed in a 'rapidly changing world'
Moral education lessons for young people is needed in a rapidly changing world, the head of the programme said.
Alanood Al Kaabi, head of programmes at the Education Affairs Office of the Crown Price Court - Abu Dhabi, said: "The Crown Price Court is fully behind this initiative and have already seen the curriculum succeed in empowering young people and providing them with the necessary tools to succeed in building the future of the nation at all levels.
"Moral education touches on every aspect and subject that children engage in.
"It is not just limited to science or maths but it is involved in all subjects and it is helping children to adapt to integral moral practises.
"The moral education programme has been designed to develop children holistically in a world being rapidly transformed by technology and globalisation."
The biog
Name: Mohammed Imtiaz
From: Gujranwala, Pakistan
Arrived in the UAE: 1976
Favourite clothes to make: Suit
Cost of a hand-made suit: From Dh550
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Know your Camel lingo
The bairaq is a competition for the best herd of 50 camels, named for the banner its winner takes home
Namoos - a word of congratulations reserved for falconry competitions, camel races and camel pageants. It best translates as 'the pride of victory' - and for competitors, it is priceless
Asayel camels - sleek, short-haired hound-like racers
Majahim - chocolate-brown camels that can grow to weigh two tonnes. They were only valued for milk until camel pageantry took off in the 1990s
Millions Street - the thoroughfare where camels are led and where white 4x4s throng throughout the festival
