MINNEAPOLIS — There is only one lace, threaded through 16 holes, on an official N.F.L. game ball. When a holder sets the ball for a kicker, the rule of thumb is “laces out” — meaning the holder should rotate the ball to put the lace on the side facing the goal posts. Something about the way that white strip meets the kicker’s foot can make the ball fly in unpredictable directions.
On Sunday, the lacing was facing in on a crucial Vikings kick, and now Minnesota is out of the playoffs. A chip-shot field-goal attempt by Minnesota’s Blair Walsh with 22 seconds remaining drifted left of the uprights, giving the Seattle Seahawks a 10-9 victory in the third-coldest game in N.