How does an NFL team go from a 5-0 anticipated Super Bowl contender to a 6-5 team fighting for a playoff spot? Injuries to multiple key starting players is the easy answer, especially when one position group is hit extra hard.
Case in point: this year's Minnesota Vikings.
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It's the bane of a GM or head coach's existence — watching a potentially great season slip slide away because of an excessive dose of the injury bug.
I've been there during my NFL management career and saw a season lost as the injuries piled up, so I feel the pain of Vikings GM Rick Spielman and head coach Mike Zimmer.