As the television cameras engulfed Jared Allen and a pack of reporters scurried toward his locker stall Wednesday, the Vikings defensive end cracked his neck, smiled and turned on the charm.
Mired in the frustration of his team's 0-4 start, Allen wasn't about to go all Eeyore with his outlook. Instead, he was charismatic and jovial, unwilling to show his frustrations.
"Last year was a tough year," Allen said. "There was a lot of negativity around here. And at times I found myself right in the heap of it. So I'm trying to be more focused on the positives this year. I'm trying to have a little more fun."
Besides, Allen reasoned, at least this fall's struggles haven't stirred a national inquisition the way last season's soap operas often did.
"We only have to deal with the local guys now every day," Allen said. "We don't have the national media calling us losers, which is cool. I don't know. It's just a different feel. Honestly, I don't know how to explain it."
A month's worth of losing can create a contagious aggravation in most NFL locker rooms. But strangely, many of these Vikings say they still feel upbeat, believing they have answers to turn things around.
Seems odd, but that's the feeling.
And in what has been an odd season in many ways, there may be little stranger than the Vikings' zero sum turnover margin.