There was way, way, waaaay too much cheering for Kai Forbath's 33-yard field goal attempt that ricocheted off the right upright and over the crossbar for a 9-7 Vikings lead with 14 minutes, 11 seconds left in the fourth quarter of Thursday night's game against the Cowboys at U.S. Bank Stadium.
It was the Vikings' first lead after they opened scoring with a field goal. It's also where they lost the game that would finish with the Cowboys' 11th straight win, 17-15.
A four-play, 4-yard "drive" ruined what should have been defensive end Brian Robison's shining, season-saving moments. One of the oldest players on the field, Robison willed the Vikings' offense the ball on back-to-back plays in the closing seconds of the third quarter.
He overwhelmed tight end Gavin Escobar, who was called for holding. Then, on first-and-20, Robison beat right tackle Doug Free badly, turned the corner and swatted the ball out of rookie quarterback Dak Prescott's hand. Defensive end Everson Griffen fell on the ball at the Dallas 19.
And how did the offense repay this stadium-shaking, tide-turning series of events?
Snap 1: Left tackle T.J. Clemmings false-started. For the second time in the game. Yes, at home, although Cowboys fans were well-represented.
His first false start came on the opening drive and was one of two penalties to kill that possession. That drive came after the Vikings forced the Cowboys to punt after only four snaps, a rarity for a team that had scored on seven of 11 game-opening possessions while posting 10 consecutive wins in a league-best 10-1 start.
The second false start derailed momentum from Robison's strip sack.
"It is what it is; I can't control any of the stuff that happens on the other side of the ball," Robison said. "All I can do when I'm on the field is go play ball. We put three points on the board. We needed to put seven up."