Rand: Adversity hasn't tripped up Vikings this season

Four thoughts from an up-and-down weekend in local sports:

There was Vikings quarterback Teddy Bridgewater, first taking a cheap-shot hit low and well after the play by a Gregg Williams-coached Rams defender (no penalty) and then taking one in the helmet, a hit that drew a flag, enraged coach Mike Zimmer and knocked Bridgewater out of the game.

If the sight of a Vikings quarterback who means a lot to his team getting twisted, slammed and hit in vulnerable positions and after plays were over by a Williams defense looked familiar, there's a reason, of course.

Williams was the Saints defensive coordinator in 2009, where he was at the heart of the Bountygate scandal that played out in particularly ugly fashion as Brett Favre took cheap shot after cheap shot from the New Orleans defense in the NFC title game.

The Vikings, of course, lost in heartbreaking fashion.

And later, there was Vikings kicker Blair Walsh lined up for a field goal Sunday that would clinch the win for his team. If it was familiar to see a slightly built Vikings kicker in this position — to continue this NFC title-game misery analogy — there's a reason. Gary Anderson, 1998.

The Vikings, of course, lost in heartbreaking fashion.

Even with Bridgewater knocked out. Even after giving the Rams a reprieve with some questionable offense late in the game. Even with all things considered, Zimmer — who gets major kudos for rolling the dice and taking the wind in overtime — got the Vikings to 6-2 and now tied for the NFC North lead.

It wasn't a good weekend for overturned calls and Minnesota football teams. First, it was the targeting penalty getting reversed in the Gophers game, a major play in a 28-14 loss at Ohio State. Then there was the pass interference initially ruled against the Rams on Sunday but changed on the field to be called on the Vikings — with the result of the play being an interception.

We're only five games into the Timberwolves' season, but their 3-2 record — rare enough in and of itself after they won only 16 games last season — has been achieved in the most peculiar way. After an overtime victory at Chicago on Saturday, the Wolves is 3-0 on the road and 0-2 at home. You might be hard-pressed to find another Minnesota team in any major sport to start that way.

Plenty of us, myself included, noted the backslide of Wild goalie Devan Dubnyk through the early part of the season — a continuation of a trend that started in last year's playoffs. It's only fair, then, to also give Dubnyk credit where it's due: his 1-0 shutout of Tampa Bay on Saturday, in the first full game after Zach Parise's injury, was a masterpiece and a statement.