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The Vikings were slight favorites to beat the Bears in a showdown between a couple of NFC North teams who headed into Sunday with a single win on the season, and Minnesota was ultimately able to prevail with the 19-13 victory over Chicago—a triumph Kirk Cousins says may have had something to do with Creed.
Creed will always have a place in NFL history thanks to the legendary halftime show they treated the world to on Thanksgiving in 2001, and while Scott Stapp and Co. are basically America’s Nickelback, their music has not only managed to stand the test of time but has become a notable motivator for multiple professional sports franchises.
Earlier this month, the Texas Rangers revealed they’d harnessed the power of Creed to turn things around after a midseason slump en route to punching their ticket to the postseason and earning the right to face off against the Astros in the ALCS.
According to Inside the Vikings, Minnesota opted to take a page out of their playbook prior to their showdown with the Bears, as Cousins had this to say when asked about how the team geared up for the game against their divisional rivals:
“Garrett Bradbury, in the locker room pregame, took a clip from the Texas Rangers and made sure that Creed got played before we went out on the field. And I felt like that may have made the difference. So we’ve got that going for us.”
The QB noted they specifically listened to “Higher” in the locker room but noted “They’ve got quite a catalog” while hinting they could dive a bit deeper into the band’s oeuvre to see if there are any other tracks with the ability to generate the same kind of positive vibes.
Correlation may not imply causation, but it’s becoming increasingly harder to ignore the mounting evidence that suggests Creed may be the key to gaining a psychological edge on the field.