A few weeks ago, when the Vikings lost to the Chicago Bears, it was clear that despite all the faults with the defense, coaching staff and offensive supporting cast, Kirk Cousins was largely to blame for the loss. This week’s nail-biter against the Chiefs isn’t remotely similar, with gaffes on special teams, the defense and offense all serving as potential turning points of the game — while a couple of bounces of the ball might have helped had they had gone the other way.



Had Cousins played better, the Vikings probably would have won. Had the defense played better, the Vikings probably would have won. Had special teams played better, the Vikings probably would have won. And on and on.



The issue with close games is that it’s difficult to form overarching takeaways without confronting the fact that if one of the final two Harrison Butker field goals strays from its mark, we might be talking about why the Vikings won without any material change in...