Three weeks in a row? Really?

Oh, it’s in their heads now. There’s no escaping from it. And if ever a season appeared lost after three games, it is this one. The Vikings have melted down so many times Al Gore is starting to take an interest. Global warming must be involved. On Sunday they turned a 20-0 halftime lead into a 26-23 overtime loss to the Detroit Lions.

I don’t know how they did it. They don’t know how they did it.

“I don’t know if there is a magic formula,” coach Leslie Frazier said.

Here’s a suggestion: Have someone sing “The Star-Spangled Banner” at halftime. It might trick the guys into thinking they’re playing the first half again.

“I told our guys I am extremely proud of them,” Frazier said. “A lot of teams wouldn’t have come out with the energy and effort that our team came out with today. We battled them right until the end.”

What? Are you going to give them trophies, too? Is this like a fourth-grade gymnastics meet?

“The loss we had last week was really a tough loss,” Frazier explained. “For our guys to bounce back and play the way they did today …”

Les, they lost last week the same way they lost the week before. The same way they lost this week. They coughed up a big lead in the second half. Apparently, it’s what they do.

Geez, somebody get a medic over here. Better yet, send in the psychiatrists. And not those modern, touch-feely therapists, either. I’m not OK, you’re not OK. Bring in some of those old-fashioned analysts with the pointy beards, monocles and German accents. They know how to get to the heart of a problem. These Vikings have issues.

Lay down, fellas, and tell us about your childhood trauma. Did a bully steal the last half of your lunch sandwich? Did mom turn off the second half of your favorite TV show? Did you run out of gas halfway to your prom date’s house?

“We were in here at halftime saying, ‘This is not going to happen again,’ ” noted Chad Greenway. “We were in here ready to fight. Everybody was standing up and ready to go. We were ready to go out there and play hard and win, and it didn’t happen.”

“We’re playing outstanding football,” said Kevin Williams. “We’ve just got to play the whole game.”

Kevin was not suggesting that the Vikings defense literally should play the whole game, which is almost what happened. For example, the Vikings offense generated a grand total of six yards in the third quarter. That meant the defense had to work overtime. It also meant the cash customers were writhing in the aisles. They were a collective wreck. Aughh! It can’t be happening again.

“We’re doing the best we can do,” said Anthony Herrera.

This is very discouraging. It’s the end of the world as we know it. Three straight weeks of spontaneous second-half combustion. No lead is safe. On Sunday, despite that 20-0 lead, the tension at the Dome was palpable at the start of the second half. The purple faithful know a trend when they see one. Knuckles were white, jaws were clenched.

Sure enough, all of a sudden Donovan McNabb couldn’t make a play to save his life. The play calling was … curious. The secondary couldn’t cover Lions receivers in key situations, and that was despite the fact that the Vikings got good pressure on quarterback Matt Stafford all day.

Afterwards, Frazier said he had no plans to make any changes at quarterback. “I don’t think our quarterback position is our problem,” Frazier said.

I’d disagree. It isn’t the only problem but it certainly is a problem. So far, McNabb has been mediocre at best and a non-factor at his worst. Now, it is going to be very, very difficult to lose to Kansas City next weekend. The Chiefs are horrible. That victory could buy some time for all concerned. But eventually Frazier probably will have to cut his losses and start developing Christian Ponder during games.

Perhaps the most curious aspect of the whole afternoon was the Vikings’ post-game attitude. Sure, they were sad that they lost. But to a man they insisted that they played, for the most part, quite well. The coach proclaimed that he was proud. Guys talked about holding their heads high after such a good effort.

Not that anyone expects them to just give up. Yet they honestly seem to believe that they have played well enough to win three times and are somehow the victims of circumstance. Clearly they believe they are the best 0-3 football team in the history of football. That likely falls under the category of delusions of grandeur.

Have those shrinks arrive yet?

Tom Powers can be reached at tpowers@pioneerpress.com.