Minnesota Vikings: Mitch Leidner could rewrite his Minnesota legacy on Thursday

It’s possible we will see Mitch Leidner in a Minnesota Vikings uniform during an NFL game. Weird.

Minnesota Vikings head coach Mike Zimmer might just possibly play his starters on Thursday night. It’s a crazy thought, but something that might just happen. Something that also might just happen is former Minnesota Gophers quarterback Mitch Leidner playing in an NFL game.

A Leidner rip-fest is not needed. Anyone that watched any Minnesota football over the past few seasons know all about how Leidner played. That being implied, the potential for Leidner playing on Thursday sets up the most Minnesota thing ever: Leidner playing well.

Gopher fans waited for years for Leidner to play up to the potential that was promised, it never happened. Draft experts had Leidner going in the first round of the NFL Draft, he went undrafted. The only thing more Minnesota sports than Leidner as the fourth string quarterback playing well for the Vikings would be if Leidner played well for the Green Bay Packers.

Granted, all of Leidner’s time will come in late in a game that doesn’t matter. As someone who loves Gopher football, it’ll hurt to see the potential success a little bit.

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I wish Leidner the best. No one wants to be beating up on a college quarterback, but it’s hard to see the futility for so long. It got to the point where it wasn’t even Leidner’s fault any more. The Gophers coaches desperately should have found a better option that exposing Leidner to such scrutiny.

It all sets up a Leidner redemption tour that will probably only last for one game in purple. It still could be quite glorious. I hope it happens. I want the last glimpse of Leidner playing for a Minnesota team to be a happy memory in purple and not a reminder of the not-so-happy memories in maroon.

Next: Let's predict the Vikings roster!

The Vikings wrap up their preseason games on Thursday with a contest against the Miami Dolphins. The game is set for a 7:00 kickoff from U.S. Bank Stadium in beautiful downtown Minneapolis.