MINNEAPOLIS — The Vikings delivered warmth and love on a cold and blustery Valentine's Day.

Players, Legends, staff, cheerleaders and — of course — Viktor the Viking made visits to three children's hospitals Friday, connecting with patients and family members and handing out Valentine's Day goodies.

Brady, 16, is currently a patient at M Health Fairview Masonic Children's Hospital and is a big sports fan. So when Vikings QB J.J. McCarthy and his fiancé Katya stopped by, Brady and his dad John were thrilled to chat about football and father-son activities.

John, ironically wearing a hoodie representing a division-rival team, explained he had "officially" declared himself a Vikings fan after seeing the culture Head Coach Kevin O'Connell has built within Minnesota's locker room.

That culture was on full display Friday.

"We've met other [athletes], too, and they've all been so great, but J.J. really went above and beyond, relating with Brady and playing video games with him," John said. "He also gave Brady a nice little pep talk and said what he's going through is much bigger than what they do [on the football field]."

When Brady, who also undergoes treatments in Pittsburgh, and John showed McCarthy a photo they'd taken in front of Penn Stadium, McCarthy pulled out his phone and scrolled, then showed them a snapshot of himself at a younger age with his own father. The two were standing in front of a college stadium.

"My dad and I did the same thing," McCarthy told them with a smile.

"It was really cool," Brady later said. "J.J. was so good. He was so nice."

McCarthy asked John if it would be OK for him to stay in contact with the family and receive updates on Brady's treatments.

The gesture spoke volumes.

"Again, he went so above and beyond and was so comfortable, said he wants to stay updated and these things," John said. "It was very cool. It made us very, very happy today."

Connecting with the community comes naturally for McCarthy and his Vikings teammates. Blake Cashman (Taylor), Mekhi Blackmon (Evelia) and Zavier Scott (McKenna) also brought their Valentines to visit patients at M Health Fairview Masonic Children's Hospital. Samantha Van Ginkel, wife of Andrew Van Ginkel, and Vikings Legend Rickey Young made room visits and delivered gifts, as well. Earlier in the day, Vikings guests visited Children's Minnesota Hospital – Minneapolis and Children's Minnesota Hospital – St. Paul.

M Health Fairview Patient Family Engagement Coordinator Petra Eastling noted the impact such visits make on patients and families.

"One of the biggest things about the hospital setting, especially when you're referring to kids, is that a lot of 'choice' is taken away … They don't get a lot of say in the things that happen to them here," she said. "So to have something fun like this where they can make a choice and say, 'Yeah, I would love to meet a Vikings player,' it's really just a bright spot in their day.

"It's really impactful, even if they might not verbalize it in the moment," Eastling added. "It makes a huge, huge difference."

Cashman, Blackmon and their significant others made room visits together and spread cheer to young people from infancy all the way up to 19-year-old Noah, who said he and his family had watched Cashman since his Minnesota Gophers days. Noah lamented with the defensive teammates about their early exit in the playoffs in January.

"I really thought you guys might go all the way this year," Noah said, "but maybe next year!"

When 7-year-old Toby felt anxious and shy, Blackmon encouraged him, "Don't be nervous, brother. Guess what? I'm nervous, too."

The cornerback knelt down and spoke softly with Toby, who then showed Blackmon his Nintendo Switch and walked him through Minecraft.

Cashman and Blackmon autographed copies of Where's Viktor's Mustache books for the patients, posted for photos together and dropped off teddy bears and Valentine's Day treats.

"This is always one of those experiences that myself and the other players really enjoy, because we love to hang around kids," said Cashman, who visited the same hospital during his collegiate days at the University of Minnesota. "The kids here, they don't often get to get out and have a new experience, so to give something fresh and exciting during hard times, I think it just brightens their day."

He and Blackmon enjoyed meeting 15-year-old Naomi, one of 10 siblings who joked that her brothers would be jealous when they heard she'd met a pair of Vikings.

"Meeting these patients, having these conversations with families — like Naomi's family full of Vikings fans — there's a lot of common interest we can share and talk about and just spend quality time together," Cashman said.

Blackmon was sidelined for his rookie campaign with a torn ACL but said he's still enjoyed investing in the Twin Cities community and spreading joy to Vikings fans.

"When I was younger, not in the same situation as these kids, but I wished somebody would have come and given back, come and met me, so I wanted to do something like this," Blackmon said. "And with it being Valentine's Day today, they're a little more amped up with us coming to see them and give them a little love."

He especially was touched by one room visit, where the family of a 9-year-old boy had received extremely difficult news the night before. Upon entering, Blackmon didn't hesitate to comfort the boy's grandmother in a heartfelt embrace.

"I kind of teared up myself," he said. "It's just so hard to see these families in these different situations. These kids are all younger than us, and they're going through such hard things.

"You could tell they needed us here today, so I'm really glad that we came," Blackmon added.