The votes are in, and Kyle Rudolph's "Duck, Duck, Gray Duck/Goose" touchdown celebration at Chicago took the cake.
ESPN **polled 151 players across the league** about their favorite celebration, and the childhood game – whose official name **sparked a widespread debate** – received 35 votes, or 23 percent.
ESPN recapped the score, the well-executed celebration and the dispute on semantics.
Rudolph gets creative after connecting with QB Case Keenum for a 13-yard score in the third quarter of the Vikings 20-17 win over the Bears in Week 5. Upon catching his second touchdown pass of the season, eight of Rudolph's teammates sit in a circle in the end zone as the tight end strikes up a good old-fashioned game of "duck, duck, goose." Or, is it "duck, duck, gray duck"? Rudolph came up with the idea in the huddle during the play before the Vikings scored. "Apparently in Minnesota they call it duck, duck, gray duck," Rudolph said. "We call it duck, duck, goose."
Coming in second place with 19 votes was the Steelers re-enactment of hide-and-seek, executed by JuJu Smith-Schuster and Le'Veon Bell.
The third-place (18 votes) celebration came out of Kansas City. After a Travis Kelce touchdown in Week 9, Kelce, Tyreek Hill and Demarcus Robinson lined up and competed in an imaginary potato-sack race.
It seems childhood games are the favorites among players.
Rosenthal: Vikings fans should 'savor' 2017 season
The NFC race is a tight one so far, and the playoff picture – especially in regards to specific seeding – has yet to completely shake out.
NFL.com's Gregg Rosenthal highlighted that the Vikings shutout of the Packers "put the team one step closer to a first-round bye and a home Divisional Round game." A win for Minnesota over Chicago on Sunday will secure the bye.
Rosenthal said that the Vikings **“know exactly what team they are each week”** in a league that's unpredictable. He wrote:
The defense is so fundamentally sound, wearing opponents down and forcing them to complete mistake-free drives. It's not like Aaron Rodgers' presence should be required for Vikings fans to fully enjoy a dominant season sweep of the Packers, with "Skol" chants late on Christmas Eve-Eve at frigid Lambeau Field. This Vikings squad can win its 13th game this week – that'd mark the second-most regular-season victories in the team's 57-year franchise history. Vikings fans should savor a team with a chance to host a Super Bowl while they can because seasons like this don't come around often.
Rosenthal delved into each of the seven teams looking at the postseason, including the Eagles, who have already clinched the No. 1 seed but are without starting quarterback Carson Wentz after he suffered a torn ACL in Week 14.
At least the slumping Eagles defense delivered on Christmas night. While the cornerback group remains vulnerable, the Eagles front seven will have to dominate to win any home playoff game. As ugly as the last two weeks have looked, it's notable that the Eagles have still found a way to win with Nick Foles behind center. (The fourth-quarter comeback against the Rams after Carson Wentz left with his season-ending ACL injury also looms large).
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Coller ranks Vikings potential postseason opponents
The 2017 playoffs are just around the corner.
With one more weekend of games remaining in the regular-season schedule, Matthew Coller of 1500ESPN.com looked ahead at Minnesota's potential playoff opponents and **ranked them according to his opinion of strength**.
Coller topped the list with the Saints, who lost to the Vikings at U.S. Bank Stadium in the season opener but have only lost three games since. He wrote:
*The Vikings took apart the Saints in Week 1 as quarterback Sam Bradford had the best game of his NFL career. At that time, it appeared New Orleans was in for same-old, same-old with a good offense and very bad defense. *
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*Well, things have changed quite a bit since Week 1. [Adrian] Peterson was sent to Arizona, and the Saints defense has come around. [The unit is] 15th in yards, eighth in points and 10th in opposing quarterback rating. *
And the Saints offense has discovered a game-changer in Alvin Kamara, who has 684 yards rushing and 75 receptions. Drew Brees' club ranks No. 2 in yards, fourth in points and No. 1 (tied) in Adjusted Net Yards per Pass Attempt.
