On helping the Vikings deal with the death of rookie Khyree Jackson before the start of the season, head coach Kevin O’Connell told BBC Sport: “It’s not something I had been through before, but I thought it was very important to do a couple of things. I wanted to authentically allow our team to feel the emotions they were feeling and to work through them. I did not want to ask them to put it out of their mind.

“The other thing was leading in the face of adversity. I needed to be the rock for our organisation, to be standing out front, but also showing some vulnerabilities, personally, so that guys knew that it was OK to be grieving and that we would work through this together.”

And Connell, 39, believes Jackson’s loss has provided them with extra inspiration.

“I think so, because it’s allowed us to focus and have a reality check of nothing is given. We understand how blessed and fortunate we are to do this on a daily basis because it can be taken away in a moment.

“So let’s make sure we maximise every moment we have with one another, understanding how special a place this is, what the players have built here.”