
Vikings coach Leslie Frazier says that he’s hoping to send retiring tight end Jim Kleinsasser off in style on Sunday by incorporating him into the offensive game plan and, Frazier hopes, getting him a touchdown.
“No doubt about it,” Frazier told the Star Tribune. “I’m not letting out any secrets there. If we get down to the 1, Chicago, you better stop number 40. We’re going to find a way to try to get him into the end zone if we can.”
Kleinsasser touched the ball only once this year, a four-yard catch. But Frazier says he’d love to see Kleinsasser’s eighth career touchdown on Sunday.
“He’s someone you can always count on,” Frazier said. “You know he’s going to come to work prepared, ready to do his job. He’s a tremendous example for any young player.”
At the end of a season in which almost everything has gone wrong for the Vikings, an appropriate sendoff for Kleinsasser is one thing they may do right.