In the Minneapolis Miracle, the Vikings beat the Saints on a 61-yard TD pass as time expired in their NFC divisional playoff game. At that time, in January 2018, NFL rules required Minnesota to kick the extra point, even though the Saints had gone to the locker room. Despite tearing cartilage in his ribs during the game, punter Thomas Morstead was the first Saints player to return to the field.
One Vikings fan, impressed with Morstead's toughness and sportsmanship, started a campaign on Reddit to make donations to his What You Give Will Grow foundation. Morstead pledged the donations to the Children's Minnesota Hospital. When donations reached $221,143, Children’s Minnesota Hospital said any further funds would be sent child life departments in New Orleans. Eventually more than $325,000 was raised.
That led to Morstead being the latest athlete to participate in author Sean Jensen's "Middle School Rules" book series.
Check out the video above for Morstead's thoughts about how a crushing playoff loss unfolded into positive developments off the field, including the release of "The Middle School Rules of Thomas Morstead."
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