The 2012 season for the Minnesota Vikings was an interesting ride for fans. Returning to the field with several young players, relying heavily on rookies in key positions, and hoping to improve from a 3-13 season the year before; expectations were low.

Adrian Peterson explosively returned from a devastating knee injury, proving everyone wrong when they doubted he would start on Week 1. Christian Ponder showed flashes of being a solid starting quarterback. Rookies like Harrison Smith, Matt Kalil, and Blair Walsh came up big as the team recovered after an awful 2011 season; starting the year 5-2 and managing to beat their 2011 win total in the first few weeks of the season.

From there, Adrian chased history, Blair Walsh kicked himself into the record books, four team members earned Pro Bowl spots, and the team completed a quest to return to the playoffs. In the end, injuries and a strong opponent ended the 2012 campaign only one week into the playoffs. While the loss disappointed fans and players alike, a lot was accomplished in 2012. More than anything else, hope was restored for the future of the team. Fans have very good reason to believe they are back in the race as one of the best teams in the NFC North, rather than dwelling at the bottom as they did only a year ago.

As players wrapped up team activities for the 2012 season, many of them took a moment to offer a thank you to the fans for supporting them on this year's campaign through a video on the team Facebook page.

Watch Minnesota Vikings Players Thank the Fans for a Great Season

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