Saturday marked the 25th anniversary of Korey Stringer's death from heatstroke at Vikings training camp in 2001. His widow, Kelci Stringer, returned to Minnesota for the first time without sadness, saying it was meaningful that the team still talks about him. What began as a contentious relationship — including a $100 million wrongful death lawsuit — has evolved into mutual respect, particularly under the Wilf family ownership.

Kelci said the lawsuit's purpose was never money but to uncover the truth: trainers failed to recognize heatstroke symptoms, and Korey went untreated until reaching the hospital in critical condition. Those details inspired her to found the Korey Stringer Institute, which has helped change regulations in 38 states to protect athletes. NFL executive Jeff Miller called it "the single greatest example of turning a tragedy into a triumph." Saturday's event included team huddles, meetings with players and coach Kevin O'Connell, and reunions with former teammates including John Randle and Randall McDaniel. "There were always two different sides to it," said Cris Carter, who knew Korey from their Ohio State days.