My All Time Favorite Minnesota Vikings Players

Formed in 1961, the Minnesota Vikings have been one of the NFL’s hard luck franchises. The team has had a lot of success, making the Super Bowl in 1969 along with 25 playoff berths since the AFL-NFL merger in 1970. But despite that and three more Super Bowl appearances, the Vikings have yet to win a Super Bowl championship. That isn’t due to the lack of great players. The Vikings have had a number of superstars wear the purple and gold. For years, the Purple People Eaters, the nickname for the Vikings defensive line, were one of the most intimidating in the league. The Vikings had several Hall of Famers suit up for them during their Super Bowl years like Fran Tarkenton, Alan Page and Ron Yary. These players are considered some of the best football players of all time.

The Vikings have drafted well over the years. They’ve drafted two of the best players ever in Randy Moss and 2012 NFL MVP Adrian Peterson. In 1990, the team successfully claimed Cris Carter off waivers. Carter was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2013 and is one of the best wide receivers in football history.

When you think of the Minnesota Vikings, high scoring offenses and great defensive lineman come to mind. Fran Tarkenton was ahead of his time and the Purple People Eaters were indeed a tremendous front four.

OFFENSE

QUARTERBACKS

Fran Tarkenton

 

Daunte Culpepper

 

RUNNING BACKS

Adrian Peterson

 

Robert Smith

 

Chuck Foreman

 

WIDE RECEIVERS

Cris Carter

 

Randy Moss

 

Ahmad Rashad

 

TIGHT ENDS

Steve Jordan

 

Stu Voigt

 

OFFENSIVE LINEMEN

Ron Yary

 

Randall McDaniel

 

OC – Mike Tinglehoff (1962-1978)

OG – Ed White (1969-1977)

Gary Zimmerman

 

DEFENSE

DEFENSIVE LINEMEN

Carl Eller

 

Alan Page

 

John Randle

 

Chris Doleman

 

LINEBACKERS

Ed McDaniel

 

Matt Blair

 

Jeff Siemon

 

Scott Studwell

 

DEFENSIVE BACKS

CB – Carl Lee (1983-1993)

Bobby Bryant

 

Karl Kassulke

 

Ed Sharockman

 

Paul Krause

 

S – Joey Browner (1983-1991)

SPECIAL TEAMS

K – Fred Cox

 

P – Mitch Berger (1996-2001)

PR – Leo Lewis

 

KR – John Gilliam

NICKNAME

• Bert Rose, the first general manager selected the Vikings name because so many people in Minnesota and the surrounding area traced their heritage to Scandinavia (what is now Denmark, Norway, and Sweden).

 HEAD COACHES

• Norm Van Brocklin (1961-1966)
• Bud Grant (1967-1983)
• Les Steckel (1984)
• Bud Grant (1985)
• Jerry Burns (1986-1991)
• Dennis Green (1992-2001)
• Mike Tice (2001-2005)
• Brad Childress (2006-2010)
• Leslie Frazier (2010-2013)
• Mike Zimmer (2014-Present)

SUPER BOWL CHAMPIONS

• None

NFL CHAMPIONS (PRE-1966)

• None

SUPER BOWL APPEARANCES

• Super Bowl IV (1969) – Minnesota Vikings vs. Kansas City Chiefs
• Super Bowl VIII (1973) – Minnesota Vikings vs. Miami Dolphins
• Super Bowl IX (1974) – Minnesota Vikings vs. Pittsburgh Steelers
• Super Bowl XI (1976) – Minnesota Vikings vs. Oakland Raiders

NFL CHAMPIONSHIP GAMES (PRE-1966)

• None

NFL/NFC CHAMPIONSHIP GAMES

• 1969, 1973, 1974, 1976, 1977, 1987, 1998, 2000, 2009

DIVISION CHAMPIONS

• 1968, 1969, 1970, 1971, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1976, 1977, 1978, 1980, 1989, 1992, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2008, 2009, 2015

PLAYOFF APPEARANCES

• 1968, 1969, 1970, 1971, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1976, 1977, 1978, 1980, 1982, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2004, 2008, 2009, 2015

PLAYOFF RECORD

• 19-28 .404

HALL OF FAME PLAYERS

• Dave Casper TE (1983)
• Chris Doleman DE (1985-1993, 1999)
• Carl Eller DE (1964-1978)
• Jim Finks GM (1964-1973)
• Bud Grant Coach (1967-1983, 1985)
• Paul Krause S (1968-1979)
• Hugh McElhenny RB (1961-1962)
• Jim Langer C (1980-1981)
• Randall McDaniel G (1988-1999)
• Warren Moon QB (1994-1996)
• Alan Page DT (1967-1978)
• John Randle DT (1990-2000)
• Jan Stenerud PK (1984-1985)
• Fran Tarkenton QB (1961-66, 72-78)
• Ron Yary OT (1968-1981)
• Gary Zimmerman OT (1986-1992)

RETIRED NUMBERS

• 10 Fran Tarkenton QB (61-66,72-78)
• 53 Mick Tingelhoff C (1962-1978)
• 70 Jim Marshall DE (1961-1979)
• 77 Korey Stringer OT (1995-2000)
• 80 Cris Carter WR (1990-2001)
• 88 Alan Page DT (1967-1978)

PRO BOWL MVP

• 1965 Fran Tarkenton QB
• 1979 Ahmad Rashad WR
• 2000 Randy Moss WR
• 2008 Adrian Peterson RB

AWARDS

COACH OF THE YEAR

• 1969 Bud Grant

DEFENSIVE ROOKIE OF THE YEAR

• None

OFFENSIVE ROOKIE OF THE YEAR

• 1963 Paul Flatley WR
• 1973 Chuck Foreman RB
• 1976 Sammy White WR
• 1998 Randy Moss WR
• 2007 Adrian Peterson RB
• 2009 Percy Harvin WR

DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR

• 1989 Keith Millard DT

OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR

• 1973 Chuck Foreman RB
• 1975 Fran Tarkenton QB

NFL MVP

• 1971 Alan Page DT
• 1975 Fran Tarkenton QB

SUPER BOWL MVP

• None

©MMXIX My All Time Favorites, all pictures and logos, team names are property of the National Football League. This site is not affiliated with the NFL or Minnesota Vikings.  All Football Cards are low resolution scans from a personal collection and each is credited with the production company name and year.  This site is maintained for research purposes only.