1991 Minnesota Vikings season
The 1991 season was the Minnesota Vikings' 31st in the National Football League. They finished with an 8–8 record, improving on their 6–10 record from the previous season, and missed the playoffs for the second straight year. Head coach Jerry Burns retired at the end of the season.
1991 Minnesota Vikings season | |
---|---|
Head coach | Jerry Burns |
Home field | Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome |
Results | |
Record | 8–8 |
Division place | 3rd NFC Central |
Playoff finish | Did not qualify |
Herschel Walker, going into his third year with Minnesota, went through another season of frustration and he was released following the season. In his two-and-a-half seasons with the Vikings, he failed to record a 1,000-yard season. The infamous trade that brought Walker to Minnesota never lived up to expectations and allowed the Dallas Cowboys to use two of the draft picks they received in the trade on Emmitt Smith and Darren Woodson, who became part of a dominant team that won three Super Bowls in the 1990s.
Offseason
1991 Draft
Pro Bowler |
1991 Minnesota Vikings Draft | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Draft order | Player name | Position | College | Notes | |
Round | Selection | ||||
1 | 11 | Traded to the Dallas Cowboys[upper-alpha 1] | |||
2 | 38 | Traded to the Dallas Cowboys[upper-alpha 1] | |||
3 | 65 | Carlos Jenkins | Linebacker | Michigan State | |
68 | Jake Reed | Wide receiver | Grambling State | from Cowboys[upper-alpha 1] | |
4 | 92 | Randy Baldwin | Running back | Mississippi | |
5 | 119 | Chris Thome | Center | Minnesota | |
6 | 146 | Traded to the Los Angeles Raiders[upper-alpha 2] | |||
163 | Todd Scott | Defensive back | Louisiana | from Raiders[upper-alpha 2] | |
7 | 179 | Scotty Reagan | Defensive tackle | Humboldt State | |
180 | Tripp Welborne | Defensive back | Michigan | from Cowboys via Raiders[upper-alpha 2] | |
8 | 206 | Reggie Johnson | Defensive end | Arizona | |
9 | 232 | Gerald Hudson | Running back | Oklahoma State | |
10 | 259 | Brady Pierce | Offensive tackle | Wisconsin | |
11 | 286 | Ivan Caesar | Linebacker | Boston College | |
12 | 313 | Darren Hughes | Wide receiver | Carson–Newman |
Draft trades
- The Vikings traded their first- and second-round selections (11th and 38th overall) and 1990 first-, second- and sixth-round selections (21st, 47th and 158th overall) to the Dallas Cowboys in exchange for the Cowboys' third-round selection (68th overall), 1990 third- and tenth-round selections (54th and 249th overall), the 1990 fifth-round selection they received from the San Diego Chargers (116th overall) and running back Herschel Walker.
- The Vikings traded their sixth-round selection (146th overall) to the Los Angeles Raiders in exchange for the Raiders' sixth- and seventh-round selections (163rd and 180th overall).
Staff
Front office
Head coaches
Offensive coaches
|
Defensive coaches
Special teams coaches
|
Roster
Preseason
Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Attendance[2] |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | August 3 | at New Orleans Saints | L 21–24 | 0–1 | Louisiana Superdome | 58,953 |
2 | August 10 | Pittsburgh Steelers | W 34–24 | 1–1 | Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome | 44,959 |
3 | August 17 | at Cincinnati Bengals | L 24–27 (OT) | 1–2 | Riverfront Stadium | 56,358 |
4 | August 23 | Cleveland Browns | W 31–7 | 2–2 | Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome | 45,925 |
Regular season
Schedule
Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Attendance |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | September 1 | at Chicago Bears | L 10–6 | 0–1 | Soldier Field | 64,112 |
2 | September 8 | at Atlanta Falcons | W 20–19 | 1–1 | Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium | 50,936 |
3 | September 15 | San Francisco 49ers | W 17–14 | 2–1 | Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome | 59,148 |
4 | September 22 | at New Orleans Saints | L 26–0 | 2–2 | Louisiana Superdome | 68,591 |
5 | September 29 | Denver Broncos | L 13–6 | 2–3 | Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome | 55,031 |
6 | October 6 | at Detroit Lions | L 24–20 | 2–4 | Pontiac Silverdome | 63,423 |
7 | October 13 | Phoenix Cardinals | W 34–7 | 3–4 | Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome | 51,209 |
8 | October 20 | at New England Patriots | L 26–23 (OT) | 3–5 | Foxboro Stadium | 45,367 |
9 | October 27 | at Phoenix Cardinals | W 28–0 | 4–5 | Sun Devil Stadium | 45,447 |
10 | November 3 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers | W 28–13 | 5–5 | Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome | 35,737 |
11 | November 11 | Chicago Bears | L 34–17 | 5–6 | Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome | 59,001 |
12 | November 17 | at Green Bay Packers | W 35–21 | 6–6 | Lambeau Field | 57,614 |
13 | November 24 | Detroit Lions | L 34–14 | 6–7 | Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome | 51,644 |
14 | Bye | |||||
15 | December 8 | at Tampa Bay Buccaneers | W 26–24 | 7–7 | Tampa Stadium | 41,091 |
16 | December 15 | Los Angeles Rams | W 20–14 | 8–7 | Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome | 61,518 |
17 | December 21 | Green Bay Packers | L 27–7 | 8–8 | Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome | 52,860 |
Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.
Standings
NFC Central | |||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
W | L | T | PCT | DIV | CONF | PF | PA | STK | |
(2) Detroit Lions | 12 | 4 | 0 | .750 | 6–2 | 8–4 | 339 | 295 | W6 |
(4) Chicago Bears | 11 | 5 | 0 | .688 | 7–1 | 9–3 | 299 | 269 | L1 |
Minnesota Vikings | 8 | 8 | 0 | .500 | 3–5 | 8–6 | 301 | 306 | L1 |
Green Bay Packers | 4 | 12 | 0 | .250 | 3–5 | 3–9 | 273 | 313 | W1 |
Tampa Bay Buccaneers | 3 | 13 | 0 | .188 | 1–7 | 2–10 | 199 | 365 | W1 |
Statistics
Team leaders
Category | Player(s) | Value |
---|---|---|
Passing yards | Rich Gannon | 2,166 |
Passing touchdowns | Rich Gannon | 12 |
Rushing yards | Herschel Walker | 825 |
Rushing touchdowns | Herschel Walker | 10 |
Receiving yards | Cris Carter | 962 |
Receiving touchdowns | Anthony Carter Cris Carter | 5 |
Points | Fuad Reveiz | 85 |
Kickoff return yards | Darrin Nelson | 682 |
Punt return yards | Leo Lewis | 225 |
Tackles | Chris Doleman | 101 |
Sacks | John Randle | 9.5 |
Interceptions | Joey Browner | 5 |
Forced fumbles | John Randle | 2 |
League rankings
Category | Total yards | Yards per game | NFL rank (out of 28) |
---|---|---|---|
Passing offense | 2,883 | 180.2 | 21st |
Rushing offense | 2,201 | 137.6 | 4th |
Total offense | 5,084 | 317.8 | 10th |
Passing defense | 3,179 | 198.7 | 13th |
Rushing defense | 1,837 | 114.8 | 20th |
Total defense | 5,016 | 313.5 | 14th |
References
- 2010 Minnesota Vikings Media Guide. p. 265. Archived from the original on December 24, 2010. Retrieved February 18, 2011.
External links
- 1991 Minnesota Vikings Statistics & Players on Pro-Football-Reference