| 1993 Minnesota Vikings season | |
|---|---|
| Owner | Roger Headrick |
| General manager | Jeff Diamond |
| Head coach | Dennis Green |
| Home stadium | Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome |
| Results | |
| Record | 9–7 |
| Division place | 2ndNFC Central |
| Playoffs | LostWild Card Playoffs (atGiants) 10–17 |
| All-Pros | GRandall McDaniel (1st team) DTJohn Randle (1st team) DEChris Doleman (2nd team) DTHenry Thomas (2nd team) |
| Pro Bowlers | WRCris Carter DEChris Doleman GRandall McDaniel DTJohn Randle |
| Uniform | |
The1993 season was theMinnesota Vikings' 33rd in theNational Football League (NFL), and their second underhead coachDennis Green. The Vikings failed to match their 11–5 record from the previous season, finishing at 9–7. They finished in second place in the NFC Central to qualify for the playoffs, but lost 17–10 to theNew York Giants in the wildcard round.
Newly acquiredJim McMahon, who was known for helping theChicago Bears winSuper Bowl XX in the1985 season, was the Vikings starting quarterback for the season. He spent only one year with the team and after the season, the rebuilding Vikings decided not to renew McMahon's contract and he would go on to sign with other teams. The Vikings later acquiredWarren Moon for next season.
Cris Carter andJohn Randle were named to play in the Pro Bowl after the season. It was the first Pro Bowl for both future Hall of Famers.Terry Allen, who had a breakout season the previous year, missed the entire season after tearing his ACL in practice.
| Additions | Subtractions |
|---|---|
| QBJim McMahon (Eagles) | QBRich Gannon (Redskins) |
| LBFred Strickland (Rams) | GBrian Habib (Broncos) |
| WRHassan Jones (Chiefs) | |
| CKirk Lowdermilk (Colts) | |
| LBMike Merriweather (Jets) | |
| RBDarrin Nelson (retirement) | |
| DEAl Noga (Redskins) | |
| TGary Zimmerman (Broncos) | |
| SFelix Wright (Chiefs) |
| =Pro Bowler |
| 1993 Minnesota Vikings Draft | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Draft order | Player name | Position | College | Notes | |
| Round | Selection | ||||
| 1 | 21 | Robert Smith | Running back | Ohio State | |
| 2 | 52 | Qadry Ismail | Wide receiver | Syracuse | |
| 3 | 57 | John Gerak | Guard | Penn State | FromPatriots, viaRaiders andSeahawks[A] |
| 79 | Gilbert Brown | Defensive tackle | Kansas | ||
| 4 | 106 | Ashley Sheppard | Linebacker | Clemson | |
| 5 | 133 | Everett Lindsay | Offensive tackle | Ole Miss | |
| 6 | 160 | Traded to theWashington Redskins[B] | |||
| 7 | 192 | Gino Torretta | Quarterback | Miami (FL) | |
| 8 | 219 | Traded to theSan Francisco 49ers[C] | |||
Notes:
| Player | Position | College |
|---|---|---|
| Ron Carpenter | S | Miami (OH) |
| Matt Eller | DE | Bethel (MN) |
| Eric Guliford | WR | Arizona State |
| Dave Garnett | LB | Stanford |
| Shawn Jones | S | Georgia Tech |
| Robert Staten | FB | Jackson State |
Front office
Head coaches
Offensive coaches
| Defensive coaches
Special teams coaches
Strength and conditioning
|
| Quarterbacks(QB) Running backs(RB) Wide receivers(WR) Tight ends(TE) | Offensive linemen(OL) | Linebackers(LB)
Defensive backs(DB)
Special teams(ST) | Reserve lists
|
| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Attendance[2] | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | August 1 | atDallas Cowboys | W 13–7 | 1–0 | Texas Stadium | 60,010 | |
| 2 | August 7 | Buffalo Bills | W 20–6 | 2–0 | Olympiastadion, Berlin | 67,132 | American Bowl |
| 3 | August 14 | Seattle Seahawks | W 23–10 | 3–0 | Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome | 42,240 | |
| 4 | August 21 | atKansas City Chiefs | L 20–27 | 3–1 | Arrowhead Stadium | 73,080 | |
| 5 | August 26 | Pittsburgh Steelers | W 30–13 | 4–1 | Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome | 41,512 |
| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | September 5 | atLos Angeles Raiders | L 24–7 | 0–1 | Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum | 44,120 |
| 2 | September 12 | Chicago Bears | W 10–7 | 1–1 | Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome | 57,921 |
| 3 | Bye | |||||
| 4 | September 26 | Green Bay Packers | W 15–13 | 2–1 | Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome | 61,746 |
| 5 | October 3 | atSan Francisco 49ers | L 38–19 | 2–2 | Candlestick Park | 63,071 |
| 6 | October 10 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers | W 15–0 | 3–2 | Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome | 54,215 |
| 7 | Bye | |||||
| 8 | October 25 | atChicago Bears | W 19–12 | 4–2 | Soldier Field | 64,677 |
| 9 | October 31 | Detroit Lions | L 30–27 | 4–3 | Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome | 53,428 |
| 10 | November 7 | San Diego Chargers | L 30–17 | 4–4 | Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome | 55,527 |
| 11 | November 14 | atDenver Broncos | W 26–23 | 5–4 | Mile High Stadium | 67,329 |
| 12 | November 21 | atTampa Bay Buccaneers | L 23–10 | 5–5 | Tampa Stadium | 40,848 |
| 13 | November 28 | New Orleans Saints | L 17–14 | 5–6 | Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome | 53,030 |
| 14 | December 5 | atDetroit Lions | W 13–0 | 6–6 | Silverdome | 63,216 |
| 15 | December 12 | Dallas Cowboys | L 37–20 | 6–7 | Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome | 63,321 |
| 16 | December 19 | atGreen Bay Packers | W 21–17 | 7–7 | Milwaukee County Stadium | 54,773 |
| 17 | December 26 | Kansas City Chiefs | W 30–10 | 8–7 | Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome | 59,236 |
| 18 | December 31 | atWashington Redskins | W 14–9 | 9–7 | Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium | 42,836 |
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Packers | 7 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 13 |
| Vikings | 3 | 3 | 6 | 3 | 15 |
atHubert H. Humphrey Metrodome,Minneapolis, Minnesota
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
| NFC Central | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| W | L | T | PCT | PF | PA | STK | |
| (3)Detroit Lions | 10 | 6 | 0 | .625 | 298 | 292 | W2 |
| (5)Minnesota Vikings | 9 | 7 | 0 | .563 | 277 | 290 | W3 |
| (6)Green Bay Packers | 9 | 7 | 0 | .563 | 340 | 282 | L1 |
| Chicago Bears | 7 | 9 | 0 | .438 | 234 | 230 | L4 |
| Tampa Bay Buccaneers | 5 | 11 | 0 | .313 | 237 | 376 | L1 |
| Week | Date | Opponent (seed) | Result | Record | Venue | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wild Card | January 9 | atNew York Giants (#4) | L 17–10 | 0–1 | Giants Stadium | 75,089 |
| Category | Player(s) | Value |
|---|---|---|
| Passing yards | Jim McMahon | 1,968 |
| Passing touchdowns | Jim McMahon Sean Salisbury | 9 |
| Rushing yards | Scottie Graham | 488 |
| Rushing touchdowns | Scottie Graham | 3 |
| Receiving yards | Cris Carter | 1,071 |
| Receiving touchdowns | Cris Carter | 9 |
| Points | Fuad Reveiz | 105 |
| Kickoff return yards | Qadry Ismail | 902 |
| Punt return yards | Eric Guliford | 212 |
| Tackles | Fred Strickland | 110 |
| Sacks | Chris Doleman John Randle | 12.5 |
| Interceptions | Vencie Glenn | 5 |
| Forced fumbles | Roy Barker Chris Doleman Carlos Jenkins John Randle | 3 |
| Category | Total yards | Yards per game | NFL rank (out of 28) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Passing offense | 3,200 | 200.0 | 14th |
| Rushing offense | 1,624 | 101.5 | 21st |
| Total offense | 4,824 | 301.5 | 17th |
| Passing defense | 2,870 | 179.4 | 6th |
| Rushing defense | 1,536 | 96.0 | 6th |
| Total defense | 4,406 | 275.4 | 1st |