| 1988 Minnesota Vikings season | |
|---|---|
| General manager | Mike Lynn |
| Head coach | Jerry Burns |
| Home stadium | Metrodome |
| Results | |
| Record | 11–5 |
| Division place | 2ndNFC Central |
| Playoffs | WonWild Card Playoffs (vs.Rams) 28–17 LostDivisional Playoffs (at49ers) 9–34 |
| All-Pros | SJoey Browner (1st team) CBCarl Lee (1st team) DTKeith Millard (1st team) TGary Zimmerman (1st team) |
| Pro Bowlers | SJoey Browner WRAnthony Carter DEChris Doleman TESteve Jordan CBCarl Lee DTKeith Millard LBScott Studwell QBWade Wilson TGary Zimmerman |
| Uniform | |
 | |
The1988 season was theMinnesota Vikings' 28th in theNational Football League. They finished with an 11–5 record, and finished second to theChicago Bears in theNFC Central division.
The Vikings had one of the best defenses in the NFL in 1988. The team allowed 4,091 total yards, 4.3 yards per play, and 243 first downs, all best in the league. The Vikings also had a league-best 53 takeaways.[1] Opposing quarterbacks had a league-worst 41.2 passer rating against the Vikings' defense, the lowest total of the 1980s and fifth all-time for the Super Bowl era.[2]
The Vikings made the postseason for the second consecutive time under coachJerry Burns. They defeated theLos Angeles Rams 28–17 in the wildcard round, but lost 34–9 in the divisional round to theSan Francisco 49ers, who went on to win theirthird Super Bowl. This was the last time the Vikings won a playoff game until1997.
| Hall of Famer |
| 1988 Minnesota Vikings Draft | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Draft order | Player name | Position | College | Notes | |
| Round | Selection | ||||
| 1 | 19 | Randall McDaniel | Guard | Arizona State | |
| 2 | 45 | Traded to theDenver Broncos[A] | |||
| 54 | Brad Edwards | Safety | South Carolina | FromBroncos[A] | |
| 3 | 71 | Al Noga | Defensive end | Hawaii | |
| 4 | 97 | Traded to theNew England Patriots[B] | |||
| 108 | Todd Kalis | Guard | Arizona State | FromBroncos[A] | |
| 5 | 124 | Darrell Fullington | Safety | Miami (FL) | |
| 6 | 156 | Traded to theMiami Dolphins[C] | |||
| 164 | Derrick White | Defensive back | Oklahoma | FromBroncos[A] | |
| 7 | 183 | Brad Beckman | Tight end | Nebraska–Omaha | |
| 8 | 210 | Joe Cain | Linebacker | Oregon Tech | |
| 9 | 237 | Paul McGowan | Linebacker | Florida State | |
| 10 | 264 | Brian Habib | Offensive tackle | Washington | |
| 11 | 296 | Norman Floyd | Safety | South Carolina | From Vikings,[B] viaPatriots[D] |
| 12 | 323 | Traded to theNew York Giants[E] | |||
Notes:
| Round | Name | Position | College | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 | Ryan Bethea | Defensive back | South Carolina | Resulted in forfeiture of1989 fifth-round selection. |
| Player | Position | College |
|---|---|---|
| Bob Furlong | Guard | Wisconsin–Stevens Point |
| Mike Greenfield | Quarterback | Northwestern |
| Darryl Harris | Running back | Arizona State |
| Van Sheppard | Wide receiver | Nebraska |
| Reggie Ward | Wide receiver | Notre Dame |
Front office
Head coaches
Offensive coaches
| Defensive coaches
Special teams coaches
|
| 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[4] | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | August 7 | New Orleans Saints | L 20–23 | 0–1 | Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome | 47,624 | |
| 2 | August 14 | Chicago Bears | W 28–21 | 1–1 | Ullevi Stadium(Gothenburg, Sweden) | 33,115 | Volvo American Football Classic |
| 3 | August 21 | atPhoenix Cardinals | W 19–16(OT) | 2–1 | Sun Devil Stadium | 45,429 | |
| 4 | August 26 | Miami Dolphins | W 24–17 | 3–1 | Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome | 51,463 |
| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | September 4 | atBuffalo Bills | L 10–13 | 0–1 | Rich Stadium | 76,783 |
| 2 | September 11 | New England Patriots | W 36–6 | 1–1 | Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome | 55,545 |
| 3 | September 18 | atChicago Bears | W 31–7 | 2–1 | Soldier Field | 63,990 |
| 4 | September 25 | Philadelphia Eagles | W 23–21 | 3–1 | Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome | 56,012 |
| 5 | October 2 | atMiami Dolphins | L 7–24 | 3–2 | Joe Robbie Stadium | 59,867 |
| 6 | October 9 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers | W 14–13 | 4–2 | Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome | 55,274 |
| 7 | October 16 | Green Bay Packers | L 14–34 | 4–3 | Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome | 59,053 |
| 8 | October 23 | atTampa Bay Buccaneers | W 49–20 | 5–3 | Tampa Stadium | 48,020 |
| 9 | October 30 | atSan Francisco 49ers | L 21–24 | 5–4 | Candlestick Park | 60,738 |
| 10 | November 6 | Detroit Lions | W 44–17 | 6–4 | Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome | 55,573 |
| 11 | November 13 | atDallas Cowboys | W 43–3 | 7–4 | Texas Stadium | 57,830 |
| 12 | November 20 | Indianapolis Colts | W 12–3 | 8–4 | Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome | 58,342 |
| 13 | November 24 | atDetroit Lions | W 23–0 | 9–4 | Silverdome | 46,379 |
| 14 | December 4 | New Orleans Saints | W 45–3 | 10–4 | Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome | 61,215 |
| 15 | December 11 | atGreen Bay Packers | L 6–18 | 10–5 | Lambeau Field | 48,892 |
| 16 | December 19 | Chicago Bears | W 28–27 | 11–5 | Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome | 62,067 |
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vikings | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 7 |
| Dolphins | 0 | 17 | 7 | 0 | 24 |
atJoe Robbie Stadium,Miami, Florida
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vikings | 17 | 0 | 17 | 9 | 43 |
| Cowboys | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
| NFC Central | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| W | L | T | PCT | DIV | CONF | PF | PA | STK | |
| Chicago Bears(1) | 12 | 4 | 0 | .750 | 6–2 | 9–3 | 312 | 215 | L1 |
| Minnesota Vikings(4) | 11 | 5 | 0 | .688 | 6–2 | 9–3 | 406 | 233 | W1 |
| Tampa Bay Buccaneers | 5 | 11 | 0 | .313 | 4–4 | 4–8 | 261 | 350 | W1 |
| Detroit Lions | 4 | 12 | 0 | .250 | 2–6 | 3–11 | 220 | 315 | L2 |
| Green Bay Packers | 4 | 12 | 0 | .250 | 2–6 | 3–9 | 240 | 313 | W2 |
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| Week | Date | Opponent (seed) | Result | Record | Venue | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wild Card | December 26 | Los Angeles Rams (5) | W 28–17 | 1–0 | Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome | 57,666 |
| Divisional | January 1 | atSan Francisco 49ers (2) | L 9–34 | 1–1 | Candlestick Park | 61,848 |
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rams | 0 | 7 | 3 | 7 | 17 |
| Vikings | 14 | 0 | 7 | 7 | 28 |
atHubert H. Humphrey Metrodome,Minneapolis,Minnesota
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vikings | 3 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 9 |
| 49ers | 7 | 14 | 0 | 13 | 34 |
atCandlestick Park,San Francisco
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
| Category | Player(s) | Value |
|---|---|---|
| Passing yards | Wade Wilson | 2,746 |
| Passing touchdowns | Wade Wilson | 15 |
| Rushing yards | Darrin Nelson | 380 |
| Rushing touchdowns | Alfred Anderson | 7 |
| Receiving yards | Anthony Carter | 1,225 |
| Receiving touchdowns | Anthony Carter | 6 |
| Points | Chuck Nelson | 108 |
| Kickoff return yards | Darryl Harris | 833 |
| Punt return yards | Leo Lewis | 550 * |
| Tackles | Jesse Solomon | 124 |
| Sacks | Chris Doleman Keith Millard | 8.0 |
| Interceptions | Carl Lee | 8 |
| Forced fumbles | Henry Thomas | 4 |
* Vikings single seasonrecord
| Category | Total yards | Yards per game | NFL rank (out of 28) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Passing offense | 3,789 | 236.8 | 4th |
| Rushing offense | 1,806 | 112.9 | 20th |
| Total offense | 5,595 | 349.7 | 7th |
| Passing defense | 2,489 | 155.6 | 2nd |
| Rushing defense | 1,602 | 100.1 | 5th |
| Total defense | 4,091 | 255.7 | 1st |
