60 Fun Facts About Minnesota Vikings

In what year did the Vikings play their first NFL season?

The ownership group had first agreed to join the AFL, then switched to become the NFL's 14th franchise under league pressure.

Which four Super Bowls did the Vikings play in, losing all of them?

They lost to the Chiefs, Dolphins, Steelers and Raiders; the last was in January 1977 at the Rose Bowl.

Which team beat the heavily favoured Vikings 23-7 in Super Bowl IV?

It was the first major pro championship for a Kansas City team, played at Tulane Stadium in New Orleans.

Which team beat the Vikings 32-14 in Super Bowl XI in January 1977?

It was played at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena on January 9, 1977, and gave the Raiders their first title.

Which four linemen made up the core of the 'Purple People Eaters' defense?

Their motto was 'Meet at the quarterback', and Doug Sutherland replaced Larsen in 1974.

What was the Purple People Eaters' motto?

Jim Marshall said the players actually preferred to call themselves 'The Purple Gang'.

Who was the Vikings' first head coach, hired in January 1961?

He was an Eagles quarterback at the time; Grant was a candidate too but stayed in the CFL until 1967.

Before coaching the Vikings, Bud Grant won how many Grey Cups with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers?

He also won the 1950 NBA Finals as a player with the Minneapolis Lakers before playing for the Eagles.

How many seasons did Bud Grant coach the Vikings across his two stints?

He led them to 11 division titles and four Super Bowls, and came back for one final year in 1985.

Fran Tarkenton played college football for which school?

He was twice first-team All-SEC before the Vikings took him in the third round of the 1961 draft.

Which team did the Vikings trade Fran Tarkenton to in 1967, before getting him back in 1972?

He returned for his last seven seasons and retired holding the career records for passing yards, touchdowns and completions.

In which season did Fran Tarkenton win the NFL MVP award?

The Vikings went 12-2 that year and lost the divisional playoff to Dallas on Roger Staubach's Hail Mary.

The 1975 Vikings were knocked out of the playoffs by which famous play?

Roger Staubach's desperation pass to Drew Pearson gave the play its name and Dallas a 17-14 win.

Which Vikings receiver caught Tommy Kramer's 'Miracle at the Met' heave against Cleveland in 1980?

He had been born Bobby Moore and changed his name in 1973; the catch clinched the Central Division.

Which Vikings safety set the NFL career record with 81 interceptions?

He led the league with 12 picks as a rookie in Washington before joining Minnesota, and made the Hall of Fame in 1998.

Which player did the Vikings take first overall in the 1968 draft?

The USC tackle had won the Outland Trophy and went into the Hall of Fame in 2001.

Which Vikings running back was the 1973 Offensive Rookie of the Year and started three Super Bowls?

He was drafted 12th overall out of Miami and made the Pro Bowl in each of his first five seasons.

Where did the Vikings play their home games from 1961 to 1981?

The Twins shared it for the same 21 seasons; the site is now the Mall of America.

What opened in 1992 on the site of the old Met, the team's first home?

The mall opened a decade after the Vikings moved indoors to the Metrodome.

The Metrodome's fabric roof was held up by what?

Heavy snow deflated it four times, most famously in December 2010, and it was the only venue to host a Super Bowl, World Series, All-Star Game and Final Four.

In which years did the Vikings play at the Metrodome?

They beat the Lions 14-13 in the final game there on December 29, 2013.

In which section of Minneapolis is U.S. Bank Stadium?

It replaced the Metrodome on essentially the same site.

Which cartoonist designed the Vikings' horned helmet and purple-and-gold uniforms?

He drew for the Los Angeles Examiner; one primary logo is a blond Norseman, the other a white horn.

Why was Ole Haugsrud given a share of the Vikings' ownership?

When he sold his Duluth Eskimos back to the NFL in the 1920s, the agreement included that promise; his high school team was also called the Vikings.

On what date was the team officially named the Minnesota Vikings?

The name was chosen to reflect Minnesota's Scandinavian-American culture.

The 1989 Herschel Walker trade sent the running back to Minnesota from which team?

Jimmy Johnson planned all along to cut the players he received and keep the draft picks, which built Dallas's 1990s dynasty.

What was the Vikings' record in the 1998 regular season?

Their only loss was 27-24 to Tampa Bay in Week 9, and they scored a then-record 556 points.

Which kicker, perfect all season in 1998, missed a 38-yard field goal late in the NFC Championship Game?

He was the first NFL kicker to convert every field goal and extra point in a regular season; the Falcons tied it and won 30-27 in overtime.

How many touchdown catches did Randy Moss make as a rookie in 1998, still the rookie record?

He fell to the 21st pick because of legal worries; he set the overall single-season record of 23 with New England in 2007.

Which college did Randy Moss play for?

He was a unanimous All-American with the Thundering Herd in 1997.

Which team did Cris Carter play for before joining the Vikings in 1990?

He came in the 1987 supplemental draft out of Ohio State and finally reached the Hall of Fame in 2013 on his sixth try.

Which undrafted defensive tackle racked up 137.5 sacks, the most ever by a player at his position?

He came out of tiny Texas A&I in 1990 and reached the Hall of Fame in 2010.

Which Vikings coach, hired in 1992, was the second Black head coach in modern NFL history?

He followed Art Shell and lasted a decade before being fired near the end of the 2001 season.

How many yards did Adrian Peterson rush for in 2012, nine short of the single-season record?

He did it a year after tearing his ACL and MCL; Eric Dickerson's 2,105 still stands.

How many rushing yards did rookie Adrian Peterson gain in his record-setting single game in 2007?

He had been taken seventh overall out of Oklahoma; his father nicknamed him 'All Day'.

Which quarterback threw the Minneapolis Miracle pass?

He was an undrafted journeyman filling in after Bridgewater's knee injury and Bradford's benching.

How long was the Minneapolis Miracle touchdown play?

Saints safety Marcus Williams missed the tackle; it was the first NFL playoff game ever to end on a touchdown as time expired.

On what date was the Minneapolis Miracle?

A week later the Vikings lost the NFC Championship Game 38-7 in Philadelphia.

In which round did the Vikings draft Stefon Diggs in 2015?

He came out of Maryland and was traded to Buffalo in 2020 after signing an extension.

Kirk Cousins joined the Vikings in 2018 on a three-year contract worth how much, fully guaranteed?

He had spent two years on franchise tags in Washington after backing up Robert Griffin III.

In 2022 Justin Jefferson became the youngest player to lead the NFL in catches and receiving yards. How many yards?

He was 23, had 128 catches and won Offensive Player of the Year; he was only a three-star recruit out of high school.

Which college did Justin Jefferson play for, winning a national title in his final season?

He led the Tigers in receiving in 2018 after not recording a single catch as a freshman.

Which Packers legend finished his career with two seasons in Minnesota, in 2009 and 2010?

His 2009 season ended with an interception in the NFC Championship Game against the Saints, the 'Bountygate' game.

Which Vikings center played from 1962 to 1978 and was elected to the Hall of Fame in 2015?

He grew up on a farm in Lexington, Nebraska.

Which Vikings guard, an Arizona State product, was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2009?

He played in the Sun Devils' first Rose Bowl in 1987 and is in that game's Hall of Fame too.

Which Purple People Eater was born in Winston-Salem and played college ball for the Golden Gophers?

He entered the Hall of Fame in 2004.

Which Vikings coach won Super Bowl LVI as the Rams' offensive coordinator before taking the job?

He was drafted as a quarterback by the Patriots in 2008 and named AP Coach of the Year for 2024.

Which quarterback, once written off as a bust, made the Pro Bowl with the Vikings in 2024?

He moved on to Seattle the following year and won Super Bowl LX.

When did the Vikings introduce their official mascot Viktor the Viking?

Earlier attempts at a team-owned mascot had failed; Viktor was aimed squarely at younger fans.

How many members of the Pro Football Hall of Fame are counted as Vikings?

Fran Tarkenton, in 1986, was the first inductee to have spent most of his career with the team.

Which Vikings quarterback earned five Grey Cup rings in the CFL before his NFL career?

He led Houston for a decade and made one more playoff run with Minnesota before retiring in 2000.

At which university did the Vikings hold training camp from 1966 until the tradition ended in 2017?

The 52-year Mankato camp ended when the team opened its new Eagan headquarters on the old Northwest Airlines site in 2018.

Who beat the Vikings 41-0 in the NFC Championship Game after the 2000 season?

The Vikings had started 11-2 before Daunte Culpepper's injury-hampered slump; they went 5-11 the next year.

How many passing touchdowns did Daunte Culpepper throw in 2004, a Vikings single-season record?

He also led the NFL with 4,717 passing yards and set an NFL record with 5,123 total yards.

Who caught Gus Frerotte's 99-yard touchdown in 2008, the longest play in franchise history?

It came in Week 13 against the Bears, a season the Vikings won their first NFC North title.

Which German receiver did the Vikings draft in 2016, the first European with no North American experience?

He went in the sixth round of the 2016 draft, months before Teddy Bridgewater's knee injury forced the Sam Bradford trade.

Against which team did the Vikings record their 500th franchise win, in September 2019?

That season ended with an overtime wild-card upset of the Saints before a loss to the 49ers.

The Vikings' 1981 Eden Prairie headquarters was named after which team founder?

Winter served as team president from 1965 to 1987; the Vikings played their last game at the Met that December.

Where did the Vikings hold their first training camps, from 1961 to 1965?

Metropolitan Stadium in Bloomington was home for games during those same early years.

What was the Vikings' record in 1969, when they won 12 straight after an opening loss?

The streak was the NFL's longest in a single season in 35 years and carried them to Super Bowl IV.