1988 Minnesota Vikings season

The 1988 season was the Minnesota Vikings' 28th in the National Football League. They finished with an 11–5 record, and finished second to the Chicago Bears in the NFC Central division.

1988 Minnesota Vikings season
Head coachJerry Burns
General managerMike Lynn
Home fieldMetrodome
Local radioWCCO
Results
Record11–5
Division place2nd NFC Central
Playoff finishWon NFC Wild Card Playoff (Rams) 28–17
Lost NFC Divisional Playoff (at 49ers) 9–34

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 coach Jerry Burns. They defeated the Los Angeles Rams in the wildcard round, but lost 34–9 in the divisional round to the San Francisco 49ers, who went on to win their third Super Bowl. This was the last time the Vikings won a playoff game until 1997.

Offseason

1988 Draft
Hall of Famer
1988 Minnesota Vikings Draft
Draft order Player name Position College Notes
Round Selection
119 Randall McDanielGuardArizona State
245 Traded to the Denver Broncos[a]
54 Brad EdwardsDefensive backSouth Carolinafrom Broncos[a]
371 Al NogaDefensive endHawaii
497 Traded to the New England Patriots[b]
108 Todd KalisGuardArizona Statefrom Broncos[a]
5124 Darrell FullingtonDefensive backMiami
6156 Traded to the Miami Dolphins[c]
164 Derrick WhiteDefensive backOklahomafrom Broncos[a]
7183 Brad BeckmanTight endNebraska–Omaha
8210 Joe CainLinebackerOregon Tech
9237 Paul McGowanLinebackerFlorida State
10264 Brian HabibOffensive tackleWashington
11296 Norman FloydSafetySouth Carolinafrom Vikings[b] via Patriots[d]
12323 Traded to the New York Giants[e]
^[a] The Vikings traded their second-round selection (45th overall) to the Denver Broncos in exchange for Denver's second-, fourth- and sixth-round selections (54th, 108th and 164th overall).
^[b] The Vikings traded their fourth- and 11th-round selections (97th and 294th overall) to the New England Patriots for QB Rich Gannon.
^[c] The Vikings traded their sixth-round selection (156th overall) and 1989 10th-round selection (275th overall) to the Miami Dolphins for OL Greg Koch.
^[d] The Vikings traded their 1989 ninth-round selection to the New England Patriots in exchange for the 11th-round selection that the Patriots received in the Gannon trade (296th overall).[b]
^[e] The Vikings traded their 12th-round selection (323rd overall) to the New York Giants in exchange for C Chris Foote.

Supplemental Draft
Round Name Position College Notes
5Ryan BetheaWide receiverSouth CarolinaResulted in forfeiture of 1989 fifth-round selection

Staff
1988 Minnesota Vikings staff
Front office
  • President – Wheelock Whitney, Jr.
  • General manager – Mike Lynn

Head coaches

Offensive coaches

Defensive coaches=

Defensive coaches

{{{defensive}}}

Special teams coaches

  • Special teams/Tight Ends – Tom Batta

[3]

Roster
1988 Minnesota Vikings final roster
Quarterbacks

Running backs

Wide receivers

Tight ends

 Offensive linemen

Defensive linemen

 Linebackers

Defensive backs

Special teams

 Reserve lists


Practice squad



Rookies in italics
 49 active, 2 inactive, 0 practice squad

Preseason
WeekDateOpponentResultRecordVenueAttendance[4]Notes
1August 7New Orleans SaintsL 20–230–1Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome47,624
2August 14Chicago BearsW 28–211–1Ullevi Stadium (Göteborg, Sweden)33,115Volvo American Football Classic
3August 21at Phoenix CardinalsW 19–16 (OT)2–1Sun Devil Stadium45,429
4August 26Miami DolphinsW 24–173–1Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome51,463

Regular season
A ticket for the 1988 NFC Wildcard Game between the Vikings and the Rams

Schedule
Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Attendance
1 September 4 at Buffalo Bills L 10–12 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 at Chicago 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 at Miami 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 at Tampa Bay Buccaneers W 49–20 5–3 Tampa Stadium 48,020
9 October 30 at San 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 at Dallas 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 at Detroit 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 at Green 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

Game summaries
Week 11: Minnesota Vikings at Dallas Cowboys – Game summary
1 2 34Total
Vikings 17 0 17943
Cowboys 0 3 003

at Texas Stadium, Irving, Texas

Game information

Standings
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

Playoffs
See also: 1988–89 NFL playoffs

Schedule
WeekDateOpponent (seed)ResultRecordVenueAttendance
Wild Card December 26 Los Angeles Rams (5) W 28–17 1–0 Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome 57,666
Divisional January 1 San Francisco 49ers (2) L 9–34 1–1 Candlestick Park 61,848

Game summaries

NFC Wild Card: vs. (#5) Los Angeles Rams
NFC Wild Card Playoff: (#5) Los Angeles Rams at (#4) Minnesota Vikings – Game summary
1 2 34Total
Rams 0 7 3717
Vikings 14 0 7728

at Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome, Minneapolis, Minnesota

Game information

NFC Divisional Playoffs: at (#2) San Francisco 49ers
NFC Divisional Playoff: (#4) Minnesota Vikings at (#2) San Francisco 49ers – Game summary
1 2 34Total
Vikings 3 0 609
49ers 7 14 01334

at Candlestick Park, San Francisco

Game information

Statistics

Team leaders
Category Player(s) Value
Passing yardsWade Wilson2,746
Passing touchdownsWade Wilson15
Rushing yardsDarrin Nelson380
Rushing touchdownsAlfred Anderson7
Receiving yardsAnthony Carter1,225
Receiving touchdownsAnthony Carter6
PointsChuck Nelson108
Kickoff return yardsDarryl Harris833
Punt return yardsLeo Lewis550 *
TacklesJesse Solomon124
SacksChris Doleman
Keith Millard		8.0
InterceptionsCarl Lee8
Forced fumblesHenry Thomas4

* Vikings single season record

League rankings
Category Total yards Yards per game NFL rank
(out of 28)
Passing offense3,789236.84th
Rushing offense1,806112.920th
Total offense5,595349.77th
Passing defense2,489155.62nd
Rushing defense1,602100.15th
Total defense4,091255.71st
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References
  1. Pro-Football-Reference.com: 1988 NFL Opposition & Defensive Statistics
  2. Cold Hard Football Facts: Shutdown! The greatest pass defenses in history
  3. 2010 Minnesota Vikings Media Guide. p. 265. Archived from the original on December 24, 2010. Retrieved February 18, 2011.
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