1994 Minnesota Vikings season

1994 Minnesota Vikings season
1994 Minnesota Vikings season
Head coach	Dennis Green
Home stadium	Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome
Results
Record	10–6
Division place	1st NFC Central
Playoffs	Lost Wild Card Playoffs; (vs. Bears) 18–35
All-Pros	WR Cris Carter (1st team); G Randall McDaniel (1st team); DT John Randle (1st team); K Fuad Reveiz (2nd team)
Pro Bowlers	WR Cris Carter; LB Jack Del Rio; G Randall McDaniel; QB Warren Moon; DT John Randle; K Fuad Reveiz
Uniform

The 1994 season was the Minnesota Vikings' 34th in the National Football League (NFL) and their third under head coach Dennis Green. The team finished with a 10–6 record and reached the playoffs for a third straight season, but also failed to make it out of the wild-card round for the third year in a row, losing 35–18 to their division rival Chicago Bears.

Offseason

Additions	Subtractions
QB Warren Moon (Oilers)	WR Anthony Carter (Lions)
RB Amp Lee (49ers)	DE Chris Doleman (Falcons)
T Chris Hinton (Falcons)	LB Fred Strickland (Packers)
	QB Jim McMahon (Cardinals)
	RB Barry Word (Cardinals)
	DT Brad Culpepper (Buccaneers)

1994 draft

	Pro Bowler

1994 Minnesota Vikings Draft
Draft order		Player name	Position	College	Notes
Round	Selection	Player name	Position	College	Notes
1	18	Dewayne Washington	Cornerback	NC State	From Broncos^[A]
1	19	Todd Steussie	Offensive tackle	California
2	40	David Palmer	Wide receiver	Alabama	From Browns, via Eagles and Falcons^[B]
	45	Traded to the Atlanta Falcons^[B]			Compensatory pick
	52	Traded to the Los Angeles Raiders^[C]
	55	Fernando Smith	Defensive end	Jackson State	From Raiders^[C]
3	88	Traded to the Pittsburgh Steelers^[D]
4	119	Traded to the Houston Oilers^[E]
4	125	Mike Wells	Defensive tackle	Iowa	From Raiders^[C]
5	134	Shelly Hammonds	Defensive back	Penn State	From Redskins^[F]
5	151	Traded to the Kansas City Chiefs^[G]
6	179	Andrew Jordan	Tight end	Western Carolina	From Broncos^[A]
6	180	Traded to the Pittsburgh Steelers^[D]
7	211	Pete Bercich	Linebacker	Notre Dame

Notes:

^ ^a ^b The Vikings traded OT Gary Zimmerman to the Broncos in exchange for first- and sixth-round selections (18th and 179th overall) and a 1995 second-round selection (42nd overall).
^ ^a ^b The Vikings traded DE Chris Doleman and a second-round selection (45th overall) to the Falcons in exchange for a second-round selection (40th overall) and a 1995 first-round selection (11th overall).
^ ^a ^b ^c The Vikings traded their second-round selection (52nd overall) to the Raiders in exchange for second- and fourth-round selections (55th and 125th overall).
^ ^a ^b The Vikings traded their third- and sixth-round selections (88th and 180th overall) to the Steelers in exchange for TE Adrian Cooper.
^ The Vikings traded their fourth-round selection (119th overall) and a 1995 third-round selection (89th overall) to the Oilers in exchange for QB Warren Moon.
^ The Vikings traded QB Rich Gannon to the Redskins in exchange for a conditional fifth-round selection (134th overall).
^ The Vikings traded their fifth-round selection (151st overall) to the Chiefs in exchange for RB Barry Word.

Notable undrafted free agents
Player	Position	College
Tony Carter	Fullback	Minnesota
Robert Griffith	Safety	San Diego State

Staff

**1994 Minnesota Vikings staff**
	Front office Chairman of the board – John Skoglund President/chief executive officer – Roger Headrick Head coaches Head coach – Dennis Green Offensive coaches Offensive coordinator/quarterbacks – Brian Billick Running backs – Tyrone Willingham Receivers – Jerry Rhome Offensive line – Keith Rowen Assistant offensive line – Chris Foerster Offensive assistant – Carl Hargrave			Defensive coaches Defensive coordinator – Tony Dungy Defensive line – John Teerlinck Inside linebackers – Monte Kiffin Outside linebackers – Trent Walters Defensive backs – Richard Solomon Special teams coaches Special teams – Gary Zauner Strength and conditioning Strength and conditioning – Steve Wetzel Strength and conditioning assistant – Mike Wolf

^[1]

Roster

**1994 Minnesota Vikings roster**
Quarterbacks (QB) 14 Brad Johnson 1 Warren Moon 12 Sean Salisbury Running backs (RB) 21 Terry Allen 29 Chuck Evans FB 31 Scottie Graham 32 Amp Lee 26 Robert Smith KR Wide receivers (WR) 80 Cris Carter 84 Eric Guliford 82 Qadry Ismail KR 22 David Palmer PR 86 Jake Reed 81 Chris Walsh Tight ends (TE) 46 John Gerak 89 Andrew Jordan 83 Steve Jordan		Offensive linemen (OL) 62 Jeff Christy C 75 Bernard Dafney G 71 David Dixon G 78 Chris Hinton T 64 Randall McDaniel G 60 Reggie McElroy G/T 63 Mike Ruether C 73 Todd Steussie T Defensive linemen (DL) 92 Roy Barker DE 99 James Harris DE 90 Robert Harris DE 91 Martin Harrison DE 79 Roosevelt Nix DE 93 John Randle DT 95 Fernando Smith DE 97 Henry Thomas DT 98 Esera Tuaolo DT		Linebackers (LB) 50 Bobby Abrams OLB 52 Richard Brown MLB 55 Jack Del Rio MLB 54 Dave Garnett OLB 51 Carlos Jenkins OLB 58 Ed McDaniel OLB 59 Ashley Sheppard OLB 57 William Sims MLB Defensive backs (DB) 36 Malik Boyd CB 34 Brian Davis CB 25 Vencie Glenn FS 24 Robert Griffith FS 37 Lamar McGriggs SS 27 Anthony Parker CB 38 Todd Scott SS 20 Dewayne Washington CB Special teams (ST) 68 Mike Morris LS 7 Fuad Reveiz K 4 Mike Saxon P		Practice squad 56 Pete Bercich LB -- Shelly Hammonds CB/S -- Royce Nelson G -- Robert Staten FB Reserve -- Frank Boudreaux DT (PUP) 87 Adrian Cooper TE (IR) -- Donald Jones LB (IR) 61 Everett Lindsay G (IR) 85 Brent Novoselsky TE (IR) Rookies in italics 53 active, 5 reserve, 4 practice squad

Preseason

Week	Date	Opponent	Result	Record	Venue	Attendance^[2]	Notes
1	July 31	at Dallas Cowboys	L 9–17	0–1	Texas Stadium	59,062
2	August 7	Kansas City Chiefs	W 17–9	1–1	Tokyo Dome (Tokyo, Japan)	49,555	American Bowl
3	August 13	New Orleans Saints	W 21–17	2–1	Metrodome	46,067
4	August 20	at Seattle Seahawks	L 19–30	2–2	Husky Stadium	45,797
5	August 26	Miami Dolphins	W 31–16	3–2	Metrodome	46,933

Regular season

Schedule

Week	Date	Opponent	Result	Record	Venue	Attendance
1	September 4	at Green Bay Packers	L 16–10	0–1	Lambeau Field	59,487
2	September 11	Detroit Lions	W 10–3	1–1	Metrodome	57,349
3	September 18	at Chicago Bears	W 42–14	2–1	Soldier Field	61,073
4	September 25	Miami Dolphins	W 38–35	3–1	Metrodome	64,035
5	October 2	at Arizona Cardinals	L 17–7	3–2	Sun Devil Stadium	67,950
6	October 10	at New York Giants	W 27–10	4–2	Giants Stadium	77,294
7	Bye
8	October 20	Green Bay Packers	W 13–10 (OT)	5–2	Metrodome	63,041
9	October 30	at Tampa Bay Buccaneers	W 36–13	6–2	Tampa Stadium	42,110
10	November 6	New Orleans Saints	W 21–20	7–2	Metrodome	57,564
11	November 13	at New England Patriots	L 26–20 (OT)	7–3	Foxboro Stadium	58,382
12	November 20	New York Jets	L 31–21	7–4	Metrodome	60,687
13	November 27	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	L 20–17 (OT)	7–5	Metrodome	47,259
14	December 1	Chicago Bears	W 33–27 (OT)	8–5	Metrodome	61,483
15	December 11	at Buffalo Bills	W 21–17	9–5	Rich Stadium	66,501
16	December 17	at Detroit Lions	L 41–19	9–6	Silverdome	73,881
17	December 26	San Francisco 49ers	W 21–14	10–6	Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome	63,326

Game summaries

Week 13: vs Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Week 13: Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Minnesota Vikings – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	3	4	OT	Total
Buccaneers	7	7	0	3	3	20
Vikings	0	9	0	8	0	17

at Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome, Minneapolis, Minnesota

Date: November 27, 1994
Game time: 1:00 p.m. EDT
Game weather: None (indoor stadium)
Game attendance: 47,250
Referee: Red Cashion (43)
TV: Fox
Pro-Football-Reference.com, NFL Game Book

Game information

First quarter

TB – Errict Rhett 1-yard run (Michael Husted kick), 11:14. Buccaneers 7–0. Drive: 3 plays, 6 yards, 1:26.

Second quarter

MIN – Fuad Reveiz 23-yard field goal, 13:36. Buccaneers 7–3. Drive: 12 plays, 61 yards, 6:10.
MIN – Fuad Reveiz 21-yard field goal, 8:16. Buccaneers 7–6. Drive: 9 plays, 49 yards, 2:58.
TB – Courtney Hawkins 14-yard pass from Craig Erickson (Michael Husted kick), 5:13. Buccaneers 14–6. Drive: 8 plays, 55 yards, 3:03.
MIN – Fuad Reveiz 51-yard field goal, 0:33. Buccaneers 14–9. Drive: 10 plays, 53 yards, 2:41.

Third quarter

No scoring plays.

Fourth quarter

TB – Michael Husted 27-yard field goal, 5:24. Buccaneers 17–9. Drive: 14 plays, 86 yards, 7:58.
MIN – Qadry Ismail 40-yard pass from Warren Moon (Warren Moon–Cris Carter pass), 1:27. Tied 17–17. Drive: 3 plays, 52 yards, 0:31.

Overtime

TB – Michael Husted 22-yard field goal, 12:52. Buccaneers 20–17. Drive: 6 plays, 58 yards, 2:08.

Top passers

TB – Craig Erickson – 20/38, 254 yards, TD, INT
MIN – Warren Moon – 24/46, 286 yards, TD, INT

Top rushers

TB – Errict Rhett – 24 rushes, 55 yards, TD
MIN – Terry Allen – 16 rushes, 54 yards

Top receivers

TB – Courtney Hawkins – 6 receptions, 80 yards, TD
MIN – Qadry Ismail – 6 receptions, 101 yards, TD

Standings

NFC Central
	W	L	T	PCT	PF	PA	STK
⁽³⁾	10	6	0	.625	356	314	W1
⁽⁴⁾ Green Bay Packers	9	7	0	.563	382	287	W3
⁽⁵⁾ Detroit Lions	9	7	0	.563	357	342	L1
⁽⁶⁾ Chicago Bears	9	7	0	.563	271	307	L1
Tampa Bay Buccaneers	6	10	0	.375	251	351	L1

Postseason

Game summaries

NFC Wild Card Playoffs: vs. (#6) Chicago Bears

NFC Wild Card Playoffs: (#6) Chicago Bears at (#3) Minnesota Vikings – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Bears	0	14	7	14	35
Vikings	3	6	3	6	18

at Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome, Minneapolis, Minnesota

Date: January 1
Game time: 4:00 p.m. EST/3:00 p.m. CST
Game weather: None (indoor stadium)
Game attendance: 60,347
Referee: Red Cashion (43)
TV announcers (Fox): Pat Summerall and John Madden
Pro-Football-Reference.com, NFL Game Book

Game information

First quarter

MIN – Fuad Reveiz 29-yard field goal, 8:01. Vikings 3–0. 4 plays, −6 yards, 1:20.

Second quarter

CHI – Lewis Tillman 1-yard run (Kevin Butler kick), 11:46. Bears 7–3. Drive: 16 plays, 80 yards, 8:51.
CHI – Keith Jennings 9-yard pass from Steve Walsh (Kevin Butler kick), 8:03. Bears 14–3. Drive: 4 plays, 71 yards, 2:02.
MIN – Cris Carter 4-yard pass from Warren Moon (pass failed), 0:19. Bears 14–9. Drive: 6 plays, 47 yards, 1:26.

Third quarter

CHI – Raymont Harris 29-yard run (Kevin Butler kick), 12:57. Bears 21–9. Drive: 4 plays, 75 yards, 2:03.
MIN – Fuad Reveiz 48-yard field goal, 0:05. Bears 21–12. Drive: 6 plays, 37 yards, 0:54.

Fourth quarter

CHI – Jeff Graham 21-yard pass from Steve Walsh (Kevin Butler kick), 12:42. Bears 28–12. Drive: 6 plays, 60 yards, 2:23.
MIN – Amp Lee 11-yard pass from Warren Moon (pass failed), 5:36. Bears 28–18. Drive: 16 plays, 76 yards, 7:06.
CHI – Kevin Miniefield 48-yard fumble return (Kevin Butler kick), 3:05. Bears 35–18.

Top passers

CHI – Steve Walsh – 15/23, 221 yards, 2 TD, INT
MIN – Warren Moon – 29/52, 292 yards, 2 TD, 2 INT

Top rushers

CHI – Raymont Harris – 13 rushes, 67 yards, TD
MIN – Terry Allen – 12 rushes, 27 yards

Top receivers

CHI – Jeff Graham – 4 receptions, 108 yards, TD
MIN – Amp Lee – 11 receptions, 159 yards, TD

The Bears picked off Warren Moon twice while Steve Walsh threw two touchdowns, backs Raymont Harris and Lewis Tillman added rushing scores, and Kevin Miniefield ran back a Vikings fumble for a touchdown.

Statistics

Team leaders

Category	Player(s)	Value
Passing yards	Warren Moon	4,264
Passing touchdowns	Warren Moon	18
Rushing yards	Terry Allen	1,031
Rushing touchdowns	Terry Allen	8
Receptions	Cris Carter	122 *
Receiving yards	Cris Carter	1,256
Receiving touchdowns	Cris Carter	7
Points	Fuad Reveiz	132
Kickoff return yards	Qadry Ismail	807
Punt return yards	David Palmer	193
Tackles	Jack Del Rio	128
Sacks	John Randle	13.5
Interceptions	Vencie Glenn Anthony Parker	4
Forced fumbles	John Randle	3

* Vikings single season record (tie).

League rankings

Category	Total yards	Yards per game	NFL rank (out of 28)
Passing offense	4,324	270.2	3rd
Rushing offense	1,524	95.2	20th
Total offense	5,848	365.5	3rd
Passing defense	3,652	228.2	21st
Rushing defense	1,090	68.1	1st
Total defense	4,742	296.4	5th

Awards and honors

Cris Carter, Led NFL in receptions
Cris Carter, All-Pro selection
Cris Carter, Pro Bowl selection
Warren Moon, Pro Bowl selection 1994
Warren Moon, NFL leader, passing yards, (4,264)

Milestones

Cris Carter, 100 reception season (Carter finished the season with 122 receptions) ^[3]
Warren Moon, 3rd 4,000-yard passing season
Warren Moon, 5th 400-yard passing game (November 6)
Warren Moon, 6th 400-yard passing game (November 20)

References

^ 2009 Minnesota Vikings Media Guide. p. 251. Archived from the original on December 24, 2010. Retrieved February 26, 2010.
^ "1994 Minnesota Vikings (NFL) – Pro Football Archives".
^ NFL 2001 Record and Fact Book, Workman Publishing Co, New York, NY, ISBN 0-7611-2480-2, p. 440

External links

Vikings on Football Reference

[Broncos-1] The Vikings traded OT Gary Zimmerman to the Broncos in exchange for first- and sixth-round selections (18th and 179th overall) and a 1995 second-round selection (42nd overall).

[Falcons-2] The Vikings traded DE Chris Doleman and a second-round selection (45th overall) to the Falcons in exchange for a second-round selection (40th overall) and a 1995 first-round selection (11th overall).

[Raiders-3] The Vikings traded their second-round selection (52nd overall) to the Raiders in exchange for second- and fourth-round selections (55th and 125th overall).

[Steelers-4] The Vikings traded their third- and sixth-round selections (88th and 180th overall) to the Steelers in exchange for TE Adrian Cooper.

[5] The Vikings traded their fourth-round selection (119th overall) and a 1995 third-round selection (89th overall) to the Oilers in exchange for QB Warren Moon.

[6] The Vikings traded QB Rich Gannon to the Redskins in exchange for a conditional fifth-round selection (134th overall).

[7] The Vikings traded their fifth-round selection (151st overall) to the Chiefs in exchange for RB Barry Word.

[8] 2009 Minnesota Vikings Media Guide. p. 251. Archived from the original on December 24, 2010. Retrieved February 26, 2010.

[9] "1994 Minnesota Vikings (NFL) – Pro Football Archives".

[10] NFL 2001 Record and Fact Book, Workman Publishing Co, New York, NY, ISBN 0-7611-2480-2, p. 440

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Minnesota Vikings
Founded in 1961 Based in Minneapolis, Minnesota Headquartered in Eagan, Minnesota
Franchise	Franchise History Expansion draft All-time roster First-round draft picks Quarterbacks Head coaches Seasons Records Draft Broadcasters Ownership Twin Cities Orthopedics Performance Center
Stadiums	Metropolitan Stadium Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome TCF Bank Stadium U.S. Bank Stadium
Culture	Purple People Eaters "Skol, Vikings" How I Met Your Mother "Little Minnesota" "Tailgate" Cheerleaders Alan Roach Truth Hurts (song) Quarterback "Higher" (Creed song)
Lore	The Wrong Way Run Hail Mary Ed Thorp Memorial Trophy Santa Claus game Miracle at the Met Herschel Walker trade Gary Anderson's missed field goal Love Boat scandal Minneapolis Miracle 33–0 65 Toss Power Trap
Rivalries	Chicago Bears Dallas Cowboys Detroit Lions Green Bay Packers Los Angeles Rams New Orleans Saints
Division championships (21)	1968 1969 1970 1971 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1980 1989 1992 1998 2000 2008 2009 2015 2017 2022
Conference championships (4)	1969 1973 1974 1976
League championships (1)	1969
Retired numbers	10 53 70 77 80 88
Current league affiliations	League: National Football League Conference: National Football Conference Division: North Division

Minnesota Vikings seasons
1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025
Bold indicates NFL Championship (1920–69) or Super Bowl (1966–) victory Italics indicates Super Bowl (1966–) appearance