1994 Minnesota Vikings season
NFL team season
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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.
| 1994 Minnesota Vikings season | |
|---|---|
| Head coach | Dennis Green |
| Offensive coordinator | Brian Billick |
| Defensive coordinator | Tony Dungy |
| 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 | |
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 | ||||
| 1 | 18 | Dewayne Washington | Cornerback | NC State | From Broncos[A] |
| 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] | |||
| 125 | Mike Wells | Defensive tackle | Iowa | From Raiders[C] | |
| 5 | 134 | Shelly Hammonds | Defensive back | Penn State | From Redskins[F] |
| 151 | Traded to the Kansas City Chiefs[G] | ||||
| 6 | 179 | Andrew Jordan | Tight end | Western Carolina | From Broncos[A] |
| 180 | Traded to the Pittsburgh Steelers[D] | ||||
| 7 | 211 | Pete Bercich | Linebacker | Notre Dame | |
Notes:
- 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).
- 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).
- The Vikings traded their second-round selection (52nd overall) to the Raiders in exchange for second- and fourth-round selections (55th and 125th overall).
- 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.
Undrafted free agents
| Player | Position | College |
|---|---|---|
| Malik Boyd | Cornerback | Southern |
| Phil Brown | Running back | Texas |
| Edward Buck | Safety | Texas |
| Tony Carter | Fullback | Minnesota |
| Lance Gray | Fullback | Nebraska |
| Robert Griffith | Safety | San Diego State |
| Troy Riemer | Tackle | Texas |
Staff
|
Front office
Head coaches
Offensive coaches
|
Defensive coaches
Special teams coaches
Strength and conditioning
|
Roster
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
| 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 | ||
|---|---|---|
|
Standings
| NFC Central | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| W | L | T | PCT | PF | PA | STK | |
| (3) Minnesota Vikings | 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
| 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 | ||
|---|---|---|
|
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)