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.
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 the following week, the Vikings couldn't flick the switch this time, losing 34–9 to the rejuvenated San Francisco 49ers , who would go on to win their third Super Bowl . This was the last time the Vikings had won a playoff game until 1997.
Offseason
1988 Draft
^[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
Personnel
Staff
1988 Minnesota Vikings staff
Front office
President – Wheelock Whitney, Jr.
General manager – Mike Lynn
Head coaches
Offensive coaches
Offensive coordinator – Bob Schnelker
Receivers – Dick Rehbein
Offensive assistant/receivers – Jerry Brown
Running backs – John Brunner
Tight ends – Tom Batta
Offensive line – John Michels
Defensive coaches
{{{defensive}}}
Special teams coaches
Special teams – Tom Batta
[3]
Final roster
1988 Minnesota Vikings 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
Regular season
File:1988 NFC Wild Card Game - Los Angeles Rams at Minnesota Vikings 1988-12-26 (ticket).jpg 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
Game information
First quarter
Second quarter
Third quarter
MIN – Hassan Jones 64-yard pass from Wade Wilson (Chuck Nelson kick). Vikings 24–3.
MIN – Chuck Nelson 27-yard field goal. Vikings 27–3.
MIN – Steve Jordan 3-yard pass from Wade Wilson (Chuck Nelson kick). Vikings 34–3.
Fourth quarter
Top passers
Top rushers
Top receivers
Standings
Template:1988 NFC Central standings
Playoffs
Schedule
Game summaries
NFC Wild Card: vs. (#5) Los Angeles Rams
NFC Wild Card Playoff: (#5) Los Angeles Rams at (#4) Minnesota Vikings – Game summary
Game information
First quarter
Second quarter
Third quarter
MIN – Alfred Anderson 1-yard run (Chuck Nelson kick). Vikings 21–7.
LAR – Mike Lansford 33-yard field goal. Vikings 21–10.
Fourth quarter
Top passers
Top rushers
Top receivers
NFC Divisional Playoffs: at (#2) San Francisco 49ers
NFC Divisional Playoff: (#4) Minnesota Vikings at (#2) San Francisco 49ers – Game summary
Game information
First quarter
Second quarter
SF – Jerry Rice 4-yard pass from Joe Montana (Mike Cofer kick). 49ers 14–3.
SF – Jerry Rice 11-yard pass from Joe Montana (Mike Cofer kick). 49ers 21–3.
Third quarter
Fourth quarter
SF – Roger Craig 4-yard run (Mike Cofer kick). 49ers 28–9.
SF – Roger Craig 80-yard run (kick failed). 49ers 34–9.
Top passers
Top rushers
Top receivers
Statistics
Team leaders
* Vikings single season record
League rankings
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
References
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