1989 Minnesota Vikings season

1989 Minnesota Vikings season
Head coach	Jerry Burns
General manager	Mike Lynn
Home field	Metrodome
Results
Record	10–6
Division place	1st NFC Central
Playoff finish	Lost NFC Divisional Playoff

1989 was the 29th year of season play for the Minnesota Vikings and the 70th regular season of the National Football League. The Vikings finished with a record of ten wins and six losses, and winning the NFC Central Division. This title was secured during one of what is considered by many to be among the most exciting Monday Night Football contests ever: a Christmas Day victory over the Cincinnati Bengals at home, at the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome, which was the de facto first playoff game of the year. This season was also notable by how many sacks the defense produced, with 39 coming from only two players (Chris Doleman and Keith Millard) and 71 overall. Millard would later receive Defensive Player of the Year honors after putting up record numbers by a defensive tackle.

For the third consecutive time under Burns, the Vikings made the postseason. They were embarrassed once again by the 49ers in the divisional round, 43-13. This marks the last time the Vikings made the playoffs under Burns, as he retired following the 1991 season after the next two seasons of mediocre football.

Offseason

1989 Draft

Main article: 1989 NFL draft

1989 Minnesota Vikings Draft
Draft order			Player name	Position	College	Notes
Round	Choice	Overall
1	24	24	Traded to the Pittsburgh Steelers
2	24	52	David Braxton	Linebacker	Wake Forest
3	24	80	John Hunter	Offensive Tackle	Brigham Young
4	24	108	Darryl Ingram	Tight End	California
5	24	136	Pick forfeited during 1988 Supplemental Draft
6	24	163	Jeff Mickel	Offensive Tackle	Eastern Washington
7	24	191	Benji Roland	Defensive End	Auburn
8	24	219	Alex Stewart	Defensive End	Cal State-Fullerton
9	24	247	Traded to the New England Patriots
10	24	275	Traded to the Miami Dolphins
11	24	303	Brad Baxter	Running Back	Alabama State
12	24	331	Shawn Woodson	Linebacker	James Madison
	28	335	Everett Ross	Wide Receiver	Ohio State	from 49ers via Raiders

^{^[a]} Minnesota traded their 1st round selection to Pittsburgh for LB Mike Merriweather.

^{^[b]} Minnesota selected defensive back Ryan Bethea.

^{^[c]} During the 1988 Draft, New England traded their 11th round selection (296th overall) to Minnesota for their 9th round selection in the 1989 draft.

^{^[d]} Minnesota traded their 12th round selection to Miami for OL Greg Koch.

^{^[e]} Minnesota traded their 1990 11th round selection to the Radiers for this selection.

Personnel

Staff

1989 Minnesota Vikings staff
	Front office President – Wheelock Whitney, Jr. General Manager – Mike Lynn Head coaches Head Coach – Jerry Burns Offensive coaches Offensive Coordinator – Bob Schnelker Assistant Offensive Coordinator/Passing Game – Dick Rehbein Running Backs – John Brunner Receivers – Jerry Brown Tight Ends – Tom Batta Offensive Line – John Michels			Defensive coaches Defensive Coordinator – Floyd Peters Defensive Line – Paul Wiggin Linebackers – Monte Kiffin Defensive Backs – Pete Carroll Special teams coaches Special Teams – Tom Batta

Final roster

1989 Minnesota Vikings final roster
	Quarterbacks 16 Rich Gannon  9 Tommy Kramer 11 Wade Wilson Running backs 46 Alfred Anderson FB 33 Jessie Clark 42 D. J. Dozier 31 Rick Fenney FB 34 Herschel Walker Wide receivers 81 Anthony Carter 80 Jim Gustafson 84 Hassan Jones 87 Leo Lewis PR Tight ends 82 Carl Hilton 86 Darryl Ingram 83 Steve Jordan 85 Brent Novoselsky		Offensive linemen 68 John Adickes C 62 Chris Foote C 74 Brian Habib G 72 Dave Huffman G 76 Tim Irwin T 69 Todd Kalis G 63 Kirk Lowdermilk C 64 Randall McDaniel G 65 Gary Zimmerman T Defensive linemen 71 Ken Clarke DT 56 Chris Doleman DE 79 Doug Martin DE 75 Keith Millard DT 99 Al Noga DE 94 Thomas Strauthers DE 97 Henry Thomas DT		Linebackers 50 Ray Berry OLB 53 David Braxton 59 Mark Dusbabek OLB 90 John Galvin 57 Mike Merriweather OLB 55 Scott Studwell MLB Defensive backs 44 Michael Brim CB 47 Joey Browner SS 49 Travis Curtis FS 27 Brad Edwards FS 29 Darrell Fullington FS 22 Ken L. Johnson CB 39 Carl Lee CB 26 Audray McMillian CB 48 Reggie Rutland CB 25 Daryl Smith CB Special teams  3 Rich Karlis K 60 Mark Rodenhauser LS 13 Bucky Scribner P		Reserve lists 36 Allen Rice RB (IR) 10px Practice squad Rookies in italics 51 Active, 1 Inactive, 0 Practice squad

Regular season

The defensive line of Chris Doleman, Keith Millard, Al Noga and Henry Thomas were key contributors in helping the Vikings rank number one in the NFL in total defense. In addition, the Vikings set a franchise record with 71 sacks in one season. Chris Doleman had 21 sacks and was one shy of tying the NFL record.

Schedule

Week	Date	Opponent	Result	Venue	Attendance
1	September 10, 1989	Houston Oilers	W 38–7	Metrodome	54,015
2	September 17, 1989	at Chicago Bears	L 38–7	Soldier Field	66,475
3	September 24, 1989	at Pittsburgh Steelers	L 27–14	Three Rivers Stadium	50,744
4	October 1, 1989	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	W 17–3	Metrodome	54,817
5	October 8, 1989	Detroit Lions	W 24–17	Metrodome	55,380
6	October 15, 1989	Green Bay Packers	W 26–14	Metrodome	62,075
7	October 22, 1989	at Detroit Lions	W 20–7	Silverdome	51,579
8	October 30, 1989	at New York Giants	L 24–14	Giants Stadium	76,041
9	November 5, 1989	Los Angeles Rams	W 23–21 (OT)	Metrodome	59,600
10	November 12, 1989	at Tampa Bay Buccaneers	W 24–10	Tampa Stadium	56,271
11	November 19, 1989	at Philadelphia Eagles	L 10–9	Veterans Stadium	65,944
12	November 26, 1989	at Green Bay Packers	L 20–19	Milwaukee County Stadium	55,592
13	December 3, 1989	Chicago Bears	W 27–16	Metrodome	60,664
14	December 10, 1989	Atlanta Falcons	W 43–17	Metrodome	58,116
15	December 17, 1989	at Cleveland Browns	L 23–17 (OT)	Cleveland Stadium	70,777
16	December 25, 1989	Cincinnati Bengals	W 29–21	Metrodome	58,829

Playoffs

Week	Date	Opponent	Result	Venue	Attendance
Divisional	January 6, 1990	at San Francisco 49ers	L 41–13	Candlestick Park	64,585

Standings

NFC Central
	W	L	T	PCT	DIV	CONF	PF	PA	STK
Minnesota Vikings(3)	10	6	0	.625	6–2	8–4	362	356	W1
Green Bay Packers	10	6	0	.625	5–3	10–4	351	275	W2
Detroit Lions	7	9	0	.438	4–4	6–6	312	364	W5
Chicago Bears	6	10	0	.375	2–6	4–8	358	377	L6
Tampa Bay Buccaneers	5	11	0	.313	3–5	5–7	320	419	L4

Herschel Walker

Main article: Herschel Walker trade

In 1989, at the height of his NFL career, the Cowboys traded him to the Minnesota Vikings for a total of five players (LB Jesse Solomon, DB Issiac Holt, RB Darrin Nelson, LB David Howard, DE Alex Stewart) and six draft picks (which led to Emmitt Smith, Russell Maryland, Kevin Smith, and Darren Woodson). This was judged to be one of the turning points in the rise of the Cowboys to the top echelon of the NFL. Walker's trade was widely perceived as an exceptionally poor move considering what the Vikings had to give up in order to get him, and remains one of the most frequently vilified roster moves of the team's history. The Vikings coaches reluctantly accepted Walker after the trade and never totally used the tool they had been given. Scout.com says, "but Walker was never used properly by the coaching brain trust (a total oxymoron in this case)".

Statistics

Team leaders

Category	Player(s)	Value
Passing Yards	Wade Wilson	2,543
Passing Touchdowns	Wade Wilson	9
Rushing Yards	Herschel Walker	669
Rushing Touchdowns	Herschel Walker	5
Receiving Yards	Anthony Carter	1,066
Receiving Touchdowns	Anthony Carter	4
Points	Rich Karlis	120
Kickoff Return Yards	Herschel Walker	374
Punt Return Yards	Leo Lewis	446
Tackles	Chris Doleman Henry Thomas	94
Sacks	Chris Doleman	21.0
Interceptions	Joey Browner	5
Forced Fumbles	Chris Doleman	5

League rankings

Category	Total yards	Yards per game	NFL rank (out of 28)
Passing Offense	3,189 Yards	199.3 YPG	17th
Rushing Offense	2,066 Yards	129.1 YPG	7th
Total Offense	5,255 Yards	328.4 YPG	14th
Passing Defense	2,501 Yards	156.3 YPG	1st
Rushing Defense	1,683 Yards	105.2 YPG	11th
Total Defense	4,184 Yards	261.5 YPG	1st

Awards and records

• Chris Doleman, NFL Leader, Sacks (21.0)
• Randall McDaniel, NFC Pro Bowl selection

Milestones

• Chris Doleman, Third Player in NFL History to get at least 20 sacks in a season
• Chris Doleman, franchise record, 21 sacks

References

• Vikings on Football Reference