The 1989 season was the Minnesota Vikings' 29th in the National Football League (NFL). They finished with a 10–6 record to win 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. The Vikings were beaten 41–13 in the divisional round of the playoffs by the eventual Super Bowl champion San Francisco 49ers.
This season was also notable for the number of sacks the defense recorded: 71 overall, with 39 coming from only two players (Chris Doleman and Keith Millard). Millard was named the Defensive Player of the Year after putting up record numbers by a defensive tackle.
Offseason
1989 draft
1989 Minnesota Vikings Draft Draft order Player name Position College Notes Round Selection 1 24 Traded to the Pittsburgh Steelers 2 52 David Braxton Linebacker Wake Forest 3 80 John Hunter Offensive tackle BYU 4 108 Darryl Ingram Tight end California 5 136 Pick forfeited during 1988 supplemental draft 6 163 Jeff Mickel Offensive tackle Eastern Washington 7 191 Benji Roland Defensive end Auburn 8 219 Alex Stewart Defensive end Cal State Fullerton 9 247 Traded to the New England Patriots 10 275 Traded to the Miami Dolphins 11 303 Brad Baxter Running back Alabama State 12 331 Shawn Woodson Linebacker James Madison 335 Everett Ross Wide receiver Ohio State From 49ers, via Raiders Notes:
Undrafted free agents
+ 1989 undrafted free agents of notePlayerPositionCollegePat BeatyKickerNorth DakotaRobert CarterRunning backTroy StateJarrod DelaneyWide receiverTCUDarrell EllisonLinebackerTulsaDevin HarbertsWide receiverIowaKen JohnsonDefensive backFlorida A&MAndy KeelerGuardNebraskaTony PetersonQuarterbackMarshallEverett RossWide receiverOhio StatePat ThompsonPunterBYU
Staff
Roster
Preseason Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Attendance 1 August 12 vs Kansas City Chiefs W 23–13 1–0 Liberty Bowl 63,528 2 August 21 Washington Redskins W 24–13 2–0 Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome 50,213 3 August 26 at Los Angeles Rams L 14–24 2–1 Anaheim Stadium 45,087 4 September 1 Cincinnati Bengals W 17–10 3–1 Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome 49,867
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.
After the November 5th game against the Los Angeles Rams, in which kicker Rich Karlis led the team to victory with 7 field goals, Head Coach Jerry Burns gave an expletive laden press conference berating the press and Vikings fans for their continued haranging of Offensive Coordinator Bob Schnelker.
Schedule Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Attendance 1 September 10 Houston Oilers W 38–7 1–0 Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome 54,015 2 September 17 at Chicago Bears L 7–38 1–1 Soldier Field 66,475 3 September 24 at Pittsburgh Steelers L 14–27 1–2 Three Rivers Stadium 50,744 4 October 1 Tampa Bay Buccaneers W 17–3 2–2 Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome 54,817 5 October 8 Detroit Lions W 24–17 3–2 Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome 55,380 6 October 15 Green Bay Packers W 26–14 4–2 Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome 62,075 7 October 22 at Detroit Lions W 20–7 5–2 Silverdome 51,579 8 at New York Giants L 14–24 5–3 Giants Stadium 76,041 9 November 5 Los Angeles Rams W 23–21 6–3 Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome 59,600 10 November 12 at Tampa Bay Buccaneers W 24–10 7–3 Tampa Stadium 56,271 11 November 19 at Philadelphia Eagles L 9–10 7–4 Veterans Stadium 65,944 12 November 26 at Green Bay Packers L 19–20 7–5 Milwaukee County Stadium 55,592 13 December 3 Chicago Bears W 27–16 8–5 Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome 60,664 14 December 10 Atlanta Falcons W 43–17 9–5 Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome 58,116 15 December 17 at Cleveland Browns L 17–23 9–6 Cleveland Stadium 70,777 16 December 25 Cincinnati Bengals W 29–21 10–6 Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome 58,829
Game summaries Week 2 at Chicago Bears
Week 3 at Pittsburgh Steelers
Week 5: vs Detroit Lions
Week 6 vs Green Bay Packers
Standings
Postseason
Schedule Week Date Opponent (seed) Result Record Venue Attendance Wild Card Bye Divisional January 6 at San Francisco 49ers (1) L 13–41 0–1 Candlestick Park 64,585
Herschel Walker trade
In 1989, at the height of his NFL career, the Cowboys traded Herschel Walker 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, "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 Passing offense 3,189 199.3 17th Rushing offense 2,066 129.1 7th Total offense 5,255 328.4 14th Passing defense 2,501 156.3 1st Rushing defense 1,683 105.2 11th Total defense 4,184 261.5 1st
Awards and records Keith Millard – NFL Defensive Player of the Year (AP, UPI, PFWA) Chris Doleman – NFL sacks leader (21.0) Randall McDaniel – NFC Pro Bowl selection
Milestones Chris Doleman, third player in NFL history to reach 20 sacks in a season Chris Doleman, franchise record, 21 sacks
References
External links Vikings on Pro-Football-Reference.com