# 1995 Minnesota Vikings season

The 1995 season was the Minnesota Vikings' 35th in the National Football League (NFL). Under head coach Dennis Green, they finished with an 8–8 record and still had a chance to make the playoffs entering Week 17 against the Cincinnati Bengals; however, victories by the Chicago Bears and the Atlanta Falcons in their final games rendered the Vikings' defeat to the Bengals inconsequential, and Minnesota missed the playoffs for the first time since the 1991 season. Despite the team's poor play, rookie safety Orlando Thomas recorded a league-leading 9 interceptions of the season.

## Offseason

| Additions | Subtractions |
| LB Jeff Brady (Buccaneers) | DT Henry Thomas (Lions) |
| DB Donald Frank (Raiders) | FS Vencie Glenn (Giants) |

### 1995 draft

* Pro Bowler
1995 Minnesota Vikings Draft :
| Draft order | Draft order | Player name | Position | College | Notes |
| Round | Selection | Player name | Position | College | Notes |
| 1 | 11 | Derrick Alexander | Defensive end | Florida State | From Broncos, via Falcons |
| 1 | 24 | Korey Stringer | Offensive tackle | Ohio State | |
| 2 | 42 | Orlando Thomas | Safety | Southwestern Louisiana | From Broncos |
| 2 | 55 | Corey Fuller | Cornerback | Florida State | |
| 3 | 89 | Traded to the Houston Oilers | Traded to the Houston Oilers | Traded to the Houston Oilers | Traded to the Houston Oilers |
| 4 | 111 | Chad May | Quarterback | Kansas State | From Broncos |
| 4 | 121 | Traded to the Denver Broncos | Traded to the Denver Broncos | Traded to the Denver Broncos | Traded to the Denver Broncos |
| 5 | 157 | James Stewart | Running back | Miami (FL) | |
| 6 | 189 | John Solomon | Defensive end | Sam Houston State | From Giants |
| 6 | 196 | Traded to the Denver Broncos | Traded to the Denver Broncos | Traded to the Denver Broncos | Traded to the Denver Broncos |
| 7 | 232 | Jose White | Defensive tackle | Howard | |
| 7 | 243 | Jason Fisk | Defensive tackle | Stanford | Compensatory pick |
Notes:
* ↑ The Vikings traded DE Chris Doleman and a 1994 second-round selection (45th overall) to the Falcons in exchange for a first-round selection (11th overall) and a 1994 second-round selection (40th overall).
* ↑ The Vikings traded OT Gary Zimmerman to the Broncos in exchange for a second-round selection (42nd overall) and 1994 first- selection and sixth-round selection (18th and 179th overall).
* ↑ The Vikings traded a third-round selection (89th overall) and a 1994 fourth-round selection (119th overall) to the Oilers in exchange for QB Warren Moon.
* 1 2 3 The Vikings traded fourth- and sixth-round selections (121st and 196th overall) to the Broncos in exchange for the a fourth-round selection (111th overall).
* ↑ The Vikings traded S Vencie Glenn and a 1996 sixth-round selection (182nd overall) to the Giants in exchange for the a sixth-round selection (189th overall) and a 1996 fifth-round selection (137th overall).

## Preseason

| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Attendance |
| 1 | August 7 | at San Diego Chargers | W 23–19 | 1–0 | Jack Murphy Stadium | 47,934 |
| 2 | August 12 | at New England Patriots | L 14–21 | 1–1 | Foxboro Stadium | 56,241 |
| 3 | August 18 | Oakland Raiders | W 20–17 | 2–1 | Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome | 45,306 |
| 4 | August 26 | Kansas City Chiefs | L 13–17 | 2–2 | Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome | 39,349 |

## Regular season
### Schedule

| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Attendance |
| 1 | September 3 | at Chicago Bears | L 14–31 | 0–1 | Soldier Field | 63,036 |
| 2 | September 10 | Detroit Lions | W 20–10 | 1–1 | Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome | 52,234 |
| 3 | September 17 | Dallas Cowboys | L 17–23 (OT) | 1–2 | Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome | 60,088 |
| 4 | September 24 | at Pittsburgh Steelers | W 44–24 | 2–2 | Three Rivers Stadium | 57,853 |
| 5 | Bye | Bye | Bye | Bye | Bye |
| 6 | October 8 | Houston Oilers | W 23–17 (OT) | 3–2 | Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome | 56,430 |
| 7 | October 15 | at Tampa Bay Buccaneers | L 17–20 (OT) | 3–3 | Tampa Stadium | 55,703 |
| 8 | October 22 | at Green Bay Packers | L 21–38 | 3–4 | Lambeau Field | 60,332 |
| 9 | October 30 | Chicago Bears | L 6–14 | 3–5 | Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome | 61,238 |
| 10 | November 5 | Green Bay Packers | W 27–24 | 4–5 | Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome | 62,839 |
| 11 | November 12 | at Arizona Cardinals | W 30–24 (OT) | 5–5 | Sun Devil Stadium | 51,342 |
| 12 | November 19 | New Orleans Saints | W 43–24 | 6–5 | Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome | 58,108 |
| 13 | November 23 | at Detroit Lions | L 38–44 | 6–6 | Silverdome | 74,559 |
| 14 | December 3 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers | W 31–17 | 7–6 | Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome | 52,879 |
| 15 | December 9 | Cleveland Browns | W 27–11 | 8–6 | Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome | 47,984 |
| 16 | December 18 | at San Francisco 49ers | L 30–37 | 8–7 | Candlestick Park | 64,975 |
| 17 | December 24 | at Cincinnati Bengals | L 24–27 | 8–8 | Riverfront Stadium | 34,568 |
Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.

### Standings

NFC Central :
| viewtalkedit | W | L | T | PCT | PF | PA | STK |
| $^{(3)}$ Green Bay Packers | 11 | 5 | 0 | .688 | 404 | 314 | W2 |
| $^{(5)}$ Detroit Lions | 10 | 6 | 0 | .625 | 436 | 336 | W7 |
| Chicago Bears | 9 | 7 | 0 | .563 | 392 | 360 | W2 |
| Minnesota Vikings | 8 | 8 | 0 | .500 | 412 | 385 | L2 |
| Tampa Bay Buccaneers | 7 | 9 | 0 | .438 | 238 | 335 | L2 |

## Statistics
### Team leaders

| Category | Player(s) | Value |
| Passing yards | Warren Moon | 4,228 |
| Passing touchdowns | Warren Moon | 33 |
| Rushing yards | Robert Smith | 632 |
| Rushing touchdowns | Robert Smith | 5 |
| Receiving yards | Cris Carter | 1,371 |
| Receiving touchdowns | Cris Carter | 17 |
| Points | Fuad Reveiz | 122 |
| Kickoff return yards | Qadry Ismail | 1,037 |
| Punt return yards | David Palmer | 342 |
| Tackles | Ed McDaniel | 115 |
| Sacks | John Randle | 10.5 |
| Interceptions | Orlando Thomas | 9 |
| Forced fumbles | Ed McDaniel | 6 |

### League rankings

| Category | Total yards | Yards per game | NFL rank (out of 30) |
| Passing offense | 4,205 | 262.8 | 5th |
| Rushing offense | 1,733 | 108.3 | 16th |
| Total offense | 5,938 | 371.1 | 4th |
| Passing defense | 4,122 | 257.6 | 28th |
| Rushing defense | 1,329 | 83.1 | 4th |
| Total defense | 5,451 | 340.7 | 20th |

## Awards and records

* Cris Carter, led NFL in receiving touchdowns
* Cris Carter, All-Pro selection
* Cris Carter, Pro Bowl selection
* Orlando Thomas, NFL interceptions leader (9)

### Milestones

* Cris Carter, 100 reception season
* Warren Moon, 4th 4,000-yard passing season