# 1987 Minnesota Vikings season

The 1987 season was the Minnesota Vikings' 27th year in the National Football League. A players' strike caused the cancellation of the September 27 game at the Kansas City Chiefs, while the games played on October 4, 11 and 18 were played with replacement players. The Vikings finished with an 8–7 record.
Despite finishing the season only one game over .500, and losing three of their final four games, Minnesota sneaked into the playoffs with the final Wild Card position. There, they won two huge upsets, beating the New Orleans Saints (12–3), and the San Francisco 49ers (13–2) on the road to advance to their first NFC Championship Game in 10 years. The Vikings were unable, however, to defeat the eventual Super Bowl champion Washington Redskins in the NFC Championship Game.
The last remaining active member of the 1987 Minnesota Vikings was quarterback Rich Gannon, who played his final NFL game in the 2004 season, although he missed the 1989 and 1994 seasons.

## Offseason
### 1987 draft

* Pro Bowler
1987 Minnesota Vikings Draft :
| Draft order | Draft order | Player name | Position | College | Notes |
| Round | Selection | Player name | Position | College | Notes |
| 1 | 14 | D. J. Dozier | Running back | Penn State | From Dolphins |
| 1 | 16 | Traded to the Miami Dolphins | Traded to the Miami Dolphins | Traded to the Miami Dolphins | |
| 2 | 44 | Ray Berry | Linebacker | Baylor | |
| 3 | 72 | Henry Thomas | Defensive tackle | LSU | |
| 4 | 100 | Reggie Rutland | Cornerback | Georgia Tech | |
| 5 | 128 | Traded to the Miami Dolphins | Traded to the Miami Dolphins | Traded to the Miami Dolphins | |
| 6 | 156 | Greg Richardson | Wide receiver | Alabama | |
| 7 | 184 | Traded to the Seattle Seahawks | Traded to the Seattle Seahawks | Traded to the Seattle Seahawks | |
| 8 | 211 | Rick Fenney | Running back | Washington | |
| 9 | 239 | Leonard Jones | Defensive back | Texas Tech | |
| 10 | 267 | Bob Riley | Offensive tackle | Indiana State | |
| 11 | 295 | Brent Pease | Quarterback | Montana | |
| 12 | 323 | Keith Williams | Defensive tackle | Florida | |
Notes:
* 1 2 3 The Vikings traded their first- and fifth-round selections (16th and 128th overall) to the Dolphins in exchange for a first-round selection (14th overall).
* ↑ The details of this trade are unknown.

## Roster
### NFL replacement players

After the league decided to use replacement players during the NFLPA strike, the following team was assembled:

## Preseason

| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Attendance |
| 1 | August 15 | at New Orleans Saints | L 17–23 | 0–1 | Louisiana Superdome | 52,884 |
| 2 | August 22 | Indianapolis Colts | W 37–13 | 1–1 | Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome | 49,304 |
| 3 | August 29 | New England Patriots | L 27–38 | 1–2 | Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome | 49,339 |
| 4 | September 3 | at Denver Broncos | W 27–17 | 2–2 | Mile High Stadium | 74,081 |

## Regular season
### Schedule

| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Attendance |
| 1 | September 13 | Detroit Lions | W 34–19 | 1–0 | Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome | 57,061 |
| 2 | September 20 | at Los Angeles Rams | W 21–16 | 2–0 | Anaheim Stadium | 63,367 |
| 3 | September 27 | at Kansas City Chiefs | canceled | 2–0 | Arrowhead Stadium | |
| 4 | October 4 | Green Bay Packers | L 16–23 | 2–1 | Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome | 13,911 |
| 5 | October 11 | at Chicago Bears | L 7–27 | 2–2 | Soldier Field | 32,113 |
| 6 | October 18 | at Tampa Bay Buccaneers | L 10–20 | 2–3 | Tampa Stadium | 20,850 |
| 7 | October 26 | Denver Broncos | W 34–27 | 3–3 | Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome | 51,011 |
| 8 | November 1 | at Seattle Seahawks | L 17–28 | 3–4 | Kingdome | 61,134 |
| 9 | November 8 | Los Angeles Raiders | W 31–20 | 4–4 | Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome | 57,150 |
| 10 | November 15 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers | W 23–17 | 5–4 | Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome | 48,605 |
| 11 | November 22 | Atlanta Falcons | W 24–13 | 6–4 | Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome | 53,866 |
| 12 | November 26 | at Dallas Cowboys | W 44–38 (OT) | 7–4 | Texas Stadium | 54,229 |
| 13 | December 6 | Chicago Bears | L 24–30 | 7–5 | Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome | 62,331 |
| 14 | December 13 | at Green Bay Packers | L 10–16 | 7–6 | Milwaukee County Stadium | 47,059 |
| 15 | December 20 | at Detroit Lions | W 17–14 | 8–6 | Pontiac Silverdome | 27,693 |
| 16 | December 26 | Washington Redskins | L 24–27 (OT) | 8–7 | Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome | 59,160 |
Notes:
* Intra-division opponents are in bold text.
* The October 18 game against Tampa Bay was originally scheduled to be played in Minneapolis. The game was switched with the November 15 game due to Game 2 of the World Series. The game against the Broncos, originally scheduled for October 25, was pushed back to Monday because the Metrodome was being used for Game 7 of the World Series.

### Game summaries
#### Week 10: vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Buccaneers | 0 | 7 | 3 | 7 | 17 |
| Vikings | 0 | 6 | 10 | 7 | 23 |
at Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome, Minneapolis, Minnesota
* Date: November 15
* Game time: 12:00 p.m.
* Game weather: None (indoor stadium)
* Game attendance: 48,605
* Referee: Fred Wyant
* TV announcers (CBS): James Brown and Dan Jiggetts
* Game Book
Game information :
First quarter
No scoring plays.
Second quarter
TB – Calvin Magee 20-yard pass from Steve DeBerg (Donald Igwebuike kick), 11:02. Buccaneers 7–0. Drive: 9 plays, 80 yards.
MIN – Chuck Nelson 29-yard field goal, 6:58. Buccaneers 7–3. Drive: 12 plays, 53 yards.
MIN – Chuck Nelson 27-yard field goal, 0:11. Buccaneers 7–6. Drive: 6 plays, 20 yards.
Third quarter
MIN – Rick Fenney 1-yard run (Chuck Nelson kick), 10:58. Vikings 13–7. Drive: 10 plays, 74 yards.
TB – Donald Igwebuike 26-yard field goal, 6:54. Vikings 13–10. Drive: 4 plays, 6 yards.
MIN – Chuck Nelson 26-yard field goal, 0:03. Vikings 16–10. Drive: 10 plays, 47 yards.
Fourth quarter
MIN – Steve Jordan 2-yard pass from Tommy Kramer (Chuck Nelson kick), 10:56. Vikings 23–10. Drive: 2 plays, 8 yards.
TB – Phil Freeman 64-yard pass from Steve DeBerg (Donald Igwebuike kick), 7:55. Vikings 23–17. Drive: 5 plays, 73 yards.
Top passers
TB – Steve DeBerg – 22/37, 284 yards, 2 TD, INT
MIN – Wade Wilson – 8/19, 97 yards
Top rushers
TB – Jeff Smith – 8 rushes, 16 yards
MIN – Darrin Nelson – 17 rushes, 103 yards
Top receivers
TB – Phil Freeman – 2 receptions, 76 yards, TD
MIN – Anthony Carter – 3 receptions, 37 yards :

#### Week 12: at Dallas Cowboys

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | OT | Total |
| Vikings | 14 | 7 | 7 | 10 | 6 | 44 |
| Cowboys | 0 | 14 | 10 | 14 | 0 | 38 |
at Texas Stadium, Irving, Texas
* Date: November 26
* Game time: 3:00 p.m. CST
* Game weather: 48 °F (9 °C)
* Referee: Fred Silva
* TV announcers (CBS): Pat Summerall and John Madden
* Pro-Football-Reference.com
Game information :
First quarter
MIN – Anthony Carter 11-yard pass from Tommy Kramer (Chuck Nelson kick). Vikings 7–0.
MIN – Tommy Kramer 1-yard run (Chuck Nelson kick). Vikings 14–0.
Second quarter
DAL – Danny White 1-yard run (Roger Ruzek kick). Vikings 14–7.
DAL – Herschel Walker 3-yard pass from Danny White (Roger Ruzek kick). Tied 14–14.
MIN – Anthony Carter 37-yard pass from Tommy Kramer (Chuck Nelson kick). Vikings 21–14.
Third quarter
MIN – Darrin Nelson 52-yard run (Chuck Nelson kick). Vikings 28–14.
DAL – Roger Ruzek 38-yard field goal. Vikings 28–17.
DAL – Mike Renfro 8-yard pass from Danny White (Roger Ruzek kick). Vikings 28–24.
Fourth quarter
MIN – Chuck Nelson 33-yard field goal. Vikings 31–24.
MIN – Rick Fenney 1-yard run (Chuck Nelson kick). Vikings 38–24.
DAL – Mike Renfro 14-yard pass from Danny White (Roger Ruzek kick). Vikings 38–31.
DAL – Mike Renfro 18-yard pass from Danny White (Roger Ruzek kick). Tie 38–38.
Overtime
MIN – Darrin Nelson 24-yard run. Vikings 44–38.
Top passers
MIN – Wade Wilson – 9/18, 189 yards, INT
DAL – Danny White – 25/41, 341 yards, 4 TD, 3 INT
Top rushers
MIN – Darrin Nelson – 16 rushes, 118 yards, 2 TD
DAL – Herschel Walker – 21 rushes, 76 yards
Top receivers
MIN – Anthony Carter – 8 receptions, 184 yards, 2 TD
DAL – Mike Renfro – 7 receptions, 100 yards, 3 TD :
In the Vikings' first game on Thanksgiving for 18 years, starting quarterback Tommy Kramer helped the team to a 14–0 lead by the end of the first quarter, opening with an 11-yard strike to Anthony Carter, before taking the ball in himself from a yard out. However, a bruised throwing arm meant he had to leave the game. Wade Wilson then took over. The Cowboys tied it up with two touchdowns of their own in the second quarter, but another throw from Kramer to Carter, this time from 37 yards, meant the Vikings took a seven-point lead into halftime. Darrin Nelson extended the Vikings' lead with the opening score of the second half, running 52 yards for the Vikings' fourth touchdown of the game. A field goal and another touchdown for the Cowboys reduced the Vikings' lead to four points going into the final quarter, but they restored the two-score margin with a field goal from Chuck Nelson and a 1-yard run from Rick Fenney. The Cowboys managed to come back and tie the game with just over two minutes left to play, enough time for the Vikings to drive downfield and set up a potential game-winning, 46-yard field goal attempt for Chuck Nelson with nine seconds left. He missed the kick and the game went to overtime. Both teams failed with their first two possessions, with both throwing interceptions. Vikings linebacker Scott Studwell returned his interception to the Minnesota 40-yard line to begin their third drive of the extra period. They opened with four straight run plays, including a fourth-down conversion to get them to midfield, followed by a 24-yard pass from Wilson to Carter, before Darrin Nelson ran the remaining distance for the walk-off game-winning touchdown. The result brought the Vikings to a 7–4 record with four games left to play.

### Standings

NFC Central :
| viewtalkedit | W | L | T | PCT | DIV | CONF | PF | PA | STK |
| Chicago Bears$^{(2)}$ | 11 | 4 | 0 | .733 | 7–0 | 9–2 | 356 | 282 | W1 |
| Minnesota Vikings$^{(5)}$ | 8 | 7 | 0 | .533 | 3–5 | 6–6 | 336 | 335 | L1 |
| Green Bay Packers | 5 | 9 | 1 | .367 | 3–4 | 4–7 | 255 | 300 | L2 |
| Tampa Bay Buccaneers | 4 | 11 | 0 | .267 | 3–4 | 4–9 | 286 | 360 | L8 |
| Detroit Lions | 4 | 11 | 0 | .267 | 2–5 | 4–7 | 269 | 384 | W1 |

## Postseason
### Schedule

| Round | Date | Opponent (seed) | Result | Record | Venue |
| Wild Card | January 3, 1988 | at New Orleans Saints (4) | W 44–10 | 1–0 | Louisiana Superdome |
| Divisional | January 9, 1988 | at San Francisco 49ers (1) | W 36–24 | 2–0 | Candlestick Park |
| NFC Championship | January 17, 1988 | at Washington Redskins (3) | L 10–17 | 2–1 | Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium |

### Game summaries
#### NFC Wild Card Playoffs: at (#4) New Orleans Saints

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Vikings | 10 | 21 | 3 | 10 | 44 |
| Saints | 7 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 10 |
at Louisiana Superdome, New Orleans, Louisiana
* Date: January 3, 1988
* Game time: 12:30 p.m. EST/11:30 a.m. CST
* Game attendance: 68,546
* Referee: Tom Dooley
* TV announcers (CBS): Pat Summerall and John Madden
* Pro-Football-Reference
Game information :
First quarter
NO – Eric Martin 10-yard pass from Bobby Hebert (Morten Andersen kick). Saints 7–0.
MIN – Chuck Nelson 42-yard field goal. Saints 7–3.
MIN – Anthony Carter 84-yard punt return (Chuck Nelson kick). Vikings 10–7.
Second quarter
MIN – Steve Jordan 5-yard pass from Wade Wilson (Chuck Nelson kick). Vikings 17–7.
MIN – Anthony Carter 10-yard pass from Allen Rice (Chuck Nelson kick). Vikings 24–7.
NO – Morten Andersen 40-yard field goal. Vikings 24–10.
MIN – Hassan Jones 44-yard pass from Wade Wilson (Chuck Nelson kick). Vikings 31–10.
Third quarter
MIN – Chuck Nelson 42-yard field goal. Vikings 34–10.
Fourth quarter
MIN – Chuck Nelson 19-yard field goal. Vikings 37–10.
MIN – D. J. Dozier 18-yard run (Chuck Nelson kick). Vikings 44–10.
Top passers
MIN – Wade Wilson – 11/20, 189 yards, 2 TD
NO – Bobby Hebert – 9/19, 84 yards, TD, 2 INT
Top rushers
MIN – Darrin Nelson – 17 rushes, 73 yards
NO – Dalton Hilliard – 8 rushes, 39 yards
Top receivers
MIN – Anthony Carter – 6 receptions, 79 yards, TD
NO – Hoby Brenner – 2 receptions, 33 yards :
In the Saints' first playoff game in history, the Vikings dominated the game by recording two sacks, forcing four turnovers and allowing only 149 yards. The 34-point margin of victory stands as the most lopsided win by an NFC team in a Wild Card round game in NFL history.

#### NFC Divisional Playoffs: at (#1) San Francisco 49ers

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Vikings | 3 | 17 | 10 | 6 | 36 |
| 49ers | 3 | 0 | 14 | 7 | 24 |
at Candlestick Park, San Francisco
* Date: January 9, 1988
* Game time: 4:00 p.m. EST/1:00 p.m. PST
* Game attendance: 63,008
* Referee: Gene Barth
* TV announcers (CBS): Tim Ryan and Joe Theismann
* Pro-Football-Reference
Game information :
First quarter
MIN – Chuck Nelson 21-yard field goal. Vikings 3–0.
SF – Ray Wersching 43-yard field goal. Tied 3–3.
Second quarter
MIN – Carl Hilton 7-yard pass from Wade Wilson (Chuck Nelson kick). Vikings 10–3.
MIN – Chuck Nelson 23-yard field goal. Vikings 13–3.
MIN – Najee Mustafaa 45-yard interception return (Chuck Nelson kick). Vikings 20–3.
Third quarter
SF – Jeff Fuller 48-yard interception return (Ray Wersching kick). Vikings 20–10.
MIN – Hassan Jones 5-yard pass from Wade Wilson (Chuck Nelson kick). Vikings 27–10.
SF – Steve Young 5-yard run (Ray Wersching kick). Vikings 27–17.
MIN – Chuck Nelson 40-yard field goal. Vikings 30–17.
Fourth quarter
MIN – Chuck Nelson 40-yard field goal. Vikings 33–17.
SF – John Frank 16-yard pass from Steve Young (Ray Wersching kick). Vikings 33–24.
MIN – Chuck Nelson 23-yard field goal. Vikings 36–24.
Top passers
MIN – Wade Wilson – 20/34, 298 yards, 2 TD, INT
SF – Steve Young – 12/17, 158 yards, TD, INT
Top rushers
MIN – Darrin Nelson – 11 rushes, 42 yards
SF – Steve Young – 6 rushes, 72 yards, TD
Top receivers
MIN – Anthony Carter – 10 receptions, 227 yards
SF – Roger Craig – 9 receptions, 78 yards :
The heavy underdog Vikings pulled off a shocker in San Francisco, controlling most of the game with Anthony Carter leading the way with 227 receiving yards.

#### NFC Championship Game: at (#3) Washington Redskins

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Vikings | 0 | 7 | 0 | 3 | 10 |
| Redskins | 7 | 0 | 3 | 7 | 17 |
at RFK Stadium, Washington, D.C.
* Date: January 17, 1988
* Game time: 12:30 p.m. EST
* Game attendance: 55,212
* Referee: Ben Dreith
* TV announcers (CBS): Pat Summerall and John Madden
Game information :
First quarter
WAS – Kelvin Bryant 42-yard pass from Doug Williams (Ali Haji-Sheikh kick). Redskins 7–0.
Second quarter
MIN – Leo Lewis 23-yard pass from Wade Wilson (Chuck Nelson kick). Tied 7–7.
Third quarter
WAS – Ali Haji-Sheikh 28-yard field goal. Redskins 10–7.
Fourth quarter
MIN – Chuck Nelson 18-yard field goal. Tied 10–10.
WAS – Gary Clark 7-yard pass from Doug Williams (Ali Haji-Sheikh kick). Redskins 17–10.
Top passers
MIN – Wade Wilson – 19/39, 243 yards, TD, INT
WAS – Doug Williams – 9/26, 119 yards, 2 TD
Top rushers
MIN – Wade Wilson – 4 rushes, 28 yards
WAS – Timmy Smith – 13 rushes, 72 yards
Top receivers
MIN – Anthony Carter – 7 receptions, 85 yards
WAS – Gary Clark – 3 receptions, 57 yards, TD :
In a defensive battle, the Redskins played a little better by limiting the Vikings to only 76 rushing yards and forcing eight sacks. Washington scored first on a 98-yard drive that was capped by running back Kelvin Bryant's 42-yard touchdown reception from quarterback Doug Williams. However, Minnesota tied the game before halftime with quarterback Wade Wilson's 23-yard touchdown pass to Leo Lewis. In the third quarter, Redskins linebacker Mel Kaufman returned an interception 10 yards to the Minnesota 17-yard line to set up kicker Ali Haji-Sheikh's 28-yard field goal. In the final period, Vikings kicker Chuck Nelson made an 18-yard field goal to tie the game, 10–10. The Redskins then marched 70 yards to score on Williams' 7-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Gary Clark to take the lead, 17–10, with 5:06 remaining in the game. Minnesota then advanced to the Washington 6-yard line, but Wilson's fourth down pass, intended for running back Darrin Nelson in the end zone was defended by Darrell Green with 52 seconds remaining and the Redskins ran out the clock.

## Statistics
### Team leaders

| Category | Player(s) | Value |
| Passing yards | Wade Wilson | 2,106 |
| Passing touchdowns | Wade Wilson | 14 |
| Rushing yards | Darrin Nelson | 642 |
| Rushing touchdowns | D.J. Dozier Wade Wilson | 5 |
| Receiving yards | Anthony Carter | 922 |
| Receiving touchdowns | Anthony Carter | 7 |
| Points | Chuck Nelson | 75 |
| Kickoff return yards | Neal Guggemos | 808 |
| Punt return yards | Leo Lewis | 275 |
| Tackles | Jesse Solomon | 126 |
| Sacks | Chris Doleman | 11.0 |
| Interceptions | Joey Browner | 6 |
| Forced fumbles | Chris Doleman | 6 |

### League rankings

| Category | Total yards | Yards per game | NFL rank (out of 28) |
| Passing offense | 2,826 | 176.6 | 20th |
| Rushing offense | 1,983 | 123.9 | 11th |
| Total offense | 4,809 | 300.6 | 15th |
| Passing defense | 3,100 | 193.8 | 16th |
| Rushing defense | 1,724 | 107.8 | 11th |
| Total defense | 4,824 | 301.8 | 10th |