1976 Minnesota Vikings season

1976 Minnesota Vikings season
Head coach	Bud Grant
General manager	Mike Lynn
Owner	Max Winter
Home field	Metropolitan Stadium
Results
Record	11–2–1
Division place	1st NFC Central
Playoff finish	Won Divisional Playoffs (Redskins) 35–20 Won Conference Championship (Rams) 24–13 Lost Super Bowl XI (vs. Raiders) 14–32

The 1976 Minnesota Vikings season was the franchise's 16th season in the National Football League. The Vikings finished with a record of 11 wins, two losses, and one tie. They lost Super Bowl XI to the Oakland Raiders 32–14. As of 2014, this has been the last Super Bowl appearance by the franchise.

Offseason

1976 Draft

Main article: 1976 NFL Draft

=Pro Bowler

1976 Minnesota Vikings Draft
Draft order			Player name	Position	College	Notes
Round	Choice	Overall	Player name	Position	College	Notes
1	25	25	James White	Defensive Tackle	Oklahoma State
2	26	54	Sammy White	Wide Receiver	Grambling
3	25	85	Wes Hamilton	Guard	Tulsa
4	26	118	Leonard Willis	Wide Receiver	Ohio State
5	9	133	Steve Wagner	Defensive Back	Wisconsin	from Falcons^[a]
5	25	149	Keith Bernette	Running Back	Boston College
6	24	180	Terry Egerdahl	Defensive Back	Minnesota-Duluth
7	24	206	Larry Brune	Defensive Back	Rice
8	26	235	Traded to the New England Patriots^[b]
9	25	262	Isaac Hagins	Wide Receiver	Southern
10	24	289	Bill Salmon	Quarterback	Northern Iowa
11	25	316	Steve Kracher	Running Back	Montana State
12	26	345	Robert Sparks	Defensive Back	San Francisco State
13	25	372	Gary Paulson	Defensive End	Colorado State
14	26	401	Jeff Stapleton	Offensive Tackle	Purdue
15	25	428	Ron Groce	Running Back	Macalester
16	26	457	Randy Hickel	Defensive Back	Montana State
17	25	484	Dick Lukowski	Defensive Tackle	West Virginia

^{^[a]} Atlanta traded their 5th round selection (133rd overall) to Minnesota for RB Oscar Reed.

^{^[b]} Minnesota traded their 8th round selection (235th overall) and 1977 6th round selection (166th overall) to New England for OL Doug Dumler.

Personnel

Staff

1976 Minnesota Vikings staff

Front office

Principal Owner/President – Max Winter
General Manager – Mike Lynn

Head coaches

Head Coach – Bud Grant

Offensive coaches

Offensive Coordinator – Jerry Burns

Defensive coaches

Defensive Coordinator/Defensive Line – Buddy Ryan

^[1]

Roster

1976 Minnesota Vikings final roster

Quarterbacks

Running backs

44 Chuck Foreman
47 Ron Groce
39 Mark Kellar
33 Brent McClanahan FB
35 Robert Miller

Wide receivers

Tight ends

84 Steve Craig
83 Stu Voigt

Offensive linemen

56 Scott Anderson C
74 Bart Buetow T
57 Doug Dumler C
68 Charlie Goodrum T
74 Wes Hamilton G
78 Steve Riley T
53 Mick Tingelhoff
73 Ron Yary T

Defensive linemen

81 Carl Eller DE
75 Bob Lurtsema DE
70 Jim Marshall DE
77 Mark Mullaney DE
88 Alan Page DT
69 Doug Sutherland DT
91 James White DE

Linebackers

59 Matt Blair OLB
58 Wally Hilgenberg OLB
55 Amos Martin OLB
54 Fred McNeill OLB
50 Jeff Siemon MLB
60 Roy Winston MLB

Defensive backs

Special teams

12 Neil Clabo P
14 Fred Cox K

Reserve lists

{{{reserve_lists}}}

Practice squad {{{practice_squad}}}

Rookies in italics
{{{active}}} Active, {{{inactive}}} Inactive, {{{PS}}} Practice squad

Regular season

Schedule

Week	Date	Opponent	Result	Venue	Attendance
1	September 12, 1976	at New Orleans Saints	W 40–9	Louisiana Superdome	58,156
2	September 19, 1976	Los Angeles Rams	T 10–10 (OT)	Met Stadium	47,310
3	September 26, 1976	at Detroit Lions	W 10–9	Silverdome	77,292
4	October 4, 1976	Pittsburgh Steelers	W 17–6	Met Stadium	47,809
5	October 10, 1976	Chicago Bears	W 20–19	Met Stadium	47,614
6	October 17, 1976	New York Giants	W 24–7	Met Stadium	46,508
7	October 24, 1976	at Philadelphia Eagles	W 31–12	Veterans Stadium	56,233
8	October 31, 1976	at Chicago Bears	L 13-14	Soldier Field	53,602
9	November 7, 1976	Detroit Lions	W 31–23	Met Stadium	46,735
10	November 14, 1976	Seattle Seahawks	W 27–21	Met Stadium	45,087
11	November 21, 1976	at Green Bay Packers	W 17–10	Milwaukee County Stadium	53,104
12	November 29, 1976	at San Francisco 49ers	L 16-20	Candlestick Park	56,775
13	December 5, 1976	Green Bay Packers	W 20–9	Met Stadium	43,700
14	December 11, 1976	at Miami Dolphins	W 29–7	Orange Bowl	46,543

Game summaries

Week 1

	1	2	3	4	Total
• Vikings	13	17	7	3	40
Saints	0	3	6	0	9

Date: September 12
Location: Louisiana Superdome
Game start: 2:00 p.m. EST
Game attendance: 58,156
Game weather: Indoors (dome)

Scoring summary

Q1	MIN	McClanahan 1 yard run (kick failed)	MIN 6–0

Q1	MIN	Foreman 2 yard run (Cox kick)	MIN 13–0

Q2	NO	Szaro 45 yard field goal	MIN 13–3

Q2	MIN	McClanahan 5 yard run (Cox kick)	MIN 20–3

Q2	MIN	Cox 24 yard field goal	MIN 23–3

Q2	MIN	White 47 yard pass from Tarkenton (Cox kick)	MIN 30–3

Q3	MIN	Foreman 6 yard run (Cox kick)	MIN 37–3

Q3	NO	Galbreath 1 yard run (kick failed)	MIN 37–9

Q4	MIN	Cox 35 yard field goal	MIN 44–9

^[2]

Week 3

	1	2	3	4	Total
• Vikings	0	0	3	7	10
Lions	0	0	3	6	9

Date: September 26
Location: Pontiac Silverdome
Game start: 2:00 p.m. EST
Game attendance: 77,292
Game weather: Indoors (dome)

Scoring summary

Q3	MIN	Cox 49 yard field goal	MIN 3–0

Q3	DET	Mann 49 yard field goal	Tie 3–3

Q4	MIN	Foreman 5 yard run (Cox kick)	MIN 10–3

Q4	DET	Sanders 1 yard pass from Landry (kick failed)	MIN 10–9

^[3]

Week 4

	1	2	3	4	Total
Steelers	6	0	0	0	6
• Vikings	0	7	0	10	17

Date: October 4
Location: Metropolitan Stadium
Game start: 9:00 p.m. EST
Game attendance: 47,809
Game weather: 65°F; wind 13
Television network: ABC

Scoring summary

Q1	PIT	Cunningham 1 yard pass from Bradshaw (kick failed)	PIT 6–0

Q2	MIN	Foreman 8 yard run (Cox kick)	MIN 7–6

Q4	MIN	Foreman 4 yard run (Cox kick)	MIN 14–6

Q4	MIN	Cox 43 yard field goal	MIN 17–6

^[4]

Week 5

	1	2	3	4	Total
Bears	0	0	13	6	19
• Vikings	7	10	0	3	20

Date: October 10
Location: Metropolitan Stadium
Game start: 2:00 p.m. EST
Game attendance: 47,614
Game weather: 48°F; wind 8

Scoring summary

Q1	MIN	Foreman 5 yard run (Cox kick)	MIN 7–0

Q2	MIN	Cox 29 yard field goal	MIN 10–0

Q2	MIN	Foreman 1 yard run (Cox kick)	MIN 17–0

Q3	CHI	Payton 13 yard run (Thomas kick)	MIN 17–7

Q3	CHI	Payton 11 yard run (kick failed)	MIN 17–13

Q4	MIN	Cox 39 yard field goal	MIN 20–13

Q4	CHI	Harper 7 yard run (kick failed)	MIN 20–19

^[5]

Week 6

	1	2	3	4	Total
Giants	0	7	0	0	7
• Vikings	10	7	0	7	24

Date: October 17
Location: Metropolitan Stadium
Game start: 2:00 p.m. EST
Game attendance: 46,508
Game weather: 37°F; wind 6

Scoring summary

Q1	MIN	Cox 23 yard field goal	MIN 3–0

Q1	MIN	Allen 28 yard blocked punt return (Cox kick)	MIN 10–0

Q2	NYG	Kotar 3 yard run (Danelo kick)	MIN 10–7

Q2	MIN	Foreman 41 yard pass from Tarkenton (Cox kick)	MIN 17–7

Q4	MIN	McClanahan 3 yard pass from Tarkenton (Cox kick)	MIN 24–7

^[6]

Week 7

	1	2	3	4	Total
• Vikings	0	7	10	14	31
Eagles	0	9	0	3	12

Date: October 24
Location: Veterans Stadium
Game start: 1:00 p.m. EST
Game attendance: 56,233
Game weather: 48°F; wind 8

Scoring summary

Q2	PHI	Muhlmann 19 yard field goal	PHI 3–0

Q2	PHI	Carmichael 3 yard pass from Boryla (kick failed)	PHI 9–0

Q2	MIN	Rashad 5 yard pass from Tarkenton (Cox kick)	PHI 9–7

Q3	MIN	Cox 32 yard field goal	MIN 10–9

Q3	MIN	White 35 yard pass from Tarkenton (Cox kick)	MIN 17–9

Q4	PHI	Muhlmann 21 yard field goal	MIN 17–12

Q4	MIN	Foreman 32 yard run (Cox kick)	MIN 24–12

Q4	MIN	Foreman 2 yard run (Cox kick)	MIN 31–12

^[7]

Week 9

	1	2	3	4	Total
Lions	3	6	7	7	23
• Vikings	7	3	7	14	31

Date: November 7
Location: Metropolitan Stadium
Game start: 4:00 p.m. EST
Game attendance: 46,735
Game weather: 28°F; wind 16

Scoring summary

Q1	DET	Ricardo 22 yard field goal	DET 3–0

Q1	MIN	White 24 yard pass from Tarkenton (Cox kick)	MIN 7–3

Q2	DET	Gaines 1 yard run (kick failed)	DET 9–7

Q2	MIN	Cox 39 yard field goal	MIN 10–9

Q3	MIN	Foreman 2 yard run (Cox kick)	MIN 17–9

Q3	DET	Gaines 1 yard run (Ricardo kick)	MIN 17–16

Q4	MIN	Foreman 1 yard run (Cox kick)	MIN 24–16

Q4	DET	Walton 26 yard pass from Landry (Ricardo kick)	MIN 24–23

Q4	MIN	White 37 yard pass from Tarkenton (Cox kick)	MIN 31–23

^[8]

Week 10

	1	2	3	4	Total
Seahawks	7	0	7	7	21
• Vikings	7	7	6	7	27

Date: November 14
Location: Metropolitan Stadium
Game start: 2:00 p.m. EST
Game attendance: 45,087
Game weather: 24°F; wind 8

Scoring summary

Q1	MIN	McClanahan 1 yard run (Cox kick)	MIN 7–0

Q1	SEA	Zorn 12 yard run (Leypoldt kick)	Tie 7–7

Q2	MIN	White 29 yard pass from Tarkenton (Cox kick)	MIN 14–7

Q3	SEA	Raible 80 yard pass from Zorn (Leypoldt kick)	Tie 14–14

Q3	MIN	Cox 43 yard field goal	MIN 17–14

Q3	MIN	Cox 39 yard field goal	MIN 20–14

Q4	SEA	McCullum 7 yard pass from Zorn (Leypoldt kick)	SEA 21–20

Q4	MIN	Voigt 5 yard pass from Tarkenton (Cox kick)	MIN 27–21

^[9]

Week 11

	1	2	3	4	Total
• Vikings	3	7	0	7	17
Packers	3	0	7	0	10

Date: November 21
Location: Milwaukee County Stadium
Game start: 2:00 p.m. EST
Game attendance: 53,104
Game weather: 33°F; wind 12

Scoring summary

Q1	GB	Marcol 23 yard field goal	GB 3–0

Q1	MIN	Cox 41 yard field goal	Tie 3–3

Q2	MIN	Miller 4 yard pass from Tarkenton (Cox kick)	MIN 10–3

Q3	GB	Brockington 1 yard run (Marcol kick)	Tie 10–10

Q4	MIN	Rashad 11 yard pass from Tarkenton (Cox kick)	MIN 17–10

^[10]

Week 13

	1	2	3	4	Total
Packers	6	0	0	3	9
• Vikings	0	3	3	14	20

Date: December 5
Location: Metropolitan Stadium
Game start: 2:00 p.m. EST
Game attendance: 43,700
Game weather: 18°F; wind 7

Scoring summary

Q1	GB	Smith 12 yard pass from Brown (kick failed)	GB 6–0

Q2	MIN	Cox 34 yard field goal	GB 6–3

Q3	MIN	Cox 30 yard field goal	Tie 6–6

Q4	MIN	Foreman 1 yard run (Cox kick)	MIN 13–6

Q4	GB	Marcol 24 yard field goal	MIN 13–9

Q4	MIN	Foreman 1 yard run (Cox kick)	MIN 20–9

^[11]

Week 14

	1	2	3	4	Total
• Vikings	0	15	14	0	29
Dolphins	0	0	0	7	7

Date: December 11
Location: Orange Bowl
Game start: 1:00 p.m. EST
Game attendance: 46,543
Game weather: 77°F; wind 21

Scoring summary

Q2	MIN	White 9 yard pass from Tarkenton (kick failed)	MIN 6–0

Q2	MIN	White 36 yard pass from Tarkenton (kick failed)	MIN 12–0

Q2	MIN	Cox 30 yard field goal	MIN 15–0

Q3	MIN	McClanahan 1 yard run (Cox kick)	MIN 22–0

Q3	MIN	White 7 yard pass from Tarkenton (Cox kick)	MIN 29–0

Q4	MIA	Winfrey 2 yard pass from Strock (Yepremian kick)	MIN 29–7

^[12]

Playoffs

Week	Date	Opponent	Result	Venue	Attendance
Divisional	December 18, 1976	Washington Redskins	W 35–20	Metropolitan Stadium	47,221
Conference Championship	December 26, 1976	Los Angeles Rams	W 24–13	Metropolitan Stadium	47,191
Super Bowl XI	January 9, 1977	N Oakland Raiders	L 14-32	Rose Bowl	100,421

Divisional

	1	2	3	4	Total
Redskins	3	0	3	14	20
• Vikings	14	7	14	0	35

Date: December 18
Location: Metropolitan Stadium
Game start: 1:00 p.m. EST
Game attendance: 47,221
Game weather: 31°F; wind 7
Television network: CBS

Scoring summary

Q1	MIN	Voigt 18 yard pass from Tarkenton (Cox kick)	MIN 7–0

Q1	WSH	Moseley 47 yard field goal	MIN 7–3

Q1	MIN	White 27 yard pass from Tarkenton (Cox kick)	MIN 14–3

Q2	MIN	Foreman 2 yard run (Cox kick)	MIN 21–3

Q3	MIN	Foreman 30 yard run (Cox kick)	MIN 28–3

Q3	WSH	Moseley 35 yard field goal	MIN 28–6

Q3	MIN	White 9 yard pass from Tarkenton (Cox kick)	MINE 35–6

Q4	WSH	Grant 12 yard pass from Kilmer (Moseley kick)	MIN 35–13

Q4	WSH	Jefferson 3 yard pass from Kilmer (Moseley kick)	MIN 35–20

^[13]

Conference Championship

	1	2	3	4	Total
Rams	0	0	13	0	13
• Vikings	7	3	7	7	24

Date: December 26
Location: Metropolitan Stadium
Game start: 1:00 p.m. EST
Game attendance: 47,191
Game weather: 19°F; wind 12
Television network: CBS

Scoring summary

Q1	MIN	Bryant 90 yard blocked field goal return (Cox kick)	MIN 7–0

Q2	MIN	Cox 25 yard field goal	MIN 10–0

Q3	MIN	Foreman 1 yard run (Cox kick)	MIN 17–0

Q3	LA	McCutcheon 10 yard run (kick failed)	MIN 17–6

Q3	LA	Jackson 5 yard pass from Haden (Dempsey kick)	MIN 17–13

Q4	MIN	Johnson 12 yard run (Cox kick)	MIN 24–13

^[14]

Super Bowl

Main article: Super Bowl XI

	1	2	3	4	Total
• Raiders	0	16	3	13	32
Vikings	0	0	7	7	14

Date: January 9
Location: Rose Bowl
Game start: 3:50 p.m. EST
Game attendance: 100,421
Game weather: 52°F; wind 6
TV announcers (NBC): Curt Gowdy and Don Meredith

Scoring summary

Q2	OAK	Mann 24 yard field goal	OAK 3–0

Q2	OAK	Casper 1 yard pass from Stabler (Mann kick)	OAK 10–0

Q2	OAK	Banaszak 1 yard run (kick failed)	OAK 16–0

Q3	OAK	Mann 40 yard field goal	OAK 19–0

Q3	MIN	White 8 yard pass from Tarkenton (Cox kick)	OAK 19–7

Q4	OAK	Banaszak 2 yard run (Mann kick)	OAK 26–7

Q4	OAK	Brown 75 yard interception return (kick failed)	OAK 32–7

Q4	MIN	Voigt 13 yard pass from Lee (Cox kick)	OAK 32–14

^[15]

Standings

NFC Central
	W	L	T	PCT	DIV	CONF	PF	PA	STK
Minnesota Vikings⁽²⁾	11	2	1	.821	5–1	9–2	305	176	W2
Chicago Bears	7	7	0	.500	4–2	7–5	253	216	L1
Detroit Lions	6	8	0	.429	2–4	5–7	262	220	L2
Green Bay Packers	5	9	0	.357	1–5	4–8	218	299	W1

Statistics

Team leaders

Category	Player(s)	Value
Passing Yards	Fran Tarkenton	2,961
Passing Touchdowns	Fran Tarkenton	17
Rushing Yards	Chuck Foreman	1,155
Rushing Touchdowns	Chuck Foreman	13
Receiving Yards	Sammy White	906
Receiving Touchdowns	Sammy White	10
Points	Fred Cox	89
Kickoff Return Yards	Leonard Willis	552
Punt Return Yards	Leonard Willis	207
Interceptions	Nate Wright	7

League rankings

Category	Total yards	Yards per game	NFL rank (out of 28)
Passing Offense	2,855 Yards	203.9 YPG	4th
Rushing Offense	2,003 Yards	143.1 YPG	18th
Total Offense	4,858 Yards	347.0 YPG	6th
Passing Defense	1,575 Yards	112.5 YPG	1st
Rushing Defense	2,096 Yards	149.7 YPG	17th
Total Defense	3,671 Yards	262.2 YPG	6th

References

↑ Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved 2015-May-04.
↑ Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved 2015-May-03.
↑ Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved 2015-May-03.
↑ Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved 2015-May-03.
↑ Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved 2015-May-04.
↑ Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved 2015-May-04.
↑ Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved 2015-May-04.
↑ Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved 2015-May-04.
↑ Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved 2015-May-04.
↑ Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved 2015-May-04.
↑ Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved 2015-May-04.
↑ Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved 2015-May-04.
↑ Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved 2015-May-04.
↑ Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved 2015-May-04.
↑ Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved 2015-May-04.

Minnesota Vikings

Founded in 1961 Based in Minneapolis, Minnesota Headquartered in Eden Prairie, Minnesota

Franchise	Franchise History Expansion draft Players First-round draft picks Quarterbacks Head coaches Seasons Statistics Draft

Stadiums	Metropolitan Stadium Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome TCF Bank Stadium U.S. Bank Stadium

Culture	Purple People Eaters "Skol, Vikings" Herschel Walker trade Love Boat scandal "Little Minnesota" (How I Met Your Mother episode) Cheerleaders

Rivalries	Chicago Bears Detroit Lions Green Bay Packers

Lore	The Wrong Way Run Ed Thorp Memorial Trophy Gary Anderson's missed field goal Hail Mary 2010 Metrodome roof collapse

Division championships (19)	1968 1969 1970 1971 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1980 1989 1992 1994 1998 2000 2008 2009 2015

Conference championships (4)	1969 1973 1974 1976

League championships (0^†)	^† does not include 1969 NFL championship

Retired numbers	10 53 70 77 80 88

Current league affiliations	League: National Football League Conference: National Football Conference Division: North Division

Seasons (56)	1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016

Championship seasons in bold

Minnesota Vikings seasons

1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016

Bold indicates NFL Championship or Super Bowl victory Italics indicates Super Bowl appearance

1976 NFL season

East	Central	West	East	Central	West
Baltimore	Cincinnati	Denver	Dallas	Chicago	Atlanta
Buffalo	Cleveland	Kansas City	NY Giants	Detroit	Los Angeles
Miami	Houston	Oakland	Philadelphia	Green Bay	New Orleans
New England	Pittsburgh	San Diego	St. Louis	Minnesota	San Francisco
NY Jets		Tampa Bay	Washington		Seattle

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 6/23/2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.