2000 Minnesota Vikings season

2000 Minnesota Vikings season
Head coach	Dennis Green
Home field	Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome
Results
Record	11–5
Division place	1st NFC Central
Playoff finish	Won NFC Divisional Playoff Lost NFC Championship
Pro Bowlers	5

The 2000 Minnesota Vikings season was the team's 40th season in the National Football League.

The season

The team was led by first-year starting quarterback Daunte Culpepper and running back Robert Smith, who ran for a then team record 1,521 yards and 7 touchdowns. The Vikings started out 7–0 and were 11–2 after 14 weeks, but slumped briefly, losing their last three to the Rams, Packers and Colts while Culpepper was hampered by injury.

Despite the rough patch, the Vikings would return to the playoffs again for the fifth straight year. After easily beating the Saints in the Divisional game 34–16, they were humiliated 41–0 by the New York Giants in the Conference Championship, and to top that, Robert Smith retired at the end of the year, after only playing eight NFL seasons.

After a contract dispute, Hall of Fame defensive tackle John Randle was let go after 11 seasons with the Vikings. Randle had only eight sacks this year, ending a streak of eight consecutive seasons with 10+ sacks.

The Vikings returned to the playoffs in 2004 despite an 8-8 record. They defeated the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field in the Wildcard round before losing to the Philadelphia Eagles the following week. 2000 was the last winning season the Vikings would achieve until 2008.

Six Vikings including Culpepper, Moss, Carter, Smith, Korey Stringer and Matt Birk were selected to play in the Pro Bowl after the season. It was Stringer's only Pro Bowl appearance before his death in 2001.

Offseason

2000 Draft

Main article: 2000 NFL draft

2000 Minnesota Vikings Draft
Draft order			Player name	Position	College	Notes
Round	Choice	Overall	Player name	Position	College	Notes
1	25	25	Chris Hovan	Defensive Tackle	Boston
2	24	55	Fred Robbins	Defensive Tackle	Wake Forest
2	25	56	Michael Boireau	Defensive End	University of Miami	from Redskins^[a]
3	26	88	Doug Chapman	Running Back	Marshall
4	12	106	Antonio Wilson	Linebacker	Texas A&M	from Ravens^[b]
4	24	118	Tyrone Carter	Safety	Minnesota
5	26	155	Surrendered to the Washington Redskins^[c]
5	36	165	Troy Walters	Wide Receiver	Stanford	Compensatory pick
6	25	191	Traded to the Baltimore Ravens^[b]
7	26	232	Traded to the Cleveland Browns^[d]
	34	240	Mike Milano	Center	San Diego State	Compensatory pick
	38	244	Giles Cole	Tight End	Texas	Compensatory pick
	42	248	Lewis Kelly	Offensive Guard	South Carolina State	Compensatory pick

^{^[a]} During the 1999 NFL Draft, Washington traded their 1999 1st round selection (11th overall – Daunte Culpepper), 1999 3rd round selection (73rd overall – later traded to Pittsburgh), and 2000 2nd round selection (56th overall) to Minnesota in exchange for QB Brad Johnson.

^{^[b]} The details of these trades are unknown but may involve Baltimore's acquisition of OL Everett Lindsay from Minnesota.

^{^[c]} Washington received this selection as compensation for restricted free agent G Brad Badger.

^{^[d]} Minnesota traded their 7th round selection (232nd overall) to Cleveland for DT Jerry Ball.

Regular season

Schedule

Week	Date	Opponent	Result	TV Time (CT)	Venue	Attendance
1	September 3, 2000	Chicago Bears	W 30–27	FOX 12:00pm	Metrodome	64,104
2	September 10, 2000	Miami Dolphins	W 13–7	CBS 12:00pm	Metrodome	64,112
3	September 17, 2000	at New England Patriots	W 21–13	FOX 3:00pm	Foxboro Stadium	59,835
4	Bye
5	October 1, 2000	at Detroit Lions	W 31–24	FOX 12:00pm	Silverdome	76,438
6	October 9, 2000	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	W 30–23	ABC 8:00pm	Metrodome	64,162
7	October 15, 2000	at Chicago Bears	W 28–16	ESPN 7:30pm	Soldier Field	66,944
8	October 22, 2000	Buffalo Bills	W 31–27	CBS 12:00pm	Metrodome	64,116
9	October 29, 2000	at Tampa Bay Buccaneers	L 13-41	FOX 12:00pm	Raymond James Stadium	65,589
10	November 6, 2000	at Green Bay Packers	L 20-26 (OT)	ABC 8:00pm	Lambeau Field	59,854
11	November 12, 2000	Arizona Cardinals	W 31–14	FOX 12:00pm	Metrodome	64,223
12	November 19, 2000	Carolina Panthers	W 31–17	FOX 12:00pm	Metrodome	64,208
13	November 23, 2000	at Dallas Cowboys	W 27–15	FOX 3:00pm	Texas Stadium	63,878
14	November 30, 2000	Detroit Lions	W 24–17	ESPN 7:30pm	Metrodome	64,214
15	December 10, 2000	at St. Louis Rams	L 29-40	FOX 3:00pm	TWA Dome	66,273
16	December 17, 2000	Green Bay Packers	L 28-33	FOX 3:00pm	Metrodome	64,183
17	December 24, 2000	at Indianapolis Colts	L 10-31	FOX 3:00pm	RCA Dome	56,672

Standings

Team	W	L	T	PCT	PF	PA
NFC Central
(2) Minnesota Vikings	11	5	0	.688	397	371
(5) Tampa Bay Buccaneers	10	6	0	.625	388	269
Green Bay Packers	9	7	0	.563	353	323
Detroit Lions	9	7	0	.563	307	307
Chicago Bears	5	11	0	.313	216	355

Postseason

NFC Divisional Playoffs

Minnesota Vikings 34, New Orleans Saints 16

	1	2	3	4	Total
Saints	3	0	7	6	16
Vikings	10	7	10	7	34

at Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome, Minneapolis, Minnesota

Game time: 12:30 p.m. EST/11:30 a.m. CST
Game weather: Played indoors, domed stadium
Game attendance: 63,881
Referee: Walt Coleman
TV announcers (Fox): Dick Stockton, Matt Millen, and Pam Oliver

NFC Championship Game

New York Giants 41, Minnesota Vikings 0

	1	2	3	4	Total
Vikings	0	0	0	0	0
Giants	14	20	7	0	41

at Giants Stadium, East Rutherford, New Jersey

Game time: 12:30 p.m. EST
Game weather: 40 °F (4 °C), cloudy
Game attendance: 79,310
Referee: Tony Corrente
TV announcers (Fox): Pat Summerall, John Madden, D.J. Johnson, and Pam Oliver

Statistics

Team leaders

Category	Player(s)	Value
Passing Yards	Daunte Culpepper	3,937
Passing Touchdowns	Daunte Culpepper	33
Rushing Yards	Robert Smith	1,521
Rushing Touchdowns	Robert Smith Daunte Culpepper	7
Receiving Yards	Randy Moss	1,437
Receiving Touchdowns	Randy Moss	15
Points	Gary Anderson	111
Kickoff Return Yards	Troy Walters	692
Punt Return Yards	Troy Walters	217
Tackles	Ed McDaniel	118
Sacks	John Randle	8
Interceptions	Robert Tate Kailee Wong	2
Forced Fumbles	John Randle Robert Tate	2

League rankings

Category	Total yards	Yards per game	NFL rank (out of 31)
Passing Offense	3,832 Yards	239.5 YPG	7th
Rushing Offense	2,129 Yards	133.1 YPG	6th
Total Offense	5,961 Yards	372.6 YPG	5th
Passing Defense	3,913 Yards	244.6 YPG	28th
Rushing Defense	1,788 Yards	111.8 YPG	15th
Total Defense	5,701 Yards	356.3 YPG	28th

Personnel

Staff

2000 Minnesota Vikings staff

Front Office

Owner – Red McCombs
President – Gary Woods
Director of Football Administration – Rob Brzezinski

Head Coaches

Head Coach – Dennis Green
Assistant Head Coach/Defensive Backs – Richard Solomon

Offensive Coaches

Offensive Coordinator – Sherman Lewis
Quarterbacks – Alex Wood
Running Backs – Carl Hargrave
Wide Receivers – Charlie Baggett
Tight Ends – John Tice
Offensive Line – Mike Tice
Quality Control-Offense – Dean Dalton

Defensive Coaches

Defensive Coordinator – Emmitt Thomas
Defensive Line – Fred von Appen
Inside Linebackers – Trent Walters
Outside Linebackers – John Fontes
Quality Control-Defense – Chuck Knox, Jr.

Special Teams Coaches

Special Teams – Gary Zauner

Strength and Conditioning

Strength and Conditioning – Steve Wetzel
Assistant Strength and Conditioning – Daryl Lawrence

^[1]

Final roster

2000 Minnesota Vikings final roster

Quarterbacks

Running backs

Wide receivers

Tight ends

Offensive linemen

Defensive linemen

91 John Burrough DE
99 Chris Hovan DT
95 Bryce Paup DE
93 John Randle DE
98 Fred Robbins DT
97 Talance Sawyer DE
92 Fernando Smith DE
94 Tony Williams DT

Linebackers

50 Pete Bercich
55 Lemanski Hall OLB
58 Ed McDaniel OLB
90 Gabe Northern OLB
57 Dwayne Rudd OLB
59 Craig Sauer OLB
54 Antonio Wilson OLB
52 Kailee Wong MLB

Defensive backs

30 Antonio Banks CB
37 Tyrone Carter FS
24 Robert Griffith SS
31 Don Morgan CB
29 Wasswa Serwanga CB
28 Robert Tate CB
42 Orlando Thomas FS
27 Keith Thibodeaux CB
20 Kenny Wright CB

Special teams

1 Gary Anderson K
17 Mitch Berger P
51 Mitch Palmer LS

Reserve lists

-- Michael Boireau DE (IR)
61 Lewis Kelly G (IR)
69 Mike Malano G (IR)
-- Todd Sauer LB (IR)

Practice squad

Rookies in italics
54 Active, 4 Inactive, 0 Practice squad

Awards and records

Gary Anderson, NFC Special Teams Player of the Week, Week 8 ^[2]
Mitch Berger, NFC Special Teams Player of the Week, Week 14 ^[2]
Mitch Berger, NFC Special Teams Player of the Month, December ^[2]
Cris Carter, All-NFL Team (as selected by the Associated Press, Pro Football Weekly, and the Pro Football Writers of America) ^[2]
Cris Carter, NFC Pro Bowl Selection ^[3]
Daunte Culpepper, NFC Offensive Player of the Week, Week 6 ^[2]
Daunte Culpepper, NFC Offensive Player of the Week, Week 12 ^[2]
Chris Hovan, PFW/Pro Football Writers of America All-Rookie Team
Randy Moss, All-NFL Team (as selected by the Associated Press, Pro Football Weekly, and the Pro Football Writers of America) ^[2]
Randy Moss, PFW/PFWA All-Pro Team ^[4]
Robert Smith, NFC Offensive Player of the Month, December ^[2]

40-year team

The team recognized an all-time team in 2000 by announcing the 40th-season all-time team.

VIKINGS 40TH SEASON ALL-TIME TEAM 1961–2000

OFFENSE
WRs: Ahmad Rashad, Cris Carter
Ts: Ron Yary, Tim Irwin
Gs: Ed White, Randall McDaniel
C: Mick Tingelhoff
TE: Steve Jordan
QB: Fran Tarkenton
RBs: Chuck Foreman, Robert Smith
K: Fred Cox
Special Teams Coverage: Bill Brown
DEFENSE
DEs: Jim Marshall, Carl Eller
DTs: Alan Page, John Randle
LBs: Jeff Siemon, Matt Blair, Scott Studwell
Ss: Paul Krause, Joey Browner
CBs: Bobby Bryant, Carl Lee
P: Greg Coleman
Special Teams Returns: Darrin Nelson
Head Coach: Bud Grant

References

↑ 2009 Minnesota Vikings Media Guide. p. 251. Retrieved 2010-03-06.
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 NFL 2001 Record and Fact Book, Workman Publishing Co, New York,NY, ISBN 0-7611-2480-2, p. 202
↑ NFL 2001 Record and Fact Book, Workman Publishing Co, New York,NY, ISBN 0-7611-2480-2, p. 362
↑ NFL 2001 Record and Fact Book, Workman Publishing Co, New York,NY, ISBN 0-7611-2480-2, p. 203

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 (under construction)

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 Anderson's missed field goal Ed Thorp Memorial Trophy Hail Mary 2010 HHH Metrodome roof collapse Walsh's missed field goal

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

League championships	1969

Super Bowl appearances (4)	IV VIII IX XI

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

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

2000 NFL season

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

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