The 1978 season was the Minnesota Vikings' 18th in the National Football League (NFL). The Vikings finished with an 8–7–1 record, and finished in first place in the NFC Central division, despite having a regular season point differential of minus 12. The team appeared in the playoffs for the 10th time in 11 years. In the divisional round, the Vikings lost 34–10 to the Los Angeles Rams. Following the season, longtime quarterback Fran Tarkenton retired.
Offseason
1978 draft
1978 Minnesota Vikings Draft Draft order Player name Position College Notes Round Selection121Randy HollowayDefensive endPittsburgh248John TurnerDefensive backMiami (FL)375Whip WaltonLinebackerSan Diego State4100Jim HoughCenterUtah State5132Traded to the New York Giants6159Traded to the San Francisco 49ers7186Traded to the Philadelphia Eagles8204Mike WoodPlacekickerSoutheast Missouri StateFrom Seahawks213Traded to the New York Jets9240Mike DeutschPunterColorado State10272Hughie ShawRunning backTexas A&I11299Ron HarrisRunning backColorado State12326Jeff MorrowOffensive tackleMinnesota
Notes
Undrafted free agents
+ 1978 undrafted free agents of notePlayerPositionCollegeKevin MillerWide receiverLouisvilleHarry WashingtonWide receiverColorado State
Roster
Preseason Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Attendance 1 August 5 Washington Redskins W 20–13 1–0 Metropolitan Stadium 46,212 2 August 12 at Kansas City Chiefs L 13–17 1–1 Arrowhead Stadium 41,092 3 August 18 at Miami Dolphins L 22–30 1–2 Miami Orange Bowl 46,316 4 August 26 Buffalo Bills W 30–27 2–2 Metropolitan Stadium 45,062
Regular season Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Attendance 1 September 3 at New Orleans Saints L 24–31 0–1 Superdome 54,187 2 September 11 Denver Broncos W 12–9 1–1 Metropolitan Stadium 46,508 3 September 17 Tampa Bay Buccaneers L 10–16 1–2 Metropolitan Stadium 46,152 4 September 25 at Chicago Bears W 24–20 2–2 Soldier Field 53,551 5 October 1 at Tampa Bay Buccaneers W 24–7 3–2 Tampa Stadium 65,972 6 October 8 at Seattle Seahawks L 28–29 3–3 Kingdome 62,031 7 October 15 Los Angeles Rams L 17–34 3–4 Metropolitan Stadium 46,551 8 October 22 Green Bay Packers W 21–7 4–4 Metropolitan Stadium 47,411 9 October 26 at Dallas Cowboys W 21–10 5–4 Texas Stadium 61,848 10 November 5 Detroit Lions W 17–7 6–4 Metropolitan Stadium 46,008 11 November 12 Chicago Bears W 17–14 7–4 Metropolitan Stadium 43,286 12 November 19 San Diego Chargers L 7–13 7–5 Metropolitan Stadium 38,859 13 November 26 at Green Bay Packers T 10–10 7–5–1 Lambeau Field 51,737 14 December 3 Philadelphia Eagles W 28–27 8–5–1 Metropolitan Stadium 38,722 15 December 9 at Detroit Lions L 14–45 8–6–1 Silverdome 78,685 16 December 17 at Oakland Raiders L 20–27 8–7–1 Oakland Coliseum 44,643
Game summaries Week 8: vs Green Bay Packers
The Vikings won a game they had to win in their bid to win a 10th NFC Central division title in 11 seasons, as Fran Tarkenton completed 26 of 43 passes for 262 yards and three touchdowns, two of them to Ahmad Rashad. "That's pretty amazing for a guy who can't throw a football anymore, isn't it?" said the 38-year-old Tarkenton, who raised his 18-year yardage total to 45,143, the first man to surpass 45,000 yards. Tarkenton's third scoring strike to running back Chuck Foreman just before the half went for 16 yards. Terdell Middleton, who entered the game as the NFC's third leading rusher, scored Green Bay's only touchdown on a 3-yard run midway through the second quarter, giving Green Bay a 7–7 tie. He finished the game with 81 yards on 15 carries.
Standings
Playoffs Week Date Opponent (seed) Result Record Venue Attendance Divisional December 31 at Los Angeles Rams L 10–34 0–1 Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum 69,631
In 2004, Football Outsiders named the 1978 Vikings as one of the "worst playoff teams ever".Football Outsiders: Skin of the Teeth: The Worst Playoff Teams Ever
Awards and records QB Fran Tarkenton threw 32 interceptions on the season, surpassing his own franchise record of 25 (set in 1962) RB Rickey Young led the league with 88 receptions, setting a Vikings single-season record.
Statistical leaders Category Player(s) Value Passing yards Fran Tarkenton 3,468 Passing touchdowns Fran Tarkenton 25 Rushing yards Chuck Foreman 749 Rushing touchdowns Chuck Foreman 5 Receiving yards Ahmad Rashad 769 Receiving touchdowns Sammy White 9 Points Rick Danmeier 72 Kickoff return yards Kevin Miller 854 Punt return yards Kevin Miller 239 Interceptions Bobby Bryant 7
League rankings
Category Total yards Yards per game NFL rank Passing offense 3,243 202.7 2nd Rushing offense 1,536 96.0 28th Total offense 4,779 298.7 17th Passing defense 2,690 168.1 19th Rushing defense 2,116 132.3 10th Total defense 4,806 300.4 14th
References