Minnesota Vikings All-Time Starting Offensive Team
The Minnesota Vikings head into 2011 with a plethora of questions facing the franchise.
Because there is no Collective Bargaining Agreement in place, teams are hesitating to make any deals at this time.
Along with needing to find a quarterback for next season, and hopefully for many seasons to come, the offensive line needs to be reinforced, and there is the potential to lose their best wide receiver to free agency.
About the only positions on the offensive side of the ball that are not in question appear to be tight end and running back.
I took a look back over the Vikings' 50 seasons in Minnesota and selected the all time starting offensive team.
Many of the picks were no-brainers, while there could be a couple that could spark some debate.
My goal was to limit this list to retired former Minnesota players, but in the end the evidence was too overwhelming for a couple players.
Minnesota Vikings All-Time Starting Right Tackle: Ron Yary
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Taken with their first pick in the 1968 draft, Ron Yary would be the first offensive lineman ever drafted first overall in NFL history.
The University of Southern California product would start 174 of 176 games right tackle for the Vikings from 1970 to 1981.
From 1971 to 1977, Yary would be selected to seven consecutive Pro Bowls.
He was named First-Team All-Pro five consecutive seasons from 1971 to 1976.
During Yary's tenure with the Vikings, the team won 11 division titles, the 1969 NFL Championship and played in Super Bowls IV, VIII, IX and XI.
In 2001 he was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
Minnesota Vikings All-Time Starting Right Guard: David Dixon
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From 1994-2004 David Dixon started 134 games at right guard for the Minnesota Vikings.
Just to show the difference in the era of football that Dixon played.
Both Dixon and Ron Yary are 6-5, but at 343 pounds, Dixon played at almost 90 pound heavier than Yary.
Minnesota Vikings All-Time Starting Center: Mick Tinglehoff
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Incredibly, Mick Tingelhoff was not drafted after playing college at Nebraska.
He signed with the Minnesota as an undrafted free agent in 1962. He would earn the starting center position as a rookie and go on to start all 240 games he played in his career with the Vikings.
At the time of his retirement, Tinglehoff's 240 consecutive starts were second only to teammate Jim Marshall's 270.
Tinglehoff was named to six consecutive Pro Bowls from 1964 to 1969, and was a five-time First-Team All-Pro.
Tinglehoff played on the same offensive for 11 seasons from 1968 to 1978 with Ron Yary, and like Yary was a member of the four Super Bowl teams following the 1969, 1973, 1974 and 1976 seasons.
He retired following the 1978 season, and for some reason has not been elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
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Minnesota Vikings All-Time Starting Left Guard: Randall McDaniel
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The Minnesota Vikings selected Randall McDaniel with the 19th pick in the 1988 draft out of Arizona State University.
As a rookie he would start 15 games in 1998 for Minnesota.
McDaniel would play 14 seasons in the NFL, the first 12 with the Vikings.
For 12 seasons from 1988 to 1999 he would play in 190 games, starting 188 of them. In that span he would miss only two games.
McDaniel would be selected to 12 straight Pro-Bowls and be named seven times First-Team All-Pro.
In 2009 he was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
Minnesota Vikings All-Time Starting Left Tackle: Grady Alderman
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Grady Alderman played 14 of his 15 seasons with the Minnesota Vikings.
From 1961 to 1974 he played in 193 of the Vikings' 196 games, starting 175 of them.
Alderman was named to six Pro Bowls—five straight from 1963-1967.
In 1969 he was named First-Team All-Pro.
Like Mick Tingelhoff and Ron Yary he was a member of the Vikings' four Super Bowl Teams.
Time to move onto the skill positions.
Minnesota Vikings All-Time Starting Tight End: Steve Jordan
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Steve Jordan was the Minnesota Vikings' seventh round draft choice in 1982. He would play in only three games that season, starting one, and catch only three passes.
Before the completion of his 13-year career with the Vikings, Jordan would finish with 498 receptions—third all time on the team.
His 29 touchdowns for 174 points leads all Minnesota tight ends and ranks 22nd in the history of the Vikings' franchise.
The next closest tight end in receptions is Jim Kleinsasser, currently with 191 career receptions.
Jordon was a perennial Pro-Bowler, selected in six consecutive years from 1986 to 1991.
Minnesota Vikings All-Time No. 2 Starting Wide Receiver: Randy Moss
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I tried not to select Randy Moss.
I had every intention of searching the statistics of Minnesota Vikings' wide receivers to garner enough evidence to omit him—but I just couldn't do it, even after the disaster that was his four game stint with the Vikings in 2010.
The NFL AP Offensive Rookie of the Year in 1998, Moss three times led the NFL in touchdown receptions during his seven seasons with the Minnesota Vikings from 1998 to 2004.
He ranks second all time for the Vikings with 587 receptions and 9,316 receiving yards.
His 93 touchdowns are the second most, and his 564 points are fourth best in Vikings' history.
During his Minnesota career he never averaged less than 12.7 yards per catch in a season, and his 15.9 yards per catch average as a Viking is the best in his career among the four teams he has played for in the NFL.
Minnesota Vikings All-Time No. 3 Wide Receiver: Anthony Carter
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I decided to go with three wide receivers because of the propensity of the three-wide sets.
Before being traded to the Vikings from the Miami Dolphins before the 1985 season, Anthony Carter played two years in the USFL.
The University of Michigan product would play nine seasons with the Vikings from 1985 to 1993.
His 478 receptions are fourth all time in franchise history.His 52 touchdowns ranks third for the Vikings.
From 1987 to 1989 he would be named to three consecutive Pro Bowls.
Carter helped the Vikings reach the 1987 NFC Championship game by catching 10 receptions for a then NFL playoff record 227 yards.
Carter's 642 all-purpose yards he gained in the 1987 playoffs remain a single postseason record.
Minnesota Vikings All-Time No. 1 Starting Wide Receiver: Cris Carter
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Cris Carter was drafted by the Philadelphia Eagles in the fourth round of the 1987 Supplemental Draft.
Due to off the field issues, head coach Buddy Ryan released Carter following the 1989 season. The famous quote attributed to Ryan is "all he does is catch touchdowns."
Carter was picked up by Minnesota before the 1990 season and would go on to play 12 seasons with the Vikings.
He would finish as the Vikings' career leader in receptions with 1004, receiving yards with 12,383 and 110 touchdowns.
His 670 points ranks second all time in the history of the Minnesota Vikings.
Like Randy Moss, Carter led the NFL in touchdown receptions three times.
In 1994 and 1995 he would catch 122 passes each season, and lead the NFL in receptions in 1994.
Carter may have been known best for his ability to make the shoe-string catch on the sidelines, or at the back of the end zone as he would fall out of bounds.
Incredibly, in his 12 seasons with the Vikings he would catch passes from 10 different starting quarterbacks.
Minnesota Vikings No. 2 All-Time Starting Running Back: Chuck Foreman
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The Minnesota Vikings selected Chuck Foreman in the first round of the 1973 draft.
That year Foreman would only start 11 of 14 games and lead the team with 801 yards rushing.
In three of his first four years with the Vikings the team would reach the Super Bowl.
Playing with Fran Tarkenton he would transform the running back position by becoming one of the first dual threats out of the backfield. He was as effective as a receiver as he was a rusher during his career with the Vikings.
His 3,057 receiving yards ranks 13th all time for the Minnesota Vikings.
In 1975 Foreman would become the first Minnesota Viking running back to exceed 1,000 yards rushing. He would repeat that feat in each of the following two seasons.
Along with 1,070 rushing yards and 13 touchdowns in 1975, he would catch 73 passes for 691 yards and another nine touchdowns. His 73 receptions not only led all running backs, but the entire NFL that season.
Foreman played seven of his eight professional seasons with the Vikings.
Along with Bill Brown and Adrian Peterson he is tied for the team lead with 52 touchdowns.
He is currently second in career rushing yards for the Vikings with 5,887 and his 63.3 rushing yards per game is third best in the team's history.
Minnesota Vikings All-Time No. 1 Starting Running Back: Adrian Peterson
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All Adrian Peterson needs to finish as the Minnesota Vikings' all-time career rushing leader is one typical season.
He has achieved as much in his four seasons as Chuck Foreman did in seven, Robert Smith did in eight and Bill Brown did in 13.
Currently tied with Brown and Foreman with 52 rushing touchdowns all he needs is 1,036 yards to eclipse Smith's career rushing total of 6,818 yards.
Peterson leads all Vikings' running backs with an average of 94.8 yards per game—25.2 yards more than Smith's 69.6 average which is second best in franchise history.
Minnesota Vikings All-Time Starting Quarterback: Fran Tarkenton
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Fran Tarkenton would spend 13 seasons playing quarterback for the Minnesota Vikings.
These would be split with a five year stint with the New York Giants from 1967 - 1971.
Tarkenton made a splash in the franchise's first game.
He came off the bench to throw four touchdowns and ran for another, leading the Vikings to a 37-13 win over the heavily favored Chicago Bears at Metropolitan Stadium in Bloomington, Minnesota.
Tarkenton would finish as the Vikings all-time leader with 239 touchdown passes, 33,098 passing yards and 194 interceptions.
He led the Vikings' to their last three Super Bowls in 1973, 1974 and 1976.
Although his 80.1 quarterback rating is only eighth best in franchise history for quarterbacks with at least 300 pass attempts, he found a way to win and leads all Vikings' quarterbacks with 91 victories.
In 1975 he was named the NFL AP Most Valuable Player.
For his career with the Vikings and Giants he would be selected to nine Pro Bowls.
Minnesota Vikings All-Time Place Kicker: Fred Cox
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No list of all-time Vikings' players would be complete without the career scoring leader.
Fred Cox was drafted by teams in both the AFL and NFL in 1961.
He would make his NFL debut in 1963 with the Minnesota Vikings and play 15 seasons for the Purple.
His 1,365 career points are more than double than the next closest player—Cris Carter with 670 points.
Cox led the NFL three times in field goals in 1965, 1969 and 1970.
Not the most accurate kicker, nor with the greatest range, Cox makes this list solely on his longevity.
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