Rookie of the Year: Randy Moss, 1998

Wide Receiver, Minnesota Vikings

Age: 21

College: Marshall

Height: 6’4”   Weight: 210

Prelude:

Moss was a two-time All-American in college, catching 174 passes for 3529 yards (20.3 avg.) and 54 touchdowns in just two seasons. However, he had legal problems that had forced his dismissal from Florida State and, while an outstanding talent, fell to the Vikings with the 21^st pick in the first round. Big and fast, he became part of a highly productive wide receiving tandem in Minnesota along with Cris Carter.

1998 Season Summary

Appeared in all 16 games

[Bracketed numbers indicate league rank in Top 20]

Pass Receiving

Receptions – 69 [16, tied with Larry Centers, Raghib Ismail & Johnnie Morton]    

Most receptions, game – 8 (for 153 yds.) vs. Green Bay 11/22, (for 106 yds.) vs. Chicago 12/6

Yards – 1313 [3]

Most yards, game - 190 (on 5 catches) at Green Bay 10/5

Average gain – 19.0 [5]

TDs – 17 [1]

100-yard receiving games – 4

Rushing

Attempts – 1

Yards – 4

TDs – 0

Punt Returns

Returns – 1

Yards – 0

Scoring

TDs – 17 [2, tied with Fred Taylor, 1st in NFC]

2-pt PATs – 2 [1, tied with four others]

Points – 106 [14]

Postseason: 2 G

Pass receptions – 10

Most pass receptions, game – 6 vs. Atlanta, NFC Championship

Pass receiving yards – 148

Most receiving yards, game – 75 vs. Atlanta, NFC Championship

Average yards per reception – 14.8

Pass Receiving TDs - 2

Awards & Honors:

NFL Rookie of the Year: Sporting News

NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year: AP, PFWA

1^st team All-NFL: AP, PFWA, Sporting News

1^st team All-NFC: Pro Football Weekly

Pro Bowl

Vikings went 15-1 to finish first in the NFC Central with the conference’s best record while leading the NFL in passing yards (4328), scoring (556 points), and touchdowns (64). Won NFC Divisional playoff over Arizona Cardinals (41-21). Defeated for NFC Championship by Atlanta Falcons (30-27).

Aftermath:

Moss went on to have seven highly productive seasons in Minnesota, going over a thousand yards in six of them (with a high of 1632 in 2003) and reaching a hundred catches twice. He led the NFL in TD receptions again in 2000 (15) and ’03 (17), was a consensus first-team All-NFL selection in both of those years, and was selected to five Pro Bowls. But with all of his tremendous talent, he drew criticism for being a prima donna and a lack of consistent effort. Following an injury-plagued 2004 season, Moss was dealt to the Raiders, where he had two relatively quiet years. Moving on to New England, he was sensational in a 2007 season in which he set a NFL record with 23 TD receptions. He played two more years with the Patriots, again topping the NFL in TD catches with 13 in 2009, but was dealt to the Vikings during the 2010 season and finished up the year in Tennessee. Initially retiring, he returned to play for the 49ers in 2012. Overall, he caught 982 passes for 15,292 yards, which rank third all-time in NFL history, and for a fourth-ranked 157 touchdowns (one TD came on a punt return). He was a consensus first-team All-NFL selection four times and was selected to six Pro Bowls.

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Rookie of the Year Profiles feature players who were named Rookie of the Year in the NFL, AFL (1960-69), or USFL (1983-85) by a recognized organization (Associated Press – Offense or Defense, Newspaper Enterprise Association, United Press International, The Sporting News, or the league itself – Pepsi NFL Rookie of the Year). 

[Updated 11/30/14]

2000: Packers Beat Vikings on Stunning Freeman TD Catch in Overtime

The Green Bay Packers were struggling at 3-5 as they faced the division-rival Minnesota Vikings on November 6, 2000. While Head Coach Mike Sherman’s team still had star QB Brett Favre, very much in his prime at age 31, there were questions at running back, where veteran Dorsey Levens was out with an injury and backup Ahman Green, new to the team after two nondescript years with Seattle, was not yet established in the offense. WR Antonio Freeman appeared to be on the downside of his career and the rest of the receivers were ordinary. While the defense was not bad, it would be severely tested against Minnesota’s outstanding receivers.

The Vikings, under Head Coach Dennis Green for the ninth year, had a 7-1 record, having lost for the first time at Tampa Bay the previous week. Second-year QB Daunte Culpepper was easing successfully into the starting role and was helped by the presence of two outstanding wide receivers in Cris Carter and Randy Moss. RB Robert Smith was also highly productive. However, the defense was a cause of concern.

There were 59,854 fans in attendance for the rainy Monday night encounter at Lambeau Field. The Packers had first possession and punted. On Minnesota’s second play, Daunte Culpepper threw to Randy Moss on a slant and, after evading two tackles before being caught by DT Santana Dotson 20 yards down field, he lateraled to Cris Carter for an additional eight yards. A pass to Carter and two carries by Robert Smith advanced the ball to the Green Bay nine. On third-and-goal, Culpepper scrambled for an apparent touchdown, but it was nullified due to a personal foul penalty and the Vikings had to settle for a 30-yard Gary Anderson field goal.

Green Bay put together a 15-play, 81-yard drive that extended into the second quarter. Favre connected with Antonio Freeman for 20 yards on a third-and-five play and WR Bill Schroeder ran for 12 yards on a reverse that was helped by Favre’s block on LB Dwayne Rudd. Following a 15-yard completion to Freeman to get to the Minnesota five, the Packers couldn’t reach the end zone and Ryan Longwell kicked a 24-yard field goal to tie the score.

Key calls by the officials played a role in Minnesota’s next series. First, Culpepper was sacked by DT Russell Maryland, but an apparent fumble that was recovered by the Packers in the end zone was overruled with the officials explaining that the quarterback’s knee was already down. Then, on a third-and-19 play, a taunting penalty on CB Mike McKenzie gave the Vikings a first down. Smith ran for 22 yards and Culpepper threw to Moss for a 42-yard gain to the Green Bay 20. Another short pass was followed by a throw that Carter wrestled away from McKenzie for a five-yard TD. The series had gone 84 yards in eight plays and Anderson added the extra point to make it 10-3 in favor of the visitors.

The Packers came back with an 87-yard scoring drive. On the second play, Favre (pictured below) threw to Freeman for a 33-yard gain. An interference call on CB Cris Dishman added another 28 yards and, two plays later, Favre rolled out and, as he was being pulled down around the waist by LB Ed McDaniel, he flipped a pass underhand to Ahman Green, who caught the throw just inside the end zone for a touchdown. Longwell’s PAT once again made it a tie score at 10-10.

With time running out in the first half, the Vikings went 57 yards in nine plays. They converted in a third-and-eight situation when Moss out-jumped FS Darren Sharper to catch a Culpepper pass for a 33-yard gain. Two plays later, a screen pass to Smith gained 22 yards to the Green Bay 30. The drive came up dry at that point, with three passes falling incomplete, and Anderson booted a 48-yard field goal as the half ended to give the Vikings a 13-10 lead at the intermission.

In the third quarter, the Packers got a break on defense when McKenzie intercepted a Culpepper pass and returned it 26 yards to the Minnesota 34. They were able to advance 21 yards in six plays and Longwell kicked a 31-yard field goal to again knot the score at 13-13.

Minnesota came right back with a 73-yard drive. Smith gained 13 yards on a sweep and Culpepper, flushed out of the pocket, ran for nine yards to the Green Bay 38. However, the series stalled but, facing third-and-17, Culpepper tossed a swing pass to Smith that the running back took all the way for a 45-yard touchdown. Anderson’s extra point had the Vikings back up by seven.

The Packers responded with a big play when CB Allen Rossum returned the kickoff 90 yards to the Minnesota two yard line. Two plays later, Green powered over for a TD from that distance and, adding Longwell’s kick, the score was tied once more at 20-20.

In the fourth quarter, Green Bay got the ball back following a punt when RB David Palmer fumbled on the return and long snapper Rob Davis recovered at the Minnesota 35. However, the Packers were unable to capitalize on a series in which Favre was sacked for a 12-yard loss.

Green Bay had another shot when a pass interference call on CB Robert Tate was good for 28 yards, but Schoeder dropped a third-and-seven throw in the end zone. The Packers passed up a long field goal attempt into the wind and the resulting punt went into the end zone for a touchback.

The Packers got the ball back in their own territory, couldn’t move, and had to punt, with Josh Bidwell’s kick going only 25 yards. Starting from the Green Bay 48, Culpepper threw to Moss for 19 yards and, with time running out, the Vikings lined up for a 33-yard field goal attempt by Anderson to win the game. But holder Mitch Berger couldn’t handle the snap cleanly and had to abort the kick. Rolling out to his right – and apparently forgetting that it was only first down and he could have thrown the ball away, with the team then able to attempt another kick – he tossed a desperation pass down the field that was intercepted by CB Tyrone Williams as time ran out. With the score still tied at 20-20, the game headed into overtime. 

The Packers had the first possession in OT. They converted a third-and-nine as Favre threw to Schroeder for a 22-yard gain. Two runs netted six yards and, on a third-and-four play, Favre went deep for Antonio Freeman, who was well-covered by Cris Dishman. Freeman slipped on the slick turf and fell as Dishman muffed a potential interception, and the ball fell onto Freeman’s left arm (pictured at top). The receiver pulled it to his chest and, jumping up, got past SS Robert Griffith and sped to the end zone where a wild celebration ensued. Green Bay won in astonishing fashion by a score of 26-20.

The Vikings significantly outgained Green Bay (407 yards to 298) and had the edge in first downs (22 to 19). However, Minnesota turned the ball over five times, while the Packers suffered none. The Vikings were also penalized 11 times at a cost of 129 yards, to 8 flags for 63 yards on Green Bay.

Brett Favre completed 17 of 36 passes for 235 yards and two touchdowns with none intercepted. Antonio Freeman had 5 catches for 118 yards and the game-winning TD and Ahman Green also had 5 pass receptions, for 34 yards, to go along with his 68 rushing yards on 23 carries. He scored two touchdowns, one rushing and one receiving. Bill Schroeder contributed four catches for 63 yards.

For the Vikings, Randy Moss had four catches for 103 yards in the first half despite Green Bay’s concentrated attempt to stop him, but was marginalized in the second half and ended up with 6 receptions for 130 yards. Cris Carter added 5 catches for 59 yards and a TD. Daunte Culpepper was successful on 17 of 34 throws for 276 yards and two TDs, but also tossed three interceptions. Robert Smith ran for 122 yards on 24 carries and had another 67 yards and a score on his two catches.

The Packers lost the next week but finished strong by winning five of their last six games (including another victory over the Vikings). They ended up third in the NFC Central with a 9-7 record. Minnesota recovered to win four straight games before losing three to finish out the regular season at 11-5. That made them division champs and they beat the Saints in the Divisional playoff round before being soundly beaten by the Giants for the NFC title.

Brett Favre had a relatively off year by his standards. He led the NFC with 580 pass attempts, completing 58.3 percent for 3812 yards and 20 touchdowns as opposed to 16 interceptions. Antonio Freeman caught 62 passes for 912 yards and nine TDs. Ahman Green performed well in the second half of the year and, in addition to leading the team in rushing (1175 yards), he also had the most pass receptions (73). It set the stage for bigger years to come as he topped the thousand-yard rushing mark in six of his first seven years with the club.

Daunte Culpepper went on to tie for the NFL lead in touchdown passes (33, along with Peyton Manning of the Colts) while throwing for 3937 yards and a fourth-ranked passer rating of 98.0. He was selected to the Pro Bowl for the first time. So was Randy Moss, who was also a consensus first-team All-NFL honoree as he caught 77 passes for 1437 yards and a league-leading 15 receiving touchdowns. 

2004: Failed Extra Point Try Allows Vikings to Hold Off Lions

The Minnesota Vikings had gotten off to a 5-1 start in the 2004 NFL season but had struggled thereafter. By the time they faced the Detroit Lions on December 19 they were at 7-6 and trying to stay alive for a playoff spot. Coached by Mike Tice, the offense featured sixth-year QB Daunte Culpepper (pictured above), adept at running as well as passing, and highly talented – if also temperamental – WR Randy Moss. They had beaten Detroit four weeks earlier.

The Lions, under Head Coach Steve Mariucci, were a rebuilding club with a 5-8 record, having lost six of their last seven games. There was young talent on offense in QB Joey Harrington, WR Roy Williams, and rookie first draft choice Kevin Jones, but Harrington was proving to be inconsistent and the defense was tough but thin on depth.

There were 62,337 fans in attendance at Detroit’s Ford Field. The home team had first possession and drove 59 yards in 13 plays. Harrington completed four passes and Jason Hanson kicked a 32-yard field goal to make it 3-0. The Vikings came right back with a long series of their own, going 85 yards in 12 plays. Daunte Culpepper completed five throws along the way, including two to TE Jermaine Wiggins for first downs and a 36-yard touchdown pass to WR Nate Burleson. It was 7-3 in favor of Minnesota after one quarter of play.

The teams traded punts heading into the second quarter before the Vikings struck with a big play. In a third-and-24 situation at his own 18, Culpepper threw to Randy Moss for an 82-yard TD and, with another successful PAT, a 14-3 lead. The Lions responded with a long, sustained 11-play drive that covered 83 yards. Harrington completed a pass to Roy Williams for 24 yards on a third-and-three play and Kevin Jones carried the ball 6 times for 42 yards that included a 16-yard scoring run.  In the final two minutes, Detroit added a 23-yard field goal by Hanson and it was a 14-13 game at the half.

In Detroit’s first possession of the third quarter, and backed up deep in its own territory, Harrington (pictured at left) threw to Williams for another big gain of 37 yards. But the drive ended with SS Corey Chavous intercepting a pass at his own 37. The Lions got a break three plays later when Culpepper was picked off in turn by FS Brock Marion, who returned it to the Minnesota 33. However, three plays after that Jones fumbled and DT Spencer Johnson recovered for the Vikings to snuff out the threat. The teams traded punts for the remainder of the period.

Early in the fourth quarter, Harrington was intercepted by CB Brian Williams and the Vikings proceeded to put together an eight-play, 68-yard drive. Culpepper connected with Burleson for a 37-yard touchdown. Detroit came back with an 83-yard series that featured a Harrington pass to WR Az-Zahir Hakim for 40 yards, who then lateraled to RB Shawn Bryson for another 22 yards to the Minnesota 14 and, three plays later, Harrington threw to Roy Williams for a nine-yard TD. With the successful two-point conversion on a pass from Harrington to WR Tai Streets, the game was tied at 21-21.

There were just over six minutes remaining as the Vikings took over for their next series. Culpepper came out throwing, with the big completion to RB Moe Williams for 28 yards to the Detroit 34. The tenth play of the 73-yard drive was an 11-yard Culpepper pass to Williams for a TD. Morten Andersen added the extra point and it was 28-21 with the clock now down to 1:37.

Now it was Harrington throwing on every down as the Lions took over at their 20 following a touchback on the kickoff. Three consecutive completions got the ball to the Detroit 40 and, after an incomplete pass, Harrington hit Streets for 15 more yards to get the ball into Vikings territory. A 23-yard toss to Roy Williams moved the Lions to the 15 and a penalty on Minnesota took it to the one. From there, Harrington threw to Williams for a touchdown and it appeared that the game was going into overtime.

However, on the usually-automatic extra point attempt, a bad snap by long snapper Don Muhlbach  bounced before reaching holder Nick Harris. Unable to set the ball for Hanson to kick, Harris was tackled and the PAT was no good. The Vikings recovered the ensuing onside kick and were able to run out the remaining seconds and win by a score of 28-27.

The game was close statistically as the Lions barely edged Minnesota in both total yards (463 to 461) and first downs (24 to 21). Detroit sacked Culpepper five times, while Harrington was dumped twice by the Vikings, but the Lions also turned the ball over three times, to one suffered by Minnesota.

Daunte Culpepper completed 25 of 35 passes for 404 yards and three touchdowns with one interception. Nate Burleson (pictured above) had 5 catches for 134 yards and two TDs and Randy Moss contributed 102 yards on his four pass receptions that included the long touchdown. Jermaine Wiggins had the most receptions for the Vikings with his 6 for 39 yards. RB Michael Bennett gained 51 rushing yards on 13 carries and also had another 51 yards on three catches.

For the Lions, Joey Harrington was successful on 25 of 44 throws for 361 yards and two TDs while two were picked off. Roy Williams, despite suffering from a hip injury, caught 7 of those passes for 104 yards and two scores. Az-Zahir Hakim gained 108 yards on four receptions. Kevin Jones (pictured below) rushed for 79 yards and a touchdown on 19 attempts and also made four catches for 35 yards.

The Vikings lost two close games to finish out the regular season at 8-8, but they still qualified for the playoffs as a Wild Card. They defeated the division-rival Packers in the first round but lost to Philadelphia at the Divisional level. The loss to Minnesota officially eliminated the Lions from postseason contention and they ended up third in the division at 6-10. Still, it was still the club’s best record since 2000.

For Daunte Culpepper, it was a year in which he led the league in passing yards (4717) and completions (379), both career highs, as were his 39 TD passes, 8.6 yards per attempt, and 69.2 completion percentage. He was chosen to the Pro Bowl for the third time. It was also the pinnacle of a career that quickly faded. Culpepper was limited to seven games in 2005 due to injury and never again played in more than eight during a season as he moved around to three more teams and, eventually, the UFL.

Likewise, Joey Harrington never lived up to his promise. He, too, achieved career highs in 2004 in passing yards (3047) and touchdowns (19) but failed to meet expectations in ’05 and was dealt to Miami – where he became a teammate of Culpepper.   

1999: Favre’s Fourth-Down TD Pass Gives Packers Win Over Vikings

Some things had changed for the Green Bay Packers as they entered the 1999 NFL season. Most notably, Head Coach Mike Holmgren had departed for Seattle and was replaced by Ray Rhodes, once the team’s defensive coordinator and most recently the coach of the Eagles. All-time great DE Reggie White had retired following a 16-sack season at age 37. But 30-year-old QB Brett Favre (pictured at right), a three-time league MVP, was still behind center and the key to an offense that also included RB Dorsey Levens and WR Antonio Freeman.

The Packers had gone 11-5 in ’98 and split their first two games in 1999 before hosting the Minnesota Vikings on September 26 at Lambeau Field. The Vikings, coached by Dennis Green, were coming off of a brilliant 15-1 season in 1998 that ended up with an overtime loss to Atlanta in the NFC Championship game. QB Randall Cunningham made a spectacular comeback after a year of retirement followed by a season on the bench, and rookie WR Randy Moss was equally impressive in tandem with veteran Cris Carter. They had beaten the Falcons by three points in the opening game of ‘99 but had lost to Oakland the previous week.

Minnesota scored on its first possession of the game, driving 94 yards in 14 plays that ended with RB Leroy Hoard running for a two-yard touchdown. Along the way, Cunningham completed passes of 23 and 27 yards to Carter.

The Packers responded with an 11-play, 70-yard drive that was capped early in the second quarter by a 28-yard Ryan Longwell field goal. Favre, who accounted for 61 of those yards with five pass completions, connected with Freeman for 12 yards on a third-and-seven play and on a 37-yard pass play to WR Bill Schroeder that put the ball on the Minnesota four.

Midway through the period, Cunningham threw a pass intended for Moss, who was being triple-covered, and DB Antuan Edwards (the first of three rookie defensive backs drafted by the Packers with Minnesota’s passing game in mind) intercepted and returned it for a 26-yard touchdown, putting Green Bay ahead at 10-7. However, inside the last minute before halftime, Gary Anderson evened the score at 10-10 with a 34-yard field goal that was set up by a pass interference call on Edwards, a two-yard run by RB Moe Williams on a fourth-and-one play, and an 18-yard Cunningham completion to WR Jake Reed in a third-and-nine situation to the Packers’ 24.

The Vikings started off the second half with a 13-play possession that went 61 yards. Cunningham completed a six-yard pass to RB David Palmer on a third-and-five play and converted a fourth-and-one situation with a five-yard run to the Green Bay 40. The drive ended with a 22-yard Anderson field goal that put Minnesota back in front at 13-10. The Packers responded with a long drive of their own. Favre completed four of his eight passes, including two that converted third downs, along the way as Green Bay’s offense went 66 yards in 14 plays for a game-tying 35-yard field goal by Longwell.

Less than five minutes into the fourth quarter, Longwell put the Packers in the lead with a 34-yard field goal to cap a 13-play possession. The Minnesota passing game, which had devastated Green Bay in both meetings in ’98, had been well-defensed this time. Randy Moss had caught just one pass for three yards thus far.

But as the game edged down to the final two minutes, the Vikings went 80 yards in just five plays. Cunningham completed a 50-yard pass to Reed to the Green Bay 28. RB Robert Smith ran for 11 yards, and then Moss caught a pass between FS Darren Sharper and CB Tyrone Williams in the middle of the end zone for a 10-yard touchdown. With the successful extra point, Minnesota was up by 20-16 and it appeared that the Cunningham-to-Moss combination had once again done in the Packers.

Taking possession at the Green Bay 23 yard line, Favre fired a pass down the middle to WR Corey Bradford for a 22-yard gain and followed with short throws to Levens that got the ball to the Minnesota 32. An incompletion was followed by a six-yard pass to Schroeder with the clock now down to 43 seconds. The Packers took their last timeout and Favre again threw to Levens, who gained just three yards – not only was it too short for a first down, but he failed to get out of bounds.

Moving quickly up to the line without time to huddle on a fourth-and-one play, Favre took the snap, pump-faked to his right, and instead of looking for a short sideline pass to get a first down and stop the clock, went to Bradford down the middle. The wide receiver caught the pass, ran past CB Jimmy Hitchcock, and scored a 23-yard touchdown that sent the home crowd into delirium.

With the exhausted Favre getting oxygen on the sideline, the Vikings had time for just one play, which was a long “Hail Mary” pass by Cunningham that was intercepted by Edwards at the Green Bay five yard line to nail down the stunning 23-20 win for the Packers.

Green Bay outgained the Vikings (360 yards to 328) but Minnesota had the edge in first downs (21 to 20). Neither team was particularly effective on the ground, with the Vikings rushing for 97 yards on 29 attempts and the Packers running the ball 22 times for 71 yards. Green Bay also didn’t turn the ball over at all, while the Vikings did so twice.


Brett Favre completed 24 of 39 passes for 304 yards and the one touchdown. Dorsey Levens gained just 49 yards on 18 carries but also caught a team-leading 9 passes that gained another 84 yards. Bill Schroeder (pictured at left) accumulated 85 yards on his 5 catches and Corey Bradford had four receptions for 72 yards and the game-winning TD.

For the Vikings, Randall Cunningham went to the air 32 times and completed 18 of those passes for 244 yards with a touchdown and two interceptions. Jake Reed caught 6 passes for 108 yards while Cris Carter contributed 4 receptions for 85 yards. Randy Moss ended up with just two catches for 13 yards and the one TD. Robert Smith was the leading rusher with 85 yards on 21 carries.

“That was close to a miracle, if not a miracle,” said Ray Rhodes afterward.

Despite the thrilling win over the Vikings, the Packers remained an inconsistent team, finishing at 8-8 and in fourth place in the NFC Central, although still nearly qualifying for a wild card spot in the playoffs (two other .500 teams, the Cowboys and Lions, beat them out based on tiebreakers). Minnesota did go to the playoffs, ending up in second place in the division with a 10-6 record and the top wild card slot. The Vikings defeated Dallas in the Wild Card round and lost to the eventual-champion Rams at the Divisional level.

Brett Favre’s statistics reflected his team’s struggles and his own as he dealt with an injured thumb on his passing hand. He led the NFL in pass attempts (595), ranked second in completions (341) as well as interceptions (23), which outnumbered his TD passes (22). While his 4091 yards through the air placed fourth, his completion percentage of 57.3 was his lowest since becoming a starting quarterback in 1992.

Randall Cunningham (pictured below) had a far more disappointing season. Coming off an MVP year in 1998, he lost his starting job to Jeff George and threw for just 1475 yards with eight touchdowns and nine interceptions. It marked the end of his three-year tenure in Minnesota.

Cris Carter and Randy Moss were still top receivers, however. Carter caught 90 passes for 1241 yards (13.8 avg.) and 13 touchdowns and was a consensus first-team All-Pro selection as well as Pro Bowl choice. Moss, in his second year, had 80 catches for 1413 yards (17.7 avg.) and 11 TDs and also was chosen for the Pro Bowl.

1999: Falcons Stun Vikings in Overtime for NFC Championship

The 1998 Minnesota Vikings certainly appeared to be a championship team in the making as they rode a powerful offense to a 15-1 record that easily topped the NFC Central and set a mark with 556 points scored along the way (since topped by the 2007 Patriots). Head Coach Dennis Green’s team had benefited from the revival of 36-year-old QB Randall Cunningham’s career; after a year’s retirement and a season as a backup, he took over for the injured Brad Johnson and proceeded to lead the NFL in passing, with 3704 yards and 34 touchdowns against just 10 interceptions. He had outstanding targets in veteran WR Cris Carter (78 catches, 1011 yards) and rookie sensation Randy Moss (69 receptions, 1313 yards, and a rookie-record 17 TD catches) at the other wide receiver spot. RB Robert Smith accounted for 1187 rushing yards as well.


The Vikings easily disposed of the upstart Arizona Cardinals in the Divisional round and hosted the Atlanta Falcons at the Metrodome on January 17, 1999 for the NFC Championship.

The Falcons had won the NFC West with a 14-2 tally under Head Coach Dan Reeves. They didn’t dazzle in the ways that Minnesota did, with a run-oriented offense keyed by RB Jamal Anderson (1846 yards). Veteran QB Chris Chandler had a steady season in which he achieved career highs in passing yards (3154) and touchdown passes (25) as well as a 100.9 passer rating. Wide receivers Terance Mathis and Tony Martin both had over 60 catches and 1100 yards. The defense was unspectacular but opportunistic, leading the league in takeaways (44). Atlanta defeated the 49ers in the Divisional round to move to the NFC Championship game, where they were an 11-point underdog.

The Falcons scored on their first possession, marching 76 yards in 15 plays and getting a touchdown on a five-yard pass from Chandler to Anderson. Minnesota came right back with a 31-yard TD pass from Cunningham to Moss, evening the score at 7-7 after one quarter. The Vikings appeared to take control of the game in the second quarter, taking advantage of fumbles by Atlanta RB Harold Green and TE O.J. Santiago as they added two field goals by Gary Anderson and a one-yard touchdown run by Cunningham for a 20-7 lead.

Momentum shifted back to the Falcons late in the second quarter, however, when Cunningham fumbled the ball away. Chandler threw a 14-yard touchdown pass to Mathis on the first play after the turnover and the deficit was cut to 20-14 at the half.

Atlanta pulled closer in the third quarter thanks to a 27-yard Morten Andersen field goal. But the Vikings got on the board again early in the fourth quarter after a 15-play, 82 yard drive that ended with a 5-yard TD pass from Cunningham to WR Matthew Hatchette.

The Falcons came back quickly thanks to Chandler’s 70-yard pass to Martin that set up a 24-yard Andersen field goal. The Minnesota offense stalled in its next two possessions, but when they went 55 yards to set up a potentially game-clinching field goal with just over two minutes left in the fourth quarter, it appeared that they were on the way to the Super Bowl. However, Gary Anderson, who had not missed any of his 35 field goal attempts during the season or his four thus far in the postseason, was wide to the left on the 38-yard attempt.

Atlanta’s offense had shown great poise throughout the game, particularly in the loud Metrodome venue, and with the Vikings fans in full roar, proceeded to drive 71 yards in eight plays that culminated in Chandler’s 27-yard pass to Mathis that tied the score at 27-27 and sent the contest into overtime (pictured at top).

Minnesota received the kickoff in “sudden death”, but in two possessions was unable to effectively move the ball. Mitch Berger punted 52 yards to the Atlanta nine yard line after the second possession. Chandler, now limping from an ankle injury, provided more heroics as he hit Santiago on passes of 15 and 26 yards to move the Falcons to the Minnesota 48. The offense drove the ball in deliberate fashion down to the Vikings 21, and Morten Andersen kicked a 38-yard field goal (pictured at bottom) to give Atlanta a 30-27 win and the conference title.


The Falcons offense accounted for 427 yards to Minnesota’s 356 in the stunning victory. Chris Chandler (pictured at left) had an outstanding performance as he completed 27 of 43 passes for 340 yards and three touchdowns with no interceptions. Tony Martin gained 129 yards on 5 pass receptions, while Terance Mathis caught 6 passes for 73 yards and two scores and Jamal Anderson, who also led the running attack with 67 yards on 23 carries, also caught 6 passes, for 33 yards and a TD.

Randall Cunningham (pictured above right) completed 29 of his 48 passes for 266 yards and two TDs, also having none picked off. Randy Moss and Cris Carter both caught 6 passes, with Moss gaining 75 yards and scoring once, and Carter accumulating 67 yards. Robert Smith rushed 21 times for 71 yards against the tough Falcon defense.

Afterward, many of the comments pertained to the shocking missed field goal attempt by Gary Anderson. “There's no such thing as a guarantee in football in any way, shape or form,” said Coach Dennis Green. “We had such tremendous expectations. That makes it ten times more disappointing,” added Anderson, who had not only had an outstanding season prior to the miss but was one of the great placekickers in NFL history over the course of his long career (the same could be said of Atlanta’s Morten Andersen).

Jubilant Atlanta LB Jessie Tuggle, leader of the defensive unit that performed so well, exclaimed, “We shocked the world! No one thought we would be where we are right now, playing in the NFC Championship. But not only did we come here to play in it, we came here to win it.”

The jubilation failed to extend into the Super Bowl against the Denver Broncos – the Falcons lost convincingly, 34-19. They dropped to 5-11 in 1999 and didn’t return to the playoffs until the 2002 season.

The stunning loss in the ’98 NFC Championship game cast a pall over what had arguably been the Minnesota franchise’s greatest season. The Vikings were back in ’99, but the team wasn’t as dominating and made it into the postseason as a wild card, losing in the Divisional round.