The 2001 season was the

Minnesota Vikings The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the National Football Conference (NFC) North division. Founded in 1960 as an expansio ...

' 41st in the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ma ...

(NFL). Despite having a 12th ranked offense, the Vikings finished 5–11 and missed the playoffs for the first time since

1995 File:1995 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: O.J. Simpson is acquitted of the murders of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman from the year prior in "The Trial of the Century" in the United States; The Great Hanshin earthquake strike ...

. Before the end of the season, the team fired head coach

Dennis Green Dennis Earl Green (February 17, 1949 – July 21, 2016) was an American football coach. During his National Football League (NFL) career, Green coached the Minnesota Vikings for 10 seasons. He coached the Vikings to eight playoff appearances in ...

, who had become a polarizing force among the Vikings fan base despite his successful coaching tenure with the team.

Mike Tice Michael Peter Tice (born February 2, 1959) is a former American football tight end and coach. He played college football at the University of Maryland, College Park and spent 11 seasons playing in the National Football League (NFL) before spendin ...

coached the final game of 2001, a loss to the

Baltimore Ravens The Baltimore Ravens are a professional American football team based in Baltimore, Maryland. The Ravens compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) North division. The team plays it ...

. The season began in tragic circumstances when offensive lineman Korey Stringer died of heatstroke in training camp. The season started off with a 24–13 home loss to the

Carolina Panthers The Carolina Panthers are a professional American football team based in Charlotte, North Carolina. The Panthers compete in the National Football League (NFL), as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. ...

(which would be the Panthers' lone win). They did not win on the road at all during this season. Some season highlights included a 35–13 win over the rival

Green Bay Packers The Green Bay Packers are a professional American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The Packers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the National Football Conference (NFC) North division. It is the th ...

in Week 6, and a Week 10 victory over the

New York Giants The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Giants compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East divisio ...

in which

Randy Moss Randy Gene Moss (born February 13, 1977) is an American former professional football wide receiver who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 14 seasons with the Minnesota Vikings, Oakland Raiders, New England Patriots, Tennessee T ...

pulled in 10 receptions for 171 yards and three touchdowns leading to a 28–16 victory. This was

Cris Carter Graduel Christopher Darin Carter (born November 25, 1965) is an American former football wide receiver who played in the National Football League (NFL) for the Philadelphia Eagles (1987–1989), the Minnesota Vikings (1990–2001) and the Mi ...

's final season in Minnesota, having played 12 seasons there, making eight consecutive Pro Bowl appearances (1993–2000), all with the Vikings. He is the team's all-time leader in receptions, receiving yards, and touchdowns. He retired at the end of the disappointing season, but would briefly return to play for the

Miami Dolphins The Miami Dolphins are a professional American football team based in the Miami metropolitan area. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member team of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. The team pl ...

midway through next season.

Offseason

2001 Draft

: The Vikings traded their third- and fourth-round selections (86th and 119th overall) to the

New England Patriots The New England Patriots are a professional American football team based in the Greater Boston area. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East divisio ...

in exchange for New England's third-round selection (69th overall). : The Vikings were awarded two compensatory picks in the fourth round for the losses of Jeff Christy,

Duane Clemons Duane Anthony Clemons (born May 23, 1974) is a former American Football defensive end who played in the National Football League between 1996 and 2005. He was a first-round selection in the 1996 NFL Draft out of the University of California, Berk ...

Jeff George Jeff is a masculine name, often a short form (hypocorism) of the English given name Jefferson or Jeffrey, which comes from a medieval variant of Geoffrey. Music * DJ Jazzy Jeff, American DJ/turntablist record producer Jeffrey Allen Townes ...

and

Jimmy Hitchcock James Franklin Hitchcock Jr. (June 28, 1911 – July 23, 1959) was an American college football player and Major League Baseball player during the Depression Era. Hitchcock played for the Auburn Tigers football team of Auburn University (then ...

Undrafted free agents

Preseason

Schedule

Game summaries

Week 1: at New Orleans Saints

Week 2: vs. Pittsburgh Steelers

Week 3: vs. Indianapolis Colts

Week 4: at Miami Dolphins

Regular season

Schedule

Notes * Intradivision opponents are in bold text.

Game summaries

Week 1: vs. Carolina Panthers

Week 2: at Chicago Bears

Week 3: vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Week 4: at New Orleans Saints

Week 5: vs. Detroit Lions

Week 6: vs. Green Bay Packers

Week 7: at Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Week 9: at Philadelphia Eagles

Week 10: vs. New York Giants

Week 11: vs. Chicago Bears

Week 12: at Pittsburgh Steelers

Week 13: vs. Tennessee Titans

Week 14: at Detroit Lions

Week 15: vs. Jacksonville Jaguars

Week 16: at Green Bay Packers

Week 17: at Baltimore Ravens

Standings

Statistics

Team leaders

League rankings

Staff

Roster

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:2001 Minnesota Vikings Season Minnesota Vikings seasons

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the List of U.S. states and territories by population, 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minne ...