The 2011 season was the

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

' 51st in the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...

(NFL), and the first full season under head coach Leslie Frazier, who served as the team's interim head coach for the final six games of the 2010 season. The team failed to improve on their 6–10 record from 2010, going 2–6 before their bye week, before being eliminated from playoff contention in week 12 with a 2–9 record. The team also suffered its first six-game losing streak since the 1984 season. The team started the season with a new starting quarterback,

Donovan McNabb Donovan Jamal McNabb (born November 25, 1976) is an American former professional American football, football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 13 seasons, primarily with the Philadelphia Eagles. He played college ...

, who had enjoyed great success with the Eagles but had a subpar year with the Redskins in 2010. McNabb played respectably, having a passer rating of 82.9 and only turning the ball over twice, but his 1–5 record as starter led to him being benched in favor of rookie Christian Ponder in Week 6, and McNabb was later waived on December 1, 2011. Despite a poor year for the team as a whole, Jared Allen set a franchise record for most sacks in a season with 22. The team led the league in sacks with 50, but also tied a team record for fewest

interceptions In ball-playing competitive team sports, an interception or pick is a move by a player involving a pass of the ball—whether by foot or hand, depending on the rules of the sport—in which the ball is intended for a player of the same team bu ...

caught in a season with only eight.

Offseason

Players Additions

* Michael Jenkins-signed from the

Atlanta Falcons The Atlanta Falcons are a professional American football team based in Atlanta. The Falcons compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South division. The Falcons were founded o ...

. *

Scott Kooistra Daniel Scott Kooistra OO-struh(born October 14, 1980) is an American former professional football offensive tackle. He played college football at North Carolina State and was selected by the Cincinnati Bengals in the seventh round of the 2003 NF ...

-signed from the

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

. *

-signed from the

Washington Redskins The Washington Commanders are a professional American football team based in the Washington metropolitan area. The Commanders compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East ...

Players lost

* Ryan Cook-signed with the

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

. * Ray Edwards-signed with the

. *

Brett Favre Brett Lorenzo Favre ( ; born October 10, 1969) is an American former professional American football, football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 20 seasons, primarily with the Green Bay Packers. Favre had 321 cons ...

-Announced to retire. * Heath Farwell-signed with the

Seattle Seahawks The Seattle Seahawks are a professional American football team based in Seattle. The Seahawks compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC West, West division. The club entered the NFL a ...

. *

Tarvaris Jackson Tarvaris D'Andre Jackson (April 21, 1983 – April 12, 2020) was an American professional football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL). Jackson played college football for the Arkansas Razorbacks and the Alabama State ...

-signed with the Seattle Seahawks. *

Jimmy Kennedy James Kennedy (20 July 1902 – 6 April 1984) was a British songwriter. He was predominantly a lyricist, putting words to existing music such as "Teddy Bears' Picnic" and "My Prayer" or co-writing with composers like Michael Carr (composer), ...

-signed with 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 of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. The ...

. *

Ben Leber Ben Leber (born December 7, 1978) is an American former professional football player who was a linebacker in the National Football League (NFL). He was selected by the San Diego Chargers in the third round of the 2002 NFL draft and later played ...

-signed with the

St. Louis Rams The St. Louis Rams were a professional American football team of the National Football League (NFL). They played in St. Louis, Missouri, from 1995 through the 2015 season, before moving back to Los Angeles, California, where the team had played ...

. *

Bryant McKinnie Bryant Douglas McKinnie (born September 23, 1979) is an American former professional football player who was an offensive tackle in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Miami Hurricanes, twice earning All-Amer ...

-signed with the

. *

Sidney Rice Sidney Raynard Rice (born September 1, 1986) is an American former professional American football, football player who was a wide receiver for seven seasons in the National Football League (NFL). Rice played college football for the South Carol ...

-signed with the Seattle Seahawks. *

Lito Sheppard Lito Decorian Sheppard (born April 8, 1981) is an American football coach and former player. During his playing career as cornerback, he played in the National Football League (NFL) for ten seasons. He was selected by the Philadelphia Eagles in ...

-signed with the

Oakland Raiders The Oakland Raiders were a professional American football team based in Oakland, California, from its founding in 1960 to 1981, and again from 1995 to 2019 before Oakland Raiders relocation to Las Vegas, relocating to the Las Vegas metropolitan ...

. * Frank Walker-signed with the

Tennessee Titans The Tennessee Titans are a professional American football team based in Nashville, Tennessee. The Titans compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division. They play the ...

. *

Madieu Williams Madieu Mohammed Williams (born October 18, 1981) is a West African former professional American football safety who played in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Maryland and was selected by the Cincinnati Bengals i ...

-signed with the

San Francisco 49ers The San Francisco 49ers (also written as the San Francisco Forty-Niners and nicknamed the Niners) are a professional American football team based in the San Francisco Bay Area. The 49ers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member ...

. * Pat Williams-Announced to retire.

2011 draft

After finishing with a 6–10 record in the 2010 season, the Vikings were allocated the 12th pick in the 2011 NFL Draft. Raiders at Vikings 2011

Notes:

Undrafted free agents

Staff

Roster

Preseason

Schedule

The Vikings' preseason schedule was announced on April 12, 2011.

Game summaries

Week 1: at Tennessee Titans

Week 2: at Seattle Seahawks

Week 3: vs. Dallas Cowboys

Week 4: vs. Houston Texans

Regular season

Schedule

;LEGEND: :Team names in bold indicate Vikings' home games.

Game summaries

Week 1: at San Diego Chargers

Week 2: vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Week 3: vs. Detroit Lions

Week 4: at Kansas City Chiefs

Week 5: vs. Arizona Cardinals

Week 6: at Chicago Bears

Week 7: vs. Green Bay Packers

Week 8: at Carolina Panthers

Week 10: at Green Bay Packers

After being swept by the Packers, the Vikings dropped to 2–7.

Week 11: vs. Oakland Raiders

Week 12: at Atlanta Falcons

Week 13: vs. Denver Broncos

Week 14: at Detroit Lions

Week 15: vs. New Orleans Saints

Week 16: at Washington Redskins

Week 17: vs. Chicago Bears

Standings

Statistics

Team leaders

* *Led the league and a new Vikings single-season record.

League rankings

Notes and references

{{2011 NFL season by team

Minnesota Minnesota ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Upper Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Manitoba and Ontario to the north and east and by the U.S. states of Wisconsin to the east, Iowa to the so ...

Minnesota Vikings seasons