100 Greatest Minnesota Vikings Players: 100-91

With lists on my mind and just over a week to pass until training camp, I decided to rank the 100 Greatest Players in the history of the Minnesota Vikings. The franchise has had a lot of great players over it’s 80 years in the NFL. 13 of them are in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. A few others should be. A handful more will be. As with any list like this it’s very subjective. It’s how I see the greatest players in Vikings history and the order can change daily, even hourly. It’s a very fluid thing. The following is how I see it now. Hopefully, I can refrain from tinkering with the order during the course of the reveal. The countdown to #1 starts today with the players ranked from 100-91. The reveal will continue most days between now and the start of Vikings training camp on July 28th. 

100 Greatest Minnesota Vikings Players: 100-91

101. Justin Jefferson, WR

100. Randall Cunningham, QB

  99. Brett Favre, QB

  98. Joe Senser, TE

  97. Cordarrelle Patterson, WR/KR

  96. Lance Johnstone, DE

  95. Terry Allen, RB

  94. Mark Mullaney, DE

  93. Paul Flatley, WR

  92. Rip Hawkins, LB

  91. David Dixon, OG

This is a somewhat clunky way to start this Top 100 list. First of all, I had to include Justin Jefferson. His rookie season was too great and too fresh in my mind to wait for a more substantial body of work. I had to rank him now! His was arguably the best rookie season by a receiver in league history. He topped some of what Randy Moss did as a rookie. I never thought that I’d ever see a rookie receiver do that. Jefferson’s still only played a single season in the NFL but I had to carve out a space for him on this list. That space is at #101. He has the desire, the work ethic, the route-running, and the hands to be an all-timer. I’m certain that he’ll soar up this list. 

Second of all, Randall Cunningham and Brett Favre continue this start of including players based on a single season. Each had one great season. Despite arguments from Fran Tarkenton and Daunte Culpepper, the greatest quarterbacking seasons in franchise history were Cunningham in 1998 and Favre in 2009. My goodness, those seasons were a blast. Those seasons have to be recognized and I’m including Cunningham and Favre in my first two spots of the Top 100. If only each had carry the Vikings to that final game. 

One of the great “What if’s” in Vikings history is tight end Joe Senser. He played during the era of Dave Casper, Kellen Winslow, Todd Christensen, and Ozzie Newsome. He had 42 for 447 yards and seven touchdowns as a rookie in 1980. He exploded for 79 catches for 1004 yards, and eight touchdowns in 1981. In only two seasons he had played his way into the orbit of those great tight ends. Then we had the sad strike-shortened season of 1982. Senser missed the 1983 season with a knee injury. He was never the same and his career was over after the 1984 season. If not for that injury, who knows what his career would’ve been? He seemed unstoppable in 1981 and it felt like he was just getting started. Chuck Foreman, Keith Millard, Joey Browner, Terry Allen, Teddy Bridgewater. The Vikings have had several players with promising, even Hall of Fame caliber, careers cut short by injuries. All teams have. Injuries will always be an unfortunate part of football. Joe Senser could’ve been an all-time great. Not just a Vikings all-time great but a league all-time great. For what he did before the knee injury cut short his career, he’s #98.

Speaking of Terry Allen, it feels like he should be higher. He had two 1,000-yard seasons during his four seasons in Minnesota. He missed a season to injury. If he’d done in Minnesota what he continued to do in Washington, he’d be much higher on this list.  

If Cordarrelle Patterson ever learned to run a route and be where he was supposed to be he’d still be in Minnesota. He’d also be in the top half of this list. He’s one of the greatest kick returners in league history. He was a blast with the ball in his hands. Because Patterson could never be relied upon to do what he was supposed to do on offense he goes down as one of the most frustrating players in Vikings history.